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Skylight Music Theatre Brings 'Annie' to Milwaukee for the Holidays

Mark Frohna

There are a lot of holiday options on stage around town right now, from First Stage’s production of A Charlie Brown Christmas to the Milwaukee Rep’s annual A Christmas Carol. Just across town, there's another production at Skylight Music Theatre that is playing to rave reviews and packed houses. 

Skylight’s production of the musical Annie opened just before Thanksgiving and features a number of powerful performances from a decidedly young ensemble. Director Molly Rohde says the play is very near to her heart. As a kid, she was obsessed with the musical. Now as an adult, she recognizes many of the nuances and references in the script that escaped her as a child. 

"I think a lot of people under estimate it. They're familiar with it as a show that's great for a girl with a big voice and a cute dog, and that's kind of what we remember. But there's a lot of politics in it, there's a lot of social justice issues in it," says Rohde. 

She continues, "It takes place in the Great Depression, it's December of 1933. It was a really, really hard time historically for the country and a lot of what is in that play really still resonates and will continue to."

Annie will be on stage at the Skylight Music Theatre through December 27. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2aBz4Ah6HM&feature=youtu.be

Bonnie North
Bonnie joined WUWM in March 2006 as the Arts Producer of the locally produced weekday magazine program Lake Effect.