NEW YORK (AP) – If you catch the latest national tour of “Annie,” you’re in for a treat – the original director and lyricist is running the show. That’s like drinking real Coke after years of only having New Coke.
The new “Annie” making its way to New York City this Christmas is the 19th time Martin Charnin has directed a production of his heartwarming tale of a Depression-era orphan girl and her scruffy dog. It’s the real thing.
“I have a responsibility to the audience,” said Charnin during a recent interview. “They’ve come for a reason. They haven’t come for a new interpretation.”
Charnin, who turns 81 on Tuesday, is a keeper of the “Annie” flame, protective of what he created with songwriter Charles Strouse and book writer Thomas Meehan.
Messing with “Annie” means messing with Charnin.