Andrea McArdle, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sadie Sink, and now…
Who will be the next Annie?
Leapin’ lizards! The beloved musical about the intrepid redheaded orphan who dreams of finding her parents will have a spectacular new 50th Anniversary Broadway production in the Fall 2027. The show debuts 50 years after Annie first arrived on Broadway and became one of the most enduring musicals in American theater.
And while we don’t yet know who will be wearing the red wig and singing “The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow,” we do know a few things.
Tony Award winner Sam Pinkleton, the director of Oh, Mary! and the current Broadway revival of The Rocky Horror Show, will direct the new production. Pinkleton has promised a fresh theatrical perspective while retaining the heart, optimism and timeless spirit that have made Annie such a fixture of American popular culture.
“If you ask any of my closest friends what I love more than anything on the planet, everyone will have the same answer: Annie,” said Pinkleton. “Annie is everything I love about New York City: gutsy, fearless, and funny as hell. It’s a perfectly constructed musical comedy that my collaborators and I will run toward with joy and abandon – with open hearts and total adoration for this legendary show that has made generations fall in love with musicals.”
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With music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin and a book by Thomas Meehan, Annie premiered at the Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut in 1976 before moving to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and then to Broadway. The musical opened at the Alvin Theatre — now the Neil Simon Theatre — on April 21, 1977.
It was an immediate sensation.
The original production received 11 Tony Award nominations and won seven, including Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Book of a Musical. Dorothy Loudon won Best Actress in a Musical for her unforgettable performance as Miss Hannigan.
And at the center of it all was a young Andrea McArdle as Annie. McArdle became the first Broadway Annie, launching a tradition of young performers taking on one of musical theater’s most recognizable child roles. Among those who followed her in the original Broadway production was another future superstar: Sarah Jessica Parker. Years later, another young actress would step into the red wig: Sadie Sink.
Long before she became Max Mayfield on Stranger Things, Sink played Annie. In 2012, she joined the show’s Broadway revival at the Palace Theatre. She and Taylor Richardson shared the title role. So the history of Annie is really a history of discovering young performers.
A musical that went around the world
The extraordinary staying power of Annie isn’t confined to Broadway. Annie has been translated into 28 languages and has played in 34 different countries. It’s a remarkable journey for a musical that began with a redheaded comic-strip orphan and a handful of songs.
The show has been adapted for film and television, performed by schoolchildren and professional theater companies, and was introduced to generations of audiences. “Tomorrow” has become one of those songs that seems to exist independently of the musical that created it. And then there’s “It’s the Hard-Knock Life,” which found an entirely new audience decades later when Jay-Z sampled it for his 1998 hit of the same name.
Even Sandy was famous. The original Sandy became a Broadway celebrity. The dog who played Sandy in the original production at the Goodspeed Opera House was a rescue trained by William “Bill” Berloni. Berloni’s career as a theatrical animal trainer began when he was hired to find a dog for Annie. Berloni rescued Sandy from a Connecticut shelter and trained him for that production. Sandy became so associated with the musical that the role helped launch Berloni’s decades-long career training rescue animals for theater and television.
And the original Sandy had a pretty impressive Broadway run too. He even “wrote” a memoir, Sandy: The Autobiography of a Star. And he said: “My head has been rubbed by Jacqueline Onassis, Paul McCartney, Lady Bird Johnson, Beverly Sills, Sammy Davis, and Mayor John V Lindsay….I have been petted by Lauren Bacall, Barbra Streisand, Jack Albertson and Jean Stapleton…Andy Warhol took my picture. I made Ethel Merman laugh.”
Which brings us to 2027.
Related: Hit Broadway Musical, Later Adapted into 1982 Blockbuster Starring Carol Burnett, Returning for 50th Anniversary Show
So who could be the next Annie?
There is an important thing to know. None of the following actresses has been announced as Annie.
So consider these seven names pure fancasting. These seven performers who could make great choices for the iconic role. But there’s a very good chance the actual Annie will be someone we haven’t even heard of yet. Here’s our dream casting picks.
1. Journey Christine
Michael Tullberg / Getty Images
Having built an impressive resume with roles in The Upshaws and Outsiders, Journey Christine brings an infectious optimism and grit to every project she touches. Beneath Annie’s classic score is a story about a kid surviving tough circumstances through sheer determination. And Christine’s work on screen demonstrates the exact kind of warmth and emotional resilience the role demands. She has the ideal combination of fierce independence and natural vulnerability needed to make iconic anthems like “Tomorrow” ring true for a modern Broadway audience.
