Mom took us to children’s theater. Pirates and princesses flash briefly in my mind’s eye, but Annie is the first clear moving picture, like seeing a cornflower blue spring sky through a freshly cleaned window.
I sat in the balcony looking down on a ragamuffin girl about my age singing and dancing with her friends. She told a story of never giving up, a simple idea that’s not always easy to put into practice. Annie lived through the depression, being an orphan, losing her parents. She even lost her dog, Sandy — the stray she found on the street and kept as her own.
My little heart grew a million times for this little girl I didn’t know. And I especially felt sorry that she’d lost her furry friend. Then, towards the end of the show during the Christmas scene at Daddy Warbucks’ house, a HUGE box with a big red bow was wheeled onto the stage. From my perch up high, I saw Sandy’s light brown fur as they lifted the lid before the dog hit his cue and popped out of the box. Tears welled in my eyes, and I haven’t been the same since.
*dabs eyes with tissue*
There’s nothing like a live performance, a lesson I learned at the age of 6. As for the positivity of being on the bright side and knowing that the sun will come out tomorrow, well, I think I was born with that. In Annie, I just found my soul sister.
From the 1977 Tony Awards, with the original cast (before my time):
*Tomorrow is the first song (after a lil’ explanation), but this montage of songs features the best of the bunch, except the Herbert Hoover song, which I always loved.
This post is part of the Blogging A to Z Challenge. My theme is Musical Memoir. Each Monday through Saturday (and Sunday, April 1), I explore personal memories through my love of music, inspired and coordinated by the letters of the alphabet. Join in the fun and participate in the challenge. Or leave a comment and enjoy some conversation. Thanks for reading. Peace.
Did you happen to watch “Young Sheldon” the other night? It ties in with this post really well. Great start! Looking forward to the next 25.
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I didn’t. I’ve never seen The Big Bang Theory or this new show. I’ll have to check it out!
Thanks so much!
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There’s nothing quite like theater. And when you have a memory like this . . that’s just beautiful.
Happy Easter!
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Fenks. Happy Easter to you!
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Hope yours was a good one!
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Live theater and live music are some of my favorite things in life. Whenever there’s mention of Annie, I think of my youngest granddaughter who sang songs from the musical almost non-stop for about a year after she saw it in the theater. 🙂
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Me, too! Glad to find another theater lover, Robin! A year? Well, I’m STILL singing it, perhaps not nonstop, though…. depends on the day. 🙂 ha
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Loved this post. Brought back many memories, perfect for an Easter Sunday!
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Thanks, Mom!
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It must have been wonderful to see a stage play of the Annie story. I remember taking my girls to the movies to see it. I was just thinking of that song, Tomorrow, this morning. 🙂 Looking forward to more of your musical posts.
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Thank you! It’s a peppy song, good for any day! 🙂
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I’ve never seen it live, but I so love the 1982 film version ❤
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Me, too. An awesome flick.
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