Village of Orland Park Announces "Annie" Auditions

Ensemble Cast Calls for 50 Kids and 20+ Adults

Choruses of “Tomorrow….tomorrow….I love ya, tomorrow…” will soon be heard in Orland Park when the village’s Orland Park Theatre Troupe holds auditions for its spring musical, “Annie” on January 20 and 21.

Children age six and older are invited to audition and must sing sixteen measures of a prepared piece from the show, be dressed to learn and perform a dance and be able to read from the script. A large ensemble show, “Annie” calls for up to 50 children and more than 20 adults.

“We’re very excited to produce ‘Annie’ for the village’s spring musical,” said Executive Producer Stephanie Simpson, the Recreation Department program supervisor who oversees the theater program. “This is a great show that includes a sizable cast, enabling lots of people to be a part of it,” Simpson said.

Auditions for children, primarily girls, will be held on January 20 from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Orland Park’s Old Village Hall, 14413 South Beacon Avenue. Adults are invited to audition from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on January 20 and January 21, also at the Old Village Hall. If necessary, call backs will be held January 22. Once cast, participants must pay a $35 registration fee.

“People familiar with the show will remember the large number of girls in the cast, especially the orphans,” said Producer/Director Frann Carnivele-Sidlow. “However, we do need some boys to audition too,” she added.

Rehearsals will be Sunday afternoons and Monday and Thursday evenings, February 3 through April 25. Performances are April 26-28 at the Carl Sandburg High School Performing Arts Center.

“Annie” is a Broadway musical based on the Harold Gray comic strip, “Little Orphan Annie,” by permission of The Tribune Media Services, Inc. The book was written by Thomas Meehan with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Martin Charnin.

“This show is full of fun songs that everyone will enjoy performing and the audience will enjoy hearing,” Carnivele-Sidlow said. “The Orland Park area is filled with some amazing talent and we’re looking forward to having yet another talent rich cast perform this spring,” she said.

The original Broadway production, directed by Martin Charnin opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years, winning a Tony Award for best musical. It was presented on Broadway by Mike Nichols, produced by Irwin Meyer, Stephen R. Friedman and Lewis Allen.  It was originally produced by The Goodspeed Opera House, Michael P. Price, executive director.

Further information about the Village of Orland Park’s spring production is available by calling the Recreation Department at 708/403-PARK.