Annie (Modern Stage Version)- Page 2

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:18am

I must admit, being a producer, that my first thought before reasoning out the logistics of such a project is, "Would anyone care enough to see it?" Others may take a different view.

[DigificWriter]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:24am

I tend to separate creativity from practicality, but that's just me.

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:35am

That's the problem with most of the industry today, if you ask me. But I'm getting off on a tangent. Back to the topic!

[DigificWriter]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:50am

g.d.e.l.g.i. said: "That's the problem with most of the industry today, if you ask me. But I'm getting off on a tangent. Back to the topic!

 

"

 

There IS a point at which creativity and practicality do need to intersect (especially in the "real world", but for the purposes of what I had wanted this discussion to be about, I was focused way more on the creative side of things than the practical.

 

It's all good, though.

 

Setting the practicality of the matter and your own feelings about the quality of the film's modern take aside, what do you think could be done to augment the lack of songs as currently constituted and make the modern context and storyline workable purely from a narrative standpoint?

 

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 11:02am

Well, song-wise, I feel like you pretty much nailed it. To the extent that I can make sense of the basic plot from your song list, you seem to have put the songs where they should fall plot-wise and smoothed over some of the cracks in the score that way. I still question the need for "Moonquake Lake," much as that video reviewer did, but why quibble over something so small. Also, I might suggest that "NYC" and "This City's Yours" serve the same overall function; keep one or the other, but not both.

 

My big questions would relate more to the many plot holes and constructs that the video reviewer pointed out as not working particularly well, which is to say huge chunks of the film version. How would you plan to resolve those? 'Cause it's pretty clear that just slapping elements of the original script back in wouldn't do it, or at least wouldn't do the whole job. Whatever your opinion of the quality of the film's modern take, an objective step back would say she's not really wrong in pointing out what seem to be massive flaws.

Updated On: 2/18/16 at 11:02 AM

[DigificWriter]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 2:53pm

Here's a synopsis-based attempt to build on the framework of the film whilst also fleshing things out for the stage:

- Act One -

11-year-old Annie, a ward of the State of New York, has recently been placed in the care of Colleen Hannigan, a former singer and budding starlet who never quite got over the failure of her career and who relies on the stipends she gets from DWS for being a foster mother in order to survive. After being forbidden by Hannigan from leaving the house 'unsupervised', Annie gets to know the other foster kids and tells them about herself and the parents that she knows she has out there somewhere and vows that she's going to ignore Miss Hannigan and go to the last place she knows they were - a restaurant called Donni's - the next day in the hopes that they'll come back, something she's been doing every Friday for as long as she can remember ("Maybe".

 

The next day, Annie tries to question Miss Hannigan - who is hung-over after a night of drinking - about why she can't leave the house, and gets herself and the other kids punished. As they begin cleaning the house, Annie and the other kids lament the pitfalls of being in the foster-care system ("The Hard-Knock Life".

 

Across town, tech billionaire and Mayoral candidate Will Stacks and his campaign manager Guy Danlily are preparing for a 'meet-n-greet' outside Donni's. To warm up the gathered crowd, Guy extorts the virtues of New York ("NYC" before introducing Will, who pledges not to "drop one citizen".

 

When a state inspector shows up for a monthly visit to check on the girls in Hannigan's care, Annie sneaks her social security number from his clipboard and runs off to try and find out more information about her parents, but can't find out anything more about herself and/or them than what she already knows. To cheer herself up, Annie sings about taking things one day at a time ("Tomorrow".

 

Whilst on her way to Donni's, Annie runs across a Shibu Inu being abused by a gang of street kids and, whilst trying to drive them off, nearly gets run over by a car. Will, who is just leaving Donni's with Guy and his personal assistant, Grace, sees the incident and mounts a rescue, pushing both Annie and the dog out of the way. Annie takes the dog back to Hannigan's with her, where she's reprimanded harshly for sneaking away and again punished.

 

When Will's rescue of Annie goes viral, Guy suggests that Will offer to foster her in an effort to boost his poll numbers and popularity, sending Grace to find out more about her and track her down. Grace and the state worker from earlier show up at Colleen's to get Annie and take her to live with Stacks. Annie enjoys her new surroundings, befriending Stacks' assistant Grace Farrell. Annie also gets to adopt the stray dog from before, naming her Sandy ("I Think I'm Gonna LIke It Here", whilst the girls she left behind talk about how lucky she is. ("The Hard-Knock Life [Reprise]"

Bonding with Annie, Stacks reveals that he had humble beginnings in Queens; he never really knew his father due to his work hours, but believed he could understand him if he worked just as hard. Annie also helps Grace begin to realize that she's interested in Will romantically.

