By Anshul Agrawal
At the beginning of this year, the Arts & Entertainment Club embarked on a journey to do what most people called the impossible: put on a musical at Biotech. After much deliberation, they decided on the optimistic classic Annie, whose original run from 1977 to 1978 is tied with Cabaret for the coveted distinction of being the twenty-fifth longest running show on Broadway. Annie has seen several types of performances, from two Broadway revivals in 1997 and 2012 to three film adaptations in 1982, 1999, and 2014 (though we are all trying to forget the latter).
This musical, which tells the story of a young orphan girl in New York City during the Great Depression on a quest to find her parents, was definitely a difficult one to mount at Biotech. However, after months of grueling rehearsals, confusing casting changes, and generally trying times, the show played for two nights (Thursday, April 30 and Friday, May 1). On both nights, the MPR was filled almost all the way to the back with excited students, faculty, parents, and more.
Both nights received fervent praise from the audiences. One of Biotech’s math teachers Mrs. Widmer brought her young daughters for Thursday’s show, and they were ecstatic to get the chance to meet sophomore Nina Samuel (who played Annie) backstage after the show. Senior Shankar Taramangalam commented, “The way the entire cast came together and all just put their hearts on the stage… was really spectacular and great to see.”
While the cast was certainly a more than integral part of this production, along with the pit band and stage crew, the show could not have happened without the hard work of the student directors (the officers of A&E Club) who worked tirelessly for months coordinating the cast’s vocals, improving their acting, arranging the pit orchestra, designing and painting the sets, setting up the rigging for the sets on the stage, and so much more. Another very important person in this production was A&E faculty advisor Mr. Dannen, whose confidence and support in this production kept the entire cast and crew going even when times got tough.
Biotech’s Annie were certainly two nights to remember. If you did not get the chance to see it, you definitely missed out on something special.
Click the below images to see the full image.
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Sophomore Nina Samuel as Annie;)
Freshman Mary Caldwell as Miss Hannigan, Junior Anshul Agrawal as Rooster, & Sophomore Eliza Howard as Lily St. Regis
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Freshman Vanessa Gonzales, Sophomores Alison Pagalilauan , Gaby De Los Santos, and Nina Samuel, & Junior Emma Mueller as Orphans
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Sophomore Matteo Guzman as Drake, Seniors Tessa Garbely and Elizabeth Dreifus, Sophomore Gaby De Los Santos, and Freshman Sonal Mahindroo as Servants