My Favorite Flop

"Tomorrow is now" as hosts Bobby and Kristina discuss 1989's Annie 2: Miss Hannigan's Revenge and 1993's Annie Warbucks on episode twenty of My Favorite Flop.

ABOUT ANNIE 2: MISS HANNIGAN'S REVENGE

The first official attempt at a sequel to the hit Broadway musical Annie, Annie 2: Miss Hannigan's Revenge follows the continued story of villainous Miss Hannigan as she escapes from prison to marry Daddy Warbucks, steal his fortune, and rid the world of of Little Orphan Annie once and for all. The musical features a book by Thomas Meehan, lyrics by Martin Charin, and music by Charles Strouse.

At the closing performance of Annie 1, lyricist Martin Charnin stood onstage and told the audience that the story of Annie was not over and that a sequel to the musical was already in the works. Six years later, hundreds of little girls in their red velvet dresses pilgrimaged to Washington D.C. with their parents to get a first look at what was excepted to be one of the biggest hits on Broadway the following season. Little did they know that Annie 2 would feature very little Annie at all and, instead, would tell the misguided redemption story of the first musical's villain.

The entire project was a manifestation of the creative team's own insecurities of now being best-known for writing a fluffy kids musical and not their more-serious previous works... so, they set out to prove to the industry that they could follow it up with something more complex and grown up. The happy endings we see at the end of Annie 1 we find out were short lived. Daddy Warbucks discovers that he can't legally adopt Annie as a single father, so he must find a wife and because of that, Annie's future is uncertain. Grace, who has genuine feelings for the billionaire, must balance her career and personal life as she is passed over for other candidates. And Hannigan must come to terms with her quest for revenge and money as she confronts her own past and humanity.

The creative team had hoped that fans of the original musical had grown up with them and would appreciate their cynical take on what happens after "tomorrow". Sadly, "something was missing", and what that was what attracted so many fans to the original piece - the absolute charm of Annie and her orphan friends. Throughout the run in D.C., desperate changes were made to the show to fix that tonal issues, including adding more Annie and additional orphan characters from the original, but a major financial backer decided to leave the show and it's scheduled Broadway run (the marquee was already up!) was cancelled.

Annie 2 would then go through a process of rewrites and restructuring at the Goodspeed Opera House that would not only remove Miss Hannigan from the show's title, but from the show completely... eventually evolving into a different sequel titled Annie Warbucks!

Original Washington Cast

• Dorothy Loudon as Miss Hannigan
• Fiely Matias as The Asp
• Gerry McIntyre as Punjab
• Lauren Mitchell as Grace Farrell
• Harve Presnell as Oliver Warbucks
• Danielle Findley as Annie Warbucks
• Beau as Sandy
• Marian Seldes as Mrs. Christmas
• Ronny Graham as Lionel McCoy
• Terrence P. Currier as Drake
• Raymond Thorne as FDR
• Ellyn Arons as Eleanor Roosevelt

ABOUT ANNIE WARBUCKS

Another attempt at as a sequel to the hit Broadway musical Annie, Annie Warbucks begins immediately after Annie ends as  Daddy Warbucks learns that he must marry within sixty days or else Annie will be returned to the orphanage. The musical features a book by Thomas Meehan, lyrics by Martin Charin, and music by Charles Strouse.

Annie Warbucks was developed in a workshop at the Goodspeed Opera House, directed by Charnin and choreographed by Peter Gennaro and under the direction of Michael P. Price, Executive Director. The musical played several out-of-town tryouts, starting at the Marriott Lincolnshire, Chicago in February through April 1992 and then the Drury Lane in Oak Brook, Illinois, followed by a five city United States tour, including San Diego in October 1992.

It was originally planned that Annie Warbucks would open on Broadway, but a "major investor pulled out". Some characters were cut and the budget reduced, leading to delays. The Off-Broadway production opened on August 9, 1993, at the Variety Arts Theatre. The cast included Harve Presnell as Warbucks, Donna McKechnie as Sheila Kelly, and Kathryn Zaremba in the title role. The show broke all off-Broadway box office records for the time, running for 200 performances.

The producers considered moving the show from the Variety Arts Theater to Broadway, and they secured $2.5 million from an investor for a move to Broadway, but discovered they couldn't make the move in time to be eligible for Tony Award consideration, which was a big part of the reason for moving in the first place. A provision in the Tony rules required that a show had to transfer to a Tony-eligible theatre within 30 weeks of its original opening in order to qualify for any nominations. The investor pulled out, ending the plans.

Original Off-Broadway Cast

• Kathryn Zaremba as Annie Warbucks
• Harve Presnell as Daddy Warbucks
• Donna McKechnie as Mrs. Sheila Kelly
• Alene Robertson as Commissioner Harriet Doyle
• Marguerite MacIntyre as Grace Farrell
• Kip Niven as Drake
• Raymond Thorne as FDR
• Cindy Lou as Sandy