MTI Adapts ANNIE Into 30-Minute Kids Version

In honor of the Broadway revival of Annie, Music Theatre International (MTI) has adapted the show into a 30-minute KIDS® version for performance by elementary school students.

Since their release Annie and Annie JR,® have been two of the most popular titles requested in the growing MTI catalog. Annie JR. is the 60-minute adaption of the full-length Annie production and was the first MTI show to be adapted for the MTI Broadway Junior Collection®.

To create Annie KIDS, MTI worked with authors Charles Strouse, Martin Charnin and Thomas Meehan to meticulously condense and edit the production so that it can be performed and enjoyed by a younger audience.

“Annie continues to be one of the most beloved characters and musicals in the theatre world,” commented Drew Cohen, President of MTI. “Thanks to the input of the show’s three authors, Annie’s heart and soul are beautifully maintained through the perfect balance of dialogue and songs for elementary age students.”

The MTI Broadway Junior Collection® features condensed author-approved versions of classic musicals custom tailored to the needs of young people and schools. The music is written in keys appropriate for young voices and all shows can be expanded to accommodate as many performers as can fit on stage. The Collection is divided into two categories to accommodate different age ranges:

KIDS – 30-minute musicals for performance by elementary school students
JR – 60-minute musicals for performance by middle school students
Like all titles in the MTI Broadway Junior Collection®, Annie KIDS comes complete with a ShowKit™ of materials and resources so that even teachers with no theatrical training or experience can easily put on a successful production. Annie KIDS is one of the first titles to feature a re-vamped and re-designed Directors Guide patterned after Broadway production show books. This three-ring binder allows directors to carry all of their information in one place and is easily customizable to meet different production needs. Within the binder teachers and directors have access to:

Annie has been translated into 9 different languages and over 2,500 performances of the show are presented every year. It's estimated that over the past 25 years, Annie has been seen by over 50 million audience members worldwide.

Annie generated four separate national companies (one traveled for three and a half years) and dozens for international productions during its Broadway run.

About Music Theatre International

Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, Music Theatre International is one of the world’s leading theatrical licensing agencies, protecting the rights and legacies of composers, lyricists and book writers. MTI’s core business is issuing licenses, scripts, musical materials and dynamic theatrical resources to schools as well as amateur and professional theatres across the globe.

With over 300 classic and contemporary show titles from Broadway, Off-Broadway, and London’s West End, MTI shows have been performed by 60,000 theatrical organizations in the US and in over 60 countries worldwide.

MTI is particularly dedicated to the idea of theatre as education and has created special collections for younger audiences. The Broadway Junior Collection® features 70-minute adaptations of major musicals designed for middle school children to perform; the KIDS Collection®, provides 30-minute musicals for performance by elementary school children; School Editions® are musicals that have been annotated for performance by high school students; and the Theatre For Young Audiences Collection®, 70-minute musicals designed for adults to perform for children.