The Twin Valley High School (TVHS) Theater Arts program will present "Annie" as its spring musical. Performances will take place at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, April 7, 8 and 9, as well as at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 10.

Based on the Depression-era comic strip "Litle Orphan Annie" by Harold Gray, the musical follows the title character on her journey from an orphanage on the Lower East Side in New York to a mansion on Fifth Avenue. The musical, which includes the well-known songs "It's the Hard-Knock Life" and "Tomorrow," was brought to Broadway in 1977, where it won the Tony Award for Best Musical.

At TVHS, the performance marks the return of full-scale stage show. "This is the first full stage production of a musical we have performed since before the pandemic," said producer Jessie Miller, noting that "The Addams Family" was presented in 2019. "We prepared for 'Newsies' in 2020 and one week before opening night, they shut everything down."

In 2021, Miller noted, TVHS presented "Through the Years: A Musical Revue" to a limited audience. The show featured musical numbers from every show performed at TVHS over the past 15 years. "Everyone had to be masked and we had to (practice) social distancing," she said.

Starring as Annie is 10th-grader Jenna DiFabrizio, who said she first saw the movie at the age of 6. "I just watched it again when I heard we were doing 'Annie' for the (spring) show," she said, noting that auditions were held last fall. "I knew that I wanted to be Annie."

The cast has mastered the music and is now perfecting the staging. "Blocking is the hardest part - knowing where you are supposed to be and when," Jenna said. "We have so many different interactions (with the other characters)."

In addition to Jenna, featured cast members include Gary Meals as Daddy Warbucks, Cat Ramage as Miss Hannigan, Heather Anderson as Grace, Michael Haak as Rooster and Hannah Kurtz as Lily.

Two local pet owners have "loaned" Sandy and Rocky to portray Annie's dog, Sandy. "We are excited and also nervous about using real dogs to play the role of Sandy," said Miller. "That's the beauty of live theater. You never know what's going to happen."

In addition to Miller, the adult production staff includes Nicole Weaver, director; Reid Simmons, choral director; Tonna Dieter, orchestra conductor; Susan Findley, choreographer; Jimy Kuhn, light and sound director; Ken Reinert and Adam Sanders, stage designers; Andi Lydon and Wendy Clayton, costumers; Michele Algier, prop master; and Anne Reinert, production assistance.

TVHS is located at 4897 N. Twin Valley Road, Elverson. Tickets will be sold at the door; tickets can also be ordered at https://sites.google.com/tvsd.info/annie/home. There is also a link to order tickets at http://www.tvsd.org by clicking on "Recent News" in the right-hand corner of the homepage.