EGOT winner Whoopi Goldberg will play Miss Hannigan in the New York City engagement of the upcoming tour of the Tony-winning musical Annie.
Produced by Carolyn Rossi Copeland Productions Inc.
and Crossroads Live North America, the tour of the family-friendly musical will play The Chicago Theatre November 12–December 1 before arriving at Manhattan's The Theater at Madison Square Garden December 4, 2024–January 5, 2025. (Goldberg will begin performances December 11 and continue through the end of the New York City run only.)
The tour will subsequently continue to more than 25 cities across North America in 2025, including Baltimore, Indianapolis, Costa Mesa, Milwaukee, Austin, Birmingham, and more. For a complete list of tour dates, visit AnnieTour.com.
Additional casting will be announced at a later date.
Jenn Thompson, who at the age of 10 stepped into the role of Pepper in the original Broadway production of Annie, will direct the tour, having handled the same duties for the musical's 2022-2023 tour. The production will also have choreography by Patricia Wilcox, orchestrations by Dan DeLange, music supervision by Matthew Smedal, music coordination by Talitha Fehr, scenic design by Wilson Chin, costume design by Alejo Vietti, lighting design based on designs by Philip Rosenberg, sound design by Ken Travis, hair and wig design by Ashley Rae Callahan, and casting by Paul Hardt of Hardt Casting.
Annie, which premiered on Broadway in 1977, features a score by Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin and a book by Thomas Meehan. Based on the Depression-era newspaper comic series, the musical centers on its plucky title character and her journey from orphanage to the opulent Warbucks mansion. Annie won seven 1977 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The family-friendly musical has been revived on Broadway twice, in 1997 and 2012.
“Annie is a celebration of family and what can happen when you hold on to hope above all else. We’re delighted to kick off our new 2024-2025 tour at the iconic Chicago Theatre—arriving with a little ray of sunshine when we all need it most.” said Tony-winning composer Strouse in a statement. “It is also a dream come true to bring Annie back home to New York City for the first time in ten years, just in time for the holidays. And having the iconic Whoopi Goldberg join the company and make her first appearance ever in a production of Annie is a gift to us all! I know Martin and Tom would be thrilled, too.”
“I
love the theatre, and in my mind, there is no better way to spend the
holidays than to get back on stage,” added Goldberg. “I can’t wait
to step in to the delicious role of Miss Hannigan and perform for the
greatest audiences in the world—in my hometown of New York City.”
Sandy and Andrea McArdle in Annie
