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‘Annie Jr.’ Comes to JWMS

An excited cast and crew of young performers at John Winthrop Middle School (JWMS) are ready to present to the community the strength of family as the school’s drama group stages a more compact but equally compelling production of the classic musical Annie Jr.

The production was originally supposed to take the stage in 2020, but the onset of the coronavirus pandemic stalled the staging. Now, Annie Jr. has returned to JWMS with a new cast, utilizing set pieces that were already in the school’s possessions three years ago.

But equally convenient was that the musical was a good fit for its participants, giving them the chance to portray human beings rather than submarine animals, said co-director Laura Traver.

“I felt like [the cast] did a really good job last year with The Little Mermaid, but I wanted to give them a chance to play human beings instead of creatures,” Traver said. “In the long-term overview of theater education, [it’s about] giving a variety of things. I like that this is more historical, and gives them the chance to play real human characters.”

Brendan Calamaro co-directs with Traver. The production features 44 JWMS students, including 30 cast members and 14 crew members.

Playing human characters, especially those closer to them in age and in a vulnerable state, is what makes connecting with those characters and the emotional elements of the production particularly special, according to Addison Hardman, who plays the leading titular character.

“Even though someone has this title of ‘orphan,’ they’re much more than just their basic ‘orphan.’ They have so much more,” said Hardman. “Annie - she has different feelings than you would think an orphan…when you say ‘orphan’ you just think, ‘kid who doesn’t know their parents and is just in an orphanage,’ but Annie is so much more than that. And I’d say that for many other characters in the show.”

The cast, some of whom play multiple characters, got to connect with them on a deeper human level by creating backstories for them, down to family members, place of birth, their friends, and where they live, to become that character.

They get in touch with characters who are the complete opposite personalities of their actors in real life. Such is the case of performer Zuzu Ray, described as bubbly and sweet by her castmates but plays the nasty Miss Agatha Hannigan.

“In my character development study, I decided that when she was younger, she had her heart broken, and she dreamed of being an actress. But complications with the law made her work at the same orphanage that she actually grew up in,” said Ray. “She’s just holding a lot of bitterness inside, and she takes that out on the orphans. She’s a sad character, but I love playing her because she’s fun and sarcastic.”

Travers commented on why the process was a necessary part of the show.

“We talked about how everything that happens on stage in a musical happens for a reason, and the reason is some part of the story,” said Traver. “Even if you’re just a maid…that maid has a backstory, and that maid may move from here to here in the choreography, but it can’t just be because the dance teacher told you to do that…the story feels like it’s always being driven forward, instead of things happening inorganically.”

As they have with their characters Hardman, Ray, and their castmates, including Sway Riechel, Oliver Smith, Kajsia Wright, and Violet Fritz, have formed close bonds through their show rehearsals, which are becoming more intensive and longer in duration as they inch closer to showtime.

“I feel like we’ve created a family…and you feel comfortable if you mess up on stage,” said Fritz, who plays the “sassy” Lily St. Regis.

Even if mistakes are made during rehearsal, such as a missed line, the castmates always encourage one another to persist and improve with each scene. Kaysia Wright, who portrays Grace Farrell, attests to this, especially with the production managing a smaller cast.

“Last year, it was a great experience with the high schoolers, but I feel like it was a lot harder to connect with them because of the difference,” said Wright. “But because now it’s so small, with people our own age, we’re able to express our feelings, especially when all of us can understand each other. It’s a lot less embarrassing if you mess up on stage around them.”

The cast praises Traver for her encouragement of their performances as well, including Sway Riechel, who plays multiple roles such as an usherette to a maid.

“Ms. Traver definitely helps people come out of their shell,” said Riechel, for whom Annie Jr. is her first musical. “Last year, I would never be caught dead in front of a crowd of people. Being with Ms. Traver opens up a whole new world for you. She tells you a story about who she was as a child, and it kind of inspires us to be who we are now.”

It’s the first musical performance for Oliver Smith, who plays Annie’s adoptive father of the same first name, billionaire Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks. Even though he only had a week to prepare for his audition for his desired role, he eventually landed one of the show’s leading spots, which “opened me up to theater,” he said.

Though rehearsals have gotten longer, bleeding into the nighttime, the cast is nevertheless excited for the audience to see what they are capable of as performers, who are anxious to get up on stage after a long day of school.

Lily Resnisky, who plays the quiet yet maternal orphan July, states it simply.

“You kind of wait the whole day to get to rehearsal because it’s really fun,” said Lily Resnisky.

Performances of Annie Jr. will be staged at the JWMS auditorium on March 31 and April 1 at 7 p.m. for both dates. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children and seniors. To purchase tickets, call JWMS at (860) 526 - 9546.