Anthony Warlow shines in QPAC production
ANNIE ★★★★
Lyric Theatre, QPAC, until January 31
Annie It is a 1977 Broadway hit based on a 100-year-old comic book about a brave orphan girl who is adopted by a philanthropic billionaire.
The musical, which won seven Tony Awards, packages the escapist pleasures of Depression-era movies about wealthy socialites with songs of unbridled optimism in the face of overwhelming odds. like Star WarsOpening a month later, it was exactly what audiences craved during the bleak decade, and it ran for six years.
So what? Annie Hosting an audience in Brisbane in 2026? Turns out there are plenty, unless you’re a hopelessly cynical person.
Due to the physical demands of eight shows a week, three girls share the lead role of redhead Annie (Matilda Casey, Dakota Chanel and Isabella Hayden), while 16 more take on the roles of seven other orphans.
Many of them were chosen from local auditions and to see them sing and dance This Hard Knocking Life It’s quite astonishing with the polish of experienced musicians. Hayden played the title role on opening night, and the clarity of her high notes was extraordinary.
As for the show’s dog, he doesn’t put a paw wrong.
They say you should never work with children or animals, but that’s never stopped Anthony Warlow, who has been playing bald-headed industrialist Daddy Warbucks since 2000. Warlow, who was handpicked to portray this role on Broadway in 2012, also starred in the Australian production directed by Karen Johnson Mortimer the same year, where he reprized his work.
Warlow makes everything look so easy. As he sings the songs, his portrayal of a billionaire bachelor with a sudden love for a penniless boy is both unconvincing and creepy. new York And Something was missing with unaffected emotion and charm.
On the other hand, Debora Krizak, who plays Miss Hannigan, the cruel, alcoholic matron of the orphanage, gets most of the best lines: “Did I hear happiness here?” he demands, intervening in his accusations. Easy StreetSung with accomplices Rooster (Keanu Gonzalez) and Lily (Mackenzie Dunn), the song is a show-stopper.
The original Yellow Wiggle, Greg Page, plays wheelchair-bound US president Franklin D. Roosevelt; his “New Deal” government intervention created jobs for Americans and hope for recovery after the Wall Street crash.
The program asks us to believe that Warbucks and Annie inspired the government to take this world-changing economic leap of faith with nothing more than a stirring rendition of the iconic song. Tomorrow.
Is it easy? Absolutely, but as we’ve seen in the news lately, billionaires are getting closer to U.S. presidents, even if it’s more about evaporating jobs than creating them.
Even though it looks like a children’s show, Annie There is so much to say about the here and now. Things may look grim, but the sun can and will come out, hope can turn into action, and political change is possible. Jumping lizards are a very enjoyable thing. All we need right now is an Annie to deal with our own cost-of-living crisis.
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Nick Dent is a Culture Reporter for the Brisbane Times covering the arts and things to do in the city.Connect via email.
