The little redheaded orphan and her adorable dog will return to the stage to sing one of the most iconic songs in musical theater history: “Tomorrow.” If you didn’t know who I was referring to, the musical Annie will be returning to Broadway in fall 2027! This will mark the musical’s 50th anniversary since opening on Broadway. This news was the most shocking to wake up to, as I didn’t expect Annie to be the one to return to Broadway. While there has been a pattern of Broadway using revivals to keep up profitably, I really did not expect Broadway to bring Annie back to the stage.
If you don’t know the story of Annie (which is crazy), it revolves around an orphan — the title character — searching for her parents who left her at an orphanage as a baby. While in New York City, she runs into a stone-cold billionaire named Oliver Warbucks. From there, the two figure out the things missing in their lives, one a father figure, and the other discovering love. Personally, while I do love the musical, the 2014 movie will forever be superior. Besides that, this news has me excited for what they’re going to do and which stage the show will be performing at.
While we do not have any news about where this musical will perform and who is cast, we do have a name for the director. Sam Pinkleton, who is a Tony winner for his direction of the iconic play Oh, Mary! will be directing this revival. In his announcement post, he said “Annie is everything I love about New York City: gutsy, fearless, and funny as hell. It’s a perfectly constructed musical comedy that my collaborators and I will run toward with joy and abandon — with open hearts and total adoration for this legendary show that has made generations fall in love with musicals.” From this statement, I believe Pinkleton is the perfect choice for the direction of the musical, as he’ll definitely keep the New York City flair and whimsy that is brought upon in the original musical.
My biggest note for this musical is that I hope the production of this musical actually feels like a Broadway production. What I mean by this is that I really want the sets to be constructed, not with the use of AI or screens used for the backgrounds. When screens or AI backgrounds are used, it takes away the magic of live performances or takes audiences out of the show. So, hopefully the production team will listen to me, and actually have sets for this show. Other than that, I’m very excited to see who they are going to cast for this show. My personal fancast would be Jennifer Simard for Ms. Hannigan. That would not only be hilarious, but she would have the perfect voice and attitude for the character.