Lied Center to present 'Annie' April 21-22

The national tour of the musical “Annie” is coming to Lincoln for performances at 7 p.m. April 21 and 22 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts, 301 N. 12th St.

Tickets are on sale here, by phone at 402-472-4747 or at the Lied Center box office. Tickets are available to students at a 50 percent discount with a valid NCard.

The production features a 25-member company. In the title role is Heidi Gray, an 11-year-old actress from the Augusta, Ga. area, making her tour debut. Gilgamesh Taggett stars as Oliver Warbucks. In the role of Miss Hannigan is Lynn Andrews. Also starring in the tour are Chloe Tiso as Grace, Garrett Deagon as Rooster, Lucy Werner as Lily and Jeffrey B. Duncan as FDR. Macy and Sunny, rescue terriers, star as Sandy. The orphans are Sage Bentley as Tessie, Bridget Carly Marsh as July, Molly Rose Meredith as Pepper, Emily Moreland as Kate, Annabelle Wachtel as Molly and Casey Watkins as Duffy.

The original production of “Annie” opened April 21, 1977, at the Alvin Theatre and went on to win the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for best musical, seven Drama Desk awards including best musical, the Grammy for best cast show album and seven Tony Awards including best musical, best book and best score. The show remains one of the biggest Broadway musical hits, with 2,377 performances in its initial run. The musical has been performed in 28 languages and has been running somewhere around the world for 37 years.

The beloved score for “Annie” includes “Maybe,” “It’s the Hard-Knock Life,” “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile,” “Easy Street,” “I Don’t Need Anything But You” and “Tomorrow.”