#51
Posted: 1/7/09 at 5:21pm
Hi.
The real controversy around Joanna being fired from ANNIE was that she was let go with virtually NO notice - and it was done very "sneakily". Alexandra Kiesman was Joanna's understudy, and had been since the pre-Broadway tour kicked off four months prior to the firing. One night in Boston, Joanna got bronchitis and was advised by a doctor NOT to perform. Instead of putting Alexandra on, the powers that be put on Brittny - a then 8 year old who was playing "July" and was NOT an Annie understudy. So... the girl MUST have been coached/rehearsed behind the scenes to be ready to go on as Annie. It was just done very deviously. Producers claimed "Joanna and the role" never came "together" --- it certainly couldnt have taken them 100+ performances to figure that out. They just wanted publicity and Nell Carter also had a say in it -- she wanted a "small child" to play Annie. But... all aside, I really hope Joanna does well on AI --- she has a gorgeous voice. I do not really like her outfit choices as of late, but her voice is still gold.
The real controversy around Joanna being fired from ANNIE was that she was let go with virtually NO notice - and it was done very "sneakily". Alexandra Kiesman was Joanna's understudy, and had been since the pre-Broadway tour kicked off four months prior to the firing. One night in Boston, Joanna got bronchitis and was advised by a doctor NOT to perform. Instead of putting Alexandra on, the powers that be put on Brittny - a then 8 year old who was playing "July" and was NOT an Annie understudy. So... the girl MUST have been coached/rehearsed behind the scenes to be ready to go on as Annie. It was just done very deviously. Producers claimed "Joanna and the role" never came "together" --- it certainly couldnt have taken them 100+ performances to figure that out. They just wanted publicity and Nell Carter also had a say in it -- she wanted a "small child" to play Annie. But... all aside, I really hope Joanna does well on AI --- she has a gorgeous voice. I do not really like her outfit choices as of late, but her voice is still gold.
