Brown brings ‘Annie Junior’ to Providence schools

The pilot program is designed to mentor teachers and introduce children to theater arts by involving them in a production of a Broadway musical.

by Mary Jo Curtis

Children from four elementary schools are about to make their theatrical debuts. In the culmination of a collaboration among Brown, Trinity Repertory Company and the New York-based Broadway Junior program, students from Asa Messer, Robert L. Bailey IV and Charles Fortes schools in Providence and the Gordon School in East Providence will each perform “Annie Junior,” a one-hour version of the award-winning Broadway musical “Annie,” on May 3 at Trinity Rep.

For the past several weeks they’ve been part of a pilot program designed to mentor teachers and introduce children to the theater arts by involving them in the production of a Broadway musical. Sponsored by Brown’s Creative Arts Council, the program was financed by Brown parent and trustee Martin Granoff and his wife, Perry.

“Annie Junior” is a product of Music Theatre International (MTI), a New York City licensing organization specializing in Broadway, off-Broadway and West End musicals. Through its Broadway Junior division, MTI has adapted such hits as “Guys and Dolls,” “The Music Man” and “Fiddler on the Roof” into one-hour versions for students. Freddie Gershon, chairman of MTI, began developing the Broadway Junior program in 1995, offering its school version of “Annie” in 1998.

More than 3,500 productions of “Annie Junior” have since been mounted in schools nationwide, but this is the first time Broadway Junior has partnered with a university – and the first time classroom teachers have been offered training to enable them to continue theater work in their schools.

Teachers from the four schools have joined 20 undergraduates this semester in a workshop taught by Professor Oskar Eustis, Trinity’s artistic director and chair of the Trinity/Brown University consortium for professional theater training. In addition to sharing his own expertise, Eustis has brought several musical theater professionals, including Gershon, Broadway composer Jeanine Tesori (“Thoroughly Modern Millie”) and Children’s Theatre Company artistic director Peter C. Brosius, into the class to talk about working with children in musical theater.

“It’s our hope that this program and the mentoring relationship between the University and the local teachers will serve as a template for future projects with other colleges and universities,” said Eustis. “Working with children in theater is incredibly important. Study after study show that involving children with theater increases their literacy, keeps them out of the criminal justice system and keeps them in school.”

Eustis’ students are working as four teams with each of the Providence schools, acting as directors, choreographers, musical directors, designers and stage managers to prepare the younger students – ranging from grades 1 to 8 – for their performances at Trinity. The project is being filmed as a documentary by Jina Chang, a video-digital installation artist and an adjunct lecturer in Brown’s Department of Visual Art.

On May 3 each cast will perform its version of “Annie Junior,” using the professional set in place for Trinity’s own production of “Annie,” which runs through June 8. As a bonus to their special day, the students will meet “Annie” writers Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, who will attend the performances.

“This has been a fabulous experience from start to finish – that’s evident looking at these joyful faces,” said Gordon School teacher Frances Martindale. “It’s often the children you least expect who just glory in this. It’s transformative, and we need to give kids as many of these opportunities as possible.”

Asa Messer School teacher Mary Paolino has seen her students grow in self-confidence.

“Many of these kids we think are quiet, but when they’re on stage they blossom,” she said. “They have a whole new level of confidence. Even the children with small parts are proud of their roles.”

Andrew S. Hertz ’04, musical director for the Asa Messer School production, found his young cast knew little about theater. “Most of them had never seen a show or even heard of ‘Annie.’ Now they beg for us to sing ‘Hard Knock Life’ just one more time,” he said.

“Even if they don’t dream of performing, for many this their first taste of theater, and it brings them something completely different from their daily lives,” said Farra Ungar ’05, choreographer for Asa Messer. “You really can’t underestimate these kids. They’ve got so much potential just in their desire to learn. … We just need to set the bar high.”

Allison Posner ’05, musical director for the production at the Gordon School, has seen her cast improve their reading and listening skills and become “team players.” More importantly, she’s watched them learn to empathize with their characters – just as Eustis predicted they would – and that’s a trait she believes will translate offstage when they deal with others.

“We’re really big on team building,” added Ungar. “We work every day to bring the kids together, whether it’s an exercise or a cheer. So much has to do with ensemble building, so we try to create community, a family atmosphere to build trust within the group.”

Martindale noted the play has spurred numerous trips to the library for research; two cast members even made a short video on the Depression.

“They’ve been so invested in the parts they’re playing,” she said. “They’re learning even when they don’t realize they are.”

Matthew Shumate, a sixth-grader playing the role of Daddy Warbucks at Gordon School, said he’s learned a great deal about the 1930s, though he had some trouble learning his lines.

“They didn’t say ‘What’s up?’ The script is more formal – but I guess they had a different kind of slang,” he said. Matthew noted he “can’t wait to meet” the play’s composers; that, he said, will be “amazing.”

The Brown students have also learned that mounting a children’s theater production involves much more than making certain the cast knows its lines. In one recent class, Eustis and his students debated the pros and cons of having each cast watch the other schools in their final run-throughs at Trinity a few hours before their performances.

“They’re bound to compare themselves,” said one student, worrying that might make his cast “more nervous.”

And they wrangled with the mundane logistics, such as arranging for bus transportation and lunches – and what to do with the other three casts while the fourth rehearses and performs on May 3.

“The ‘sit quietly’ thing is a problem,” reported one student director, who expressed concern that his cast might disrupt the others.

But Martindale stresses the experience has been a joyous one. At the end of each Gordon rehearsal, the directors ask the children about their favorite things in that day’s session.

“There’s an absolute chorus of answers,” she said.

“With the jeopardy of arts funding, I’m thrilled to see this [program],” Martindale added. “When asked years from now what they remember about the Gordon School, they’ll remember being part of ‘Annie Junior.’

“At least these children will have one moment in time when they’ve had the experience of being an artist.”