Annie, one of the world’s best loved family musicals, is coming to Southampton this summer as part of a new touring production. The show, which will run for eight performances at the Mayflower Theatre, stars Craig Revel Horwood, best known for his work as a judge on BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, as the tyrannical Miss Hannigan.
Set in New York during the Great Depression, Annie follows the story of a young girl as she lives a hard life at Miss Hannigan’s orphanage. The titular Annie is determined to find her real parents and escape the misery of the orphanage. She is then invited to stay at billionaire Oliver Warbucks’ home for the Christmas period, much to Miss Hannigan’s annoyance. The cruel head of the orphanage is determined to thwart Annie’s plans to find her family, but Annie’s bravery and optimism shine through.
This production, new for 2015, contains much loved songs from the original soundtrack including ‘Hard Knock Life’, ‘Tomorrow’, ‘Easy Street’ and ‘I Don’t Need Anything But You’.
Craig Revel Horwood, who will be performing as Miss Hannigan for the Southampton leg of the tour, is a well known personality on UK television. In addition to his work on the award winning Strictly Come Dancing, Revel Horwood has also judged on Strictly Come Dancing in New Zealand, Dancing with the Stars, Strictly on Ice and Strictly African Dancing.
Speaking to the ChronicleLive about the role, Revel Horwood said:
“It’s a far cry from anything else I have ever done […] I think people will have a lot of trouble recognising me as I have to do a New York accent and I tower above everyone in the show […] It is going to be quite alarming when I first appear in the space, I hope [the audience]enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed rehearsing the part.”
Tickets are available from £20.00 to £42.50 on the Mayflower Theatre website.
