Review: "Annie Live!"

Live televised musicals have always been a gamble, with results that range from inspired (the fiery "Jesus Christ Superstar Live," whose only misstep was a miscast John Legend) to the insipid (the clunky and lackluster "Peter Pan Live"). But with "Annie Live," NBC proves that they've finally got the formula to churn out successful musicals. Sure, there are still limitations of the genre that continue to madden (it's nearly impossible to effectively pace a musical comedy with commercial breaks killing the flow every fifteen minutes), but with a live audience, a winning cast and some fun creative choices, NBC has pulled off a surprisingly difficult task – creating an "Annie" that isn't cloying, dull or dusty. It won't convert those who get immediate hives at the opening notes of "Tomorrow," but for families and theater fans it was as joyous ode to a Broadway we’re sorely missed.

In some ways, "Annie" is the perfect choice for a live TV musical – it's a family-friendly community theater staple that was sure to draw crowds (around 5.2 million viewers to be exact) – but the 1977 stage show (music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin & book by Thomas Meehan, based on Harold Gray's comic strip), has already been adapted three separate times for the screen (keep your eyes on OnStage in the next few days for an "Annie" film round-up). 2021's "Annie Live" didn't reinvent the wheel. It didn't try to needlessly modernize by adding hip-hop drumbeats (like the 2014 remake) and yet didn’t feel like a lifeless museum piece. Director Lear Debessonet kept a swift pace and had a firm grasp on the musical's appeal and tone.

In other words, she kept the theatricality high which is where "Annie" feels most at home. A lot of the awkwardness in both the 1982 and 1999 films was the uneasy juxtaposition between the show's inherent hokey cheeriness and its real-world, Depression-era setting. Putting it in front of a live audience with an intrinsic sense of staginess (cut-out sets, visible stage-hands, a small-but-mighty ensemble each playing multiple roles), does wonders in making the piece gel.

So, without further ado, here's my list of the highlights and missteps of "Annie Live." 

The Cast

On one hand, newcomer Celina Smith was just a terrific Annie. Dare I say the best on-screen Annie? While many Annies can come off as one-note or saccharine, Smith managed to flesh her out. She was spunky and winsome when she had to be but also sweet and broken. It's no small task for a thirteen-year-old to carry a three-hour live musical on her back and she did it flawlessly. Bravo. Her performance was also bolstered by a truly wonderful ensemble. Nicole Scherzinger, looking like a Golden Age starlet, anchored a first-rate group of adult performers (including Broadway's Alex Wong, Morgan Marcell, Eliseo Román, McKenzie Kurtz

 and Jacob Keith Watson) while the child actors, especially the adorable Felice Kakaletris, perfectly performed Sergio Trujillo's "Matilda" influenced choreography for "Hard Knock Life." On the other hand, a few lead performances let the production down. Taraji P. Henson never quite found her footing (or her pace) as Miss Hannigan, delivering a competent but bland performance that felt better suited for an “SNL” sketch. While Hannigan is undoubtedly a hammy comedic role, there must be a level of menace to make the stakes real. There Henson's goofy, toothless take on the role fell flat. The same went for Tituss Burgess, who failed to overcome his near-genetic level of likability to play the rascally con-man Rooster (the always-fabulous Megan Hilty fared much better as his floozy beau Lily St. Regis). I'm also on the fence about Harry Connick, Jr. (as Oliver Warbucks). Wearing a distracting bald cap, Connick felt stiff and uncomfortable for long stretches of "Annie," even when they put him behind a piano for the dull "Something Was Missing." None of the on-screen Daddies (Albert Finney, Victor Garber, Jamie Foxx, Connick, Jr.) are fully successful in navigating the hairpin emotional arc from blustery businessman to warm-hearted softy, which points to a failure on the script's part more than the actors. So perhaps Connick isn't fully to blame. A mention must also be given for the wonderfully diverse casting – from having a majority of the lead roles played by BIPOC actors to having Alan Toy, a Polio-survivor and wheelchair-user, as FDR. Is the optics of a rich, white Republican adopting a small Black child for a photo op just a bit icky? Sure, but with every incarnation of "Annie," the less you think about the bigger picture, the better. Just bop your head to "Easy Street" and enjoy.

The Adaptation

"Annie Live" was surprisingly traditional in its approach to adaptation. Large portions of the script remain unchanged from the original libretto, with only a few updates. "Sign" (an amusing duet for Hannigan and Warbucks) and "We've Got Annie" (a tuneless clunker originally meant to showcase Ann Reinking) from the '82 film were added to the broadcast, while "We Like To Thank You, Herbert Hoover" made its first appearance in a filmed "Annie." Not just is "Hoover" one of Strouse's best melodies, but it does wonders in giving the story and its characters some gravitas. It tampers the toothache-infusing sweetness just enough. Besides, it's a great way for kids to learn about the Great Depression and, in a later scene, the New Deal. Speaking of the 1930s, there are still a few cultural references that clearly flew over the audiences' heads. Jokes about Don Budge, Harpo Marx and Chiang Kai-shek were met with deafening silence from the crowd. I'm all for cultural authenticity, but I feel like there could have been some respectful punch-ups. The ending, which deviated somewhat from the original script, was a rushed, three-car plot pile-up involving both an image rehabilitation and a punishment for Miss Hannigan. It made even less sense than Lily St. Regis becoming the hero in the '99 film. 

The Production

Directed on a fairly straightforward stage with moving set pieces, "Annie Live" functioned much more like a traditional proscenium theater piece than something like "Hairspray Live," which had the cast running between sets. It just worked. Trujillo's choreography was energetic and fun – paying homage to Peter Gennaro and Joe Layton's work in earlier versions but bringing his own flair to wonderful numbers like "NYC," especially paired with Emilio Sosa's bright costumes. Of course, there were more than a couple of bungled camera shots featuring a crew member's shoe or the wrong part of the set, but that seems to be a staple of these live musicals at this point. A little less of Hannigan's bathtub gin for the tech director might have made it a slightly smoother evening, but it didn't distract to the point of annoyance.

Overall

"Annie Live" just got it right. It understood the kitschiness of the source material but never condescended or exploited the show's cutesy factor. "Annie" at its core is an imperfect show – one that crumbles fairly quickly without nostalgia glasses firmly in place – but it holds a vital role in theater history in the way it has inspired generations of young performers. I think "Annie Live" will do just that. It will bring Broadway magic to households across and country and hopefully introduce a new generation to a flawed but classic work of musical comedy. "Annie Live" was a fun, optimistic escape with a hard-working, diverse cast. A love letter to the kind of big splashy Broadway musicals we don't see often. That's all you can ask from "Annie."