(Rainier Treviño as Annie and Georgie as Sandy. Photo by Evan Zimmerman for Murphymade.)
By Montague Gammon III
Virginia Musical Theatre’s February production of the wildly popular musical Annie at the Sandler Center marks a homecoming for the local actress in the title role. That’s 12-year-old Rainey Treviño. She’s teamed with 8 year old sister Stormie, who’s cast as shy orphaned trickster Kate.
Annie is one of the most family friendly, fun-for-kids, major musicals ever.
Stage director and VMT stalwart Pierre Brault, who helmed three productions in Cleveland, says, “A child seeing it for the first time can follow Annie’s story of finding her chosen family.”
He added. “Annie has always been my first love of musical theatre…the first show I ever saw; I was really, really young…my mom and grandmom brought me to it.”
“It has lasted so long because it is true of our American Heritage/Community and it really speaks of hope and optimism.”
Leading lady Rainey (formally, Rainier) has a fully professional resume that includes print ads, voice overs for commercials, dancing in the Arts Festival’s International Tattoo, and now voicing the title character in the animated series Windy Weatherfoot.
Plus, she’s already played the title role of Annie in a Broadway National Tour.
Rainey and Stormie, veterans of Norfolk’s Hurrah Players, made their professional debuts in the Virginia Opera/Virginia Arts Festival production of Sound of Music two and a half years ago.
Norview-born Broadway arranger and composer Rob Fisher was so impressed with 6 year old Stormie back then that, when interviewed for a 2022 preview, he singled out her talent from all the local folks he auditioned.
Last February Stormie, 7 years old, was in an Off-Broadway industry read of Ashley Griffin’s play Trial. She’s performed in the VMT production of Evita, appeared in the Arts Festival’s Sweeney Todd last year, and Virginia Stage productions of Fiddler on the Roof and A Merry Little Christmas Carol (Tiny Tim, of course).
Annie’s boasts another featured pro from Hampton Roads. Emmy winner, Grammy nominated Patrice Covington, Chesapeake native and Governor’s School grad, plays the show’s main villain, Miss Hannigan.
Covington appeared in the original cast of the Broadway musical The Color Purple, which got the cast a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Musical Performance, and picked up that Grammy nomination in the Broadway National Tour of Ain’t Misbehavin’.
The plot of Annie, which owes little to the old newspaper cartoon but its name and the presence of characters Annie, Daddy Warbucks and canine Sandy, is one of the grandest bits of American historical fantasy ever.
It’s set in 1933, the heart of the Great Depression. Annie lives in an orphanage under the control of the hard drinking Mis Hannigan. Annie’s always dreaming of finding her birth parents.
She meets wealthy Daddy Warbucks, meets newly elected President Roosevelt, is almost kidnapped by Miss Hannigan’s ex-con brother, gets personal help in her parental search from J. Edgar Hoover, gets adopted by Warbucks in a ceremony officiated by Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, and manages with her unfailingly positive attitude single handedly to inspire Roosevelt’s New Deal. That summary leaves out sub-plots, supporting characters and a whole lot of song, dance and comedy.
The Treviño sisters sat down just before their second rehearsal for a chat with this writer and co-interviewer, adult son Monte. Brault joined part way through the conversation.
It was Stormie’s first official interview, and there was a sense, talking to her and to Rainey, of being present at the creation of something theatrically special. Rainey, being 4 years older, is the more vocal, while Stormie retains the megawatt smile and searchlight bright, wide eyed gaze–the look of someone who takes a gleeful delight in the world around her–that stole hearts and scenes during Sound of Music.
Some comments from the interview:
Favorite roles:
Stormie: “One of the funnest and favorite roles I’ve played in Squirt in Finding Nemo because I got to wear heelies (Shoes that have one skate wheel instead of a conventional heel.) and that was fun and it was my very first named role.”
Rainey: “Well I love Annie, I’m sure you know, and Annie has been my favorite role, definitely.”
Roles yet unplayed:
S: “I look at my sister and one of the roles I would like to play in the future is Annie because Annie’s going to be on Broadway in a few years and that’s going to be when I am 12 or 11 and we’re going to audition for that.”
R: “One of my dream roles for the future (she pauses, ever so briefly, for perfect dramatic effect): Lydia Deetz in Beetlejuice…a role that stood out for me like forever. She’s an awesome character…just a fun role…a darker character compared to all the bubbly and excited characters I’ve played.”
Insights into the characters they play:
S: “Kate tries to – she likes to play around a lot. She tries to bring, not hope, but fun, into the orphanage. She comes up with silly things and she tries to lighten everything. [“Are you anything like Kate?”] “I’m mischievous and…(Rainey chimes in, “And you like to make jokes.”) Yeah!”
R: “[Annie is] spunky, she’s optimistic, she’s in a horrible situation…she never gives up and that’s what I personally love about Annie.”
About the play’s enduring appeal:
R: “Annie is very popular because it’s about hope, [she cites the “amazing song” ‘Tomorrow’ ”] …every cloud has a silver lining…when things are bad sometimes there’s always hope. Anywhere you look there’s always hope.”
Pierre: “It’s an amazing piece that reinvents itself… I think success of the show is that we can laugh through the dire circumstances.”
S: “I love how funny it is and how also sad it can be. It’s one of the best shows!”
So why did Rainey leave the national tour:
R: “I’m 5 feet [tall] and I had to leave the tour.”
What national audiences have lost is Hampton Roads’ gain.
NOTE: The author’s son, M.T.C (Monte) Gammon provided research, technical, organizational and proofreading assistance for this piece, along with editorial suggestions including its closing line, and alternated interview questions.
Annie
Music: Charles Strouse
Book: Thomas Meehan
Lyrics: Martin Charnin
Virginia Musical Theatre
8:00 p.m., Fri., Feb. 21
2:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m., Sat. Feb. 22
2:30 p.m., Sun., Feb. 23
Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach
VMT: 757-340-5446