2. Mykal-Michelle Harris
Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin on Getty Images
A standout young performer known for her roles in mixed-ish and Cheaper by the Dozen, Mykal-Michelle Harris is a natural scene-stealer with a big personality. Carrying a musical like Annie requires an actor who can command an enormous stage without losing her childhood charm, and Harris has already shown a rare, effortless ability to hold an audience’s attention. With her sharp comedic timing and expressive stage presence, she could bring a spunky, larger-than-life energy to the orphan who refuses to back down.
3. Kea Peahu
@keapeahu.official9 hr practice done bless #fyp
♬ original sound – DreskiiiiiThe Hawaiian-born actress and dancer made her feature debut in Netflix’s Finding ‘Ohana. Peahu is a powerhouse performer with incredible stage discipline, rhythm, and an expressive, joyful face. Her ability to anchor an adventure story with grit and enthusiasm makes her an exciting theatrical candidate who could easily tackle the show’s demanding choreography and emotional beats.
4. Alan Kim
Frazer Harrison / Getty Images
After winning hearts globally in Minari and starring in Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens, Alan Kim has proved he can seamlessly balance deep emotional grounding with effortless, naive humor. (If the production considers an inspired gender-swapped or fresh reimagining of the lead orphan), a young performer with his level of natural, un-actorly charm and comic timing would make Annie’s journey through Depression-era New York feel deeply human and universally endearing.
5. Vivien Lyra Blair
JB Lacroix / Getty Images
Best known for holding her own opposite major Hollywood stars in Obi-Wan Kenobi (as young Princess Leia) and Bird Box, Vivien Lyra Blair has a rare on-screen quality: sheer, stubborn bravery. She excels at playing fiercely independent kids who aren’t afraid of standing up to authority figures. That exact edge would make her Miss Hannigan scenes crackle with authentic grit.
6. Emma Origenes
View this post on InstagramIf the producers look directly to traditional Broadway pipelines, Emma Origenes is a natural fit. Having already graced the Great White Way as Young Nala in The Lion King and toured nationally as Young Anna in Frozen, Origenes possesses rare stage discipline for a performer her age. Playing Annie requires an actor who can carry complex choreography, hit demanding vocal marks, and bring a bright, unshakeable optimism to a massive theater. She has already proven she can hold down a major Broadway production, making her a prime candidate to step into the red dress.
Related: The Original Broadway Annie, 61, Sings ‘Maybe’ Again and Fans Say It Means More Now Than Ever
7. Pyper Braun
Frazer Harrison / Getty Images
Pyper Braun has built a fantastic young acting resume in projects like Netflix’s Country Comfort and Imaginary, but Annie would be an entirely different kind of showcase. She possesses that rare stage combination of being able to command an enormous room while still making the audience believe she’s just a regular kid looking for a home.
But the biggest prediction may be the one we can’t make. For all the fun of imagining famous young actresses singing “Tomorrow,” history suggests that Broadway may ultimately introduce us to somebody new.
Andrea McArdle, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Sadie Sink were not household names when they were cast as Annie. And there is almost certainly another young performer out there who could join that lineage.
The producers behind the new production, Michael Alden and Hal Luftig, along with Cathy Dantchik and Kevin Connor for Halcyon Theatricals, have announced a production designed to celebrate five decades of Annie. The families of the show’s creators have also embraced the return. The family of Martin Charnin called the production a continuation of his legacy, while the family of book writer Thomas Meehan described Broadway as Annie’s homecoming. The family of composer Charles Strouse expressed pride in the place the score has earned in the hearts of generations.
And maybe that’s why the casting will be so closely watched. Because whoever gets the role won’t just be playing Annie. She will be joining a very exclusive club. 50 years after that first little redhead walked onto Broadway, somebody new gets to sing those famous words, words that feel so needed. “The sun will come out tomorrow.”
As Martin Charnin, the show’s creator, lyricist and original director, once said of Annie: “Grandmothers take their kids to it and their grandkids to it and their kids take their kids to it — it’s like a relay race where the baton keeps getting passed to the next generation every time.”
Next, Carol Burnett Has Surprise Reunion With Iconic ‘Annie’ Co-Star 44 Years After the Film
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