There is great excitement in Claremorris and its surrounding areas as Claremorris Musical Society put the final finishes to their forthcoming production of Annie. Annie will be the third annual production for Claremorris Musical Society. Set up in 2006, the society is growing ever since and is proving very successful in Claremorris and surrounding areas. Tonight the curtain will go up for the opening night of Annie and this well loved family musical will run over the weekend in The Town Hall, Claremorris.
Annie is a popular and well known musical which tells the tale of the little orphan Annie and her journey from the clutches of the mean and nasty Miss Hannigan in the New York municipal orphanage to the loving and warm home of Mr Warbucks, where every effort is made to trace Annie’s real parents. However, tricksters Rooster and Lily, along with Miss Hannigan, hatch a plan to upset all plans for Annie.
The team are working hard to finalise show plans and June Allison is back in her role as producer for her third production with Claremorris Musical Society. Hazel McLynn returns as choreographer and director. Grainne Glavey from Aghamore split her time between college and rehearsals to take on the role of assistant musical director and singing teacher. Deirdre Lee is the musical director with her orchestra, Tom Lyons on guitar, Mick Buckton on bass, and Joe O’Grady on drums. Claremorris Musical Society has a cast of 60 children and 30 adults, who have all been working hard in rehearsals since September. Because of the large numbers in their cast of children Claremorris Musical Society has split the children into two casts to give the children more opportunity to take leading parts as well as chorus parts. Both casts will perform two shows each over the four performances.
The leading part of Annie is shared between local girl Ciara Kelly, aged 12, and Headford girl Olivia Burke, aged 10. Both girls are very strong in all aspects of their performance and you will not want to miss their debuts as they take to the stage with ease. Principal orphans are played by Clodagh McLaughlin, Jessica Coleman Mc Carthy, Abbi Schofield, Sarah McLoughlin, Laura Keane, Aine Duffy, Emily Burke, Emilee Attewell, Annie McConway, Sinead Kelly, Roisin Ni Shuilleabhan, and Caoimhe O’Brien.
All 60 children have attended rehearsals eagerly since last September and, as you can imagine, the excitement is well and truly setting in for the children as they prepare to put all their hard work and dedication on display at the end of the month. With the talented adult chorus added to the mix Annie is promising to be an unforgettable show. Claremorris Musical Society is very proud of all its cast members, both adults and children, and hopes that all their efforts will be warmly received by audiences at the end of the month. Annie will be staged in The Town Hall, Claremorris, on Friday 30, Saturday 31, and Sunday February 1. Shows commence at 8pm sharp nightly with a Sunday matinee performance at 3pm sharp. Tickets are €15 and €10 children, students, and senior citizens. Tickets can be bought at the door before the show or you can secure tickets by contacting 087 6332169.
