Strictly’s meanest (or should that just read most honest?) judge, Craig Revel Horwood steps out from behind the table and onto the stage at Milton Keynes Theatre next week.
His performance as the gin-sozzled, tyrannical Miss Hannigan in the smash-hit revival of Annie has been garnering fab-u-lous reviews.
Set in 1930s’ New York during The Great Depression, plucky little Annie is living a life of misery at Miss Hannigan’s orphanage.
But guess what? Her luck is about to change as she’s chosen to spend a fairy-tale Christmas with famous billionaire capitalist, Oliver Warbucks (Alex Bourne).
Meanwhile, the only Christmas spirit that Miss Hannigan tolerates comes in a bottle as she hatches a plan to scupper Annie’s happiness by foiling the search for the little red-headed moppet’s true family...
But, with her irrepressible cheeriness and her honest-to-goodness positivity, Annie still manages to inspire the U.S President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, to restore America’s economy and introduce a federal emergency relief programme. Not bad going for an 11 year old.
"I just love this character so much; I am deeply in love with her," Craig says, "I think she is absolutely fantastic and an extremely misunderstood woman. "Playing her is like an actors playground, she is a tyrant and a villain, and those are always the most fun characters to play.
"I couldn’t believe that they wanted me to play Miss Hannigan at first, but I thought it would be great, and a real challenge for me. I play her for real – she’s not a pantomime dame, there’s no mucking about or breaking the fourth wall, she’s a very real character in a beautifully written show."
With its Tony® award-winning book and score, including the unforgettable songs It’s The Hard-Knock Life, Easy Street, I Don’t Need Anything But You and Tomorrow, you can bet your bottom dollar that you’ll love it.Catch Annie at Milton Keynes Theatre July 1-6.
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