It's not a 'hard knock life' for "Annie's" debut at River View High School

WARSAW — "Annie" as the spring musical for River View High School was chosen by faculty to give students and the community a taste of a big time, classic Broadway production.

Director Mary McMullen said the musical is the original Broadway show from 1977 and similar to the 1982 film, but with more songs. It's based on the long running comic strip about an orphan who is adopted by the rich Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks. Notable songs include "Tomorrow," "It's a Hard Knock Life" and "I Don't Need Anything But You."

"It's hard to choose a show every year. We see who we have and what the energy is. A lot of our students haven't experienced a gold standard musical yet," McMullen said. "We wanted to do something a little older to give them that big show feel."

"Annie" is set during the Great Depression and McMullen said elements of the play complimented what students were learning in history class as President Franklin D. Roosevelt appears and there's a song about Hoovervilles, poverty row housing nicknamed for President Herbert Hoover.

There's about 35 students in the cast, crew and orchestra. McMullen said several alumni have returned to help backstage as well. McMullen admits the cast is a bit light and males were in short supply. She credits that to lingering affects of the COVID-19 pandemic and budget cuts at River View affecting classes and students. Drama is an extra curricular that falls under the music department, but mostly operates through donations and volunteers, McMullen said.

"This group with everything they've gone through the last couple of years and just learning on their feet and playing multiple roles, they're fantastic. They have all the heart and all the commitment I could ask for," she said.

Junior Saylor Starkey stars as Annie. She was not familiar with the show until they watched the movie in choir class. Her favorite songs are "Maybe" and "I Don't Need Anything But You."

"I got the feeling I could honestly do this, because I think Annie and I are alike in a lot of ways. She's a very headstrong kid who's very spunky and leads with her heart," Starkey said.

Senior Matthew Cullison plays Daddy Warbucks and was encouraged to audition by Samantha McCarthy, who is playing Warbucks' assistant Grace. He said acting wasn't something he had a lot of experience with, but he wanted to try to new things his senior year.

"We saw the cast list and it had my name for Mr. Warbucks. I said, 'oh, that's cool.' It didn't hit me until a little while after that I actually got the role," Cullison said. "It's been a stressful experience at times and testing on my patience at times, but anything worthwhile is difficult."

McCarthy, a senior, said she wanted Annie, but was happy to land her second choice. She said it's been fun to not only hang our with friends, but get to know others in the cast better. She agrees with Cullison on there being stressful times, but it's been an enjoyable experience overall.

"There's something for everybody. It's funny and it's sad and thrilling, in a way. It's a really good show, well-made and family friendly," McCarthy said.

Tickets are $7 and available on the district's website or by calling the high school at 740-824-3522. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Friday (today) and Saturday in the auditorium of River View High School. Doors open for café dining at 6 p.m.

Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with close to 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: It's not a 'hard knock life' for "Annie's" debut at River View High School