Issie Swickle Stars in the ANNIE National Tour, Kicking Off Today in Detroit

The U.S. National Tour of ANNIE launches today, September 26, 2014 at the Fisher Theatre in Detroit, MI. Directed by original lyricist and director Martin Charnin for the 18th time, this production of ANNIE will be a brand new physical incarnation of the iconic Tony Award-winning original.

ANNIE has a book by Thomas Meehan, music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Martin Charnin. All three authors received 1977 Tony Awards®for their work. Choreography is by Liza Gennaro, who will incorporate selections from her father Peter Gennaro's 1977 Tony Award-winning choreography.

The celebrated design team includes scenic design by Tony Award winner Beowulf Boritt (Act One, The Scottsboro Boys, Rock of Ages), costume design by Costume Designer's Guild Award winner Suzy Benzinger (Blue Jasmine, Movin' Out, Miss Saigon), lighting design by Tony Award winner Ken Billington (Chicago, Annie, White Christmas) and sound design by Tony Award nominee Peter Hylenksi (Rocky, Bullets Over Broadway, Motown). The lovable mutt "Sandy" will once again be trained by Tony Award® Honoree William Berloni (Annie, A Christmas Story, Legally Blonde). Musical supervision and additional orchestrations are by Keith Levenson (Annie, She Loves Me, Dreamgirls). Casting is by Joy Dewing CSA and Holly Buczek CSA, Joy Dewing Casting (Soul Doctor, Wonderland, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat).

This brand new production features a 25 member company: in the title role of Annie is Issie Swickle, a 9-year-old actress from Davie, FL, making her tour debut. Gilgamesh Taggett will star as Oliver Warbucks. In the role of Miss Hannigan is Lynn Andrews. Also starring in the tour are Ashley Edler as Grace, Garrett Deagon as Rooster, Lucy Werner as Lily and Allan Ray Baker as FDR. Sunny, a 4-year-old rescue terrier mix, stars as Sandy.

The Orphans are Angelina Carballo, Adia Dant, LillyBea Ireland, Sydney Shuck, Lilly Mae Stewart and Isabel Wallach.

The featured ensemble includes Amy Burgmaier, Cameron Mitchell Bell, John Cormier, Brian Cowing, Todd Fenstermaker, Chloe Horner, Evan Mayer, Jake Mills, Meghan Seaman, Hannah Slabaugh, Lily Emilia Smith and Chloe Tiso.

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 (Thomas Meehan) and Best Score (Charles Strouse, Martin Charnin). The show remains one of the biggest Broadway musical hits ever. It ran for 2,377 performances after it first opened, and 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 the eternal anthem of optimism, "Tomorrow."

The 2014-15 season tour route is as follows:

Sep 26 - Oct 4, 2014 Fisher Theatre, Detroit, MI

Oct 7 - 19, 2014 Broward Center for the Performing Arts, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Oct 21 - 26, 2014 Times-Union Center, Jacksonville, FL

Oct 28 - Nov 2, 2014 Benedum Centre, Pittsburgh, PA

Nov 5 - 16, 2014 Citi Performing Arts Center, Boston, MA

Nov 18 - 30, 2014 Cadillac Palace Theatre, Chicago, IL

Dec 2 - 7, 2014 Fabulous Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO

Dec 9 - 14, 2014 Durham Performing Arts Center, Durham, NC

Dec 16 - 21, 2014 Wharton Center, East Lansing, MI

Jan 6 - 11, 2015 Tennessee Theatre, Knoxville, TN

Jan 13 - 18, 2015 DeVos Hall, Grand Rapids, MI

Jan 20 - Feb 1, 2015 Hippodrome Theatre, Baltimore, MD

Feb 3 - 8, 2015 The Saenger Theatre, New Orleans, LA

Feb 10 - 15, 2015 Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall, Ft Myers, FL

Feb 17 - 22, 2015 Straz Center for the Performing Arts, Tampa, FL

Feb 24- Mar 1, 2015 Murat Center, Indianapolis, IN

Mar 3 - 8, 2015 Proctor's Theatre, Schenectady, NY

Mar 10 - 15, 2015 Auditorium Theatre, Rochester, NY

March 17 - 22, 2015 Academy of Music, Philadelphia, PA

Mar 24 - 29, 2015 Fox Cities Performing Arts Center, Appleton, WI

Mar 31 - April 5, 2015 Orpheum Theatre, Minneapolis, MN

April 14 - 19, 2015 Majestic Theatre, San Antonio, TX

April 21 - 26, 2015 Bass Hall, Austin, TX

April 29 - May 10, 2015 Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Denver, CO

May 13 - 24, 2015 Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Costa Mesa, CA

May 26 - 31, 2015 The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, Las Vegas, NV

June 23 - July 5, 2015 AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas, TX

July 14 - 19, 2015 Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, Charlotte, NC

July 21 - 26, 2015 Hershey Theatre, Hershey, PA

Photo Credit: Joan Marcus