 

Per Annie's request, Stacks takes her and her friends in Hannigan's foster care to see the premiere of MoonQuake Lake. Stacks is uninterested in the movie at first, but soon becomes a major fan, along with Grace. Per Annie and Grace's insistence, Stacks joins in the after-movie party.

 

After returning home, Annie's friends pantomime the movie "(Moonquake Lake", but accidentally wake up Miss Hannigan, who snaps at them, saying rich people aren't nice and will ditch anyone they don't like anymore (recalling her own past). Slightly hungover, she laments about her situation of foster kids and her desire to reclaim stardom. ("Little Girls". Back at Will's, Annie decides to tell Grace about her Friday routine, but asks her not to tell Will about it.

 

The next day, Will tells Grace to take Annie shopping for a charity gala that they'll be attending the following evening ("You're Never Fully Dressed without a Smile". After they leave, Will muses about what he's about to do ("Why Should I Change a Thing?" as Guy arrives. Will tells him that he's planning on suspending things and looking into adopting Annie, prompting Guy to angrily blow up at him. Guy then leaves to 'cool off' in a bar (even though it's the middle of the day), running into Miss Hannigan (who's out drinking while her foster girls are in school). As the two flirt and begin to trade stories, Guy mentions his frustrations with Will and lets it slip that Will is thinking about making Annie his daughter, which eventually leads into the pair drunkenly concocting a hare-brained scheme to have people impersonate Annie's parents. ("Easy Street"

-- Act 2 --

Will takes Annie out on the town by herself ("The City's Yours" to tell her that he's planning on adopting her, but she breaks down and tells him about her parents and how she's waiting for them to come back, prompting him to realize that, instead of suspending his campaign, he can use the platform as a way to find her parents for her. As they head home after spending the day together, Will privately reflects on how Annie's changed his life ("Something Was Missing".

 

At the charity gala, Will presents Annie's story and then asks her to get up read a speech ("Opportunity", but she panics and runs away. While out searching for her, Grace confesses to Will that she's falling for him, and he confesses that he returns her affections ("You Make Me Happy". The two find Annie in Central Park, where she confesses that she can't read, and take her home, whilst across town Guy comes to see Hannigan and tells her that the 'plan' is in place ("Easy Street [Reprise]"

 

The next day, Annie, Grace, Will, Guy, and Hannigan are all at Donni's (although Will, Grace, and Annie aren't aware of Hannigan's presence) when the people Guy hired show up. They want to take Annie away immediately, but Will asks them to come by his home in an hour, at which point he'll give Annie to them. After he, Grace, and Annie leave, Guy meets with the imposters, and Hannigan overhears him tell them to just drop Annie off on the side of the road once they're across state lines. This sparks an epiphany in Colleen, while across town, Will and Annie prepare to say goodbye to one another reluctantly ("Who am I?" When her 'parents' show up,Will gives Annie to them and watches them drive away ("Maybe [Reprise]), only for Colleen to show up and tell him about the scheme and about what she heard Guy tell the imposters to do. Will calls up Guy and fires him, and then he, Grace, and Colleen head out in a helicopter to try and track down the imposters before they get too far, but Colleen asks Will to make a stopover and pick up Annie's friends, realizing that she needs to start being nicer to them.

 

With the help of the police, the helicopter chases the imposters' car into Central Park, and the imposters are arrested. Will decides to spontaneously propose to Grace and asks Annie if she wants him to adopt her ("I Don't Need Anything But You", while Miss Hannigan vows to be a better foster parent to the other girls ("Tomorrow [Reprise]".

 

***

 

Thoughts?

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 3:05pm

Well, for one thing, the songs don't pave over all the cracks just by being added. A lot of plot points that are unnecessary or hackneyed (Annie's inability to read, for example) are still there. I encourage you to watch the video in full and consider its many valid points about the plot, as it makes several that one would have to contend with in a stage version of this remake. It is not coming from a position of fealty to the original at all, but from a point of critical analysis period.

Updated On: 2/18/16 at 03:05 PM

[DigificWriter]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 3:13pm

I almost didn't include the "Annie can't read" thing, but decided to add it just because I thought it gave her character some nuance. However, if you don't think it makes sense, I don't need to use it.