In the mid '90s, a group of San Diego area teenagers got on stage
to sing and dance and act like children
for their high school production of the musical Annie.
(SINGING) The sun will come out tomorrow
KRISTEN: It's been nearly a quarter century,
and they're all grown up.
But now, these adults will get to reprise the roles of their youth...
(SINGING) It's a hard knock life for us
KRISTEN: ...because the 1996 Santee High School
cast of Annie is reuniting for one more encore performance.
This is Encore!
(BEEPING)
JARRON: The employees here have no idea that I've ever been in a musical,
that I like musicals.
It's not a side of me that I've ever shared with anybody.
(SINGING) No, you're never fully dressed Without a smile
I'm not an orphan!
My mother and father left a note saying they loved me
and they were coming back for me!
ANNIE: I miss performing every day.
When I was in high school, there was nothing else.
Of course, I still have dreams of Broadway. It's what I wanted to do.
- (CHILDREN SCREAMING) - Oh, my gosh. We're almost home, boys.
Life just kind of happened.
Boys, the things that I do for you... You better love me.
- I don't. - (CHUCKLES) Okay.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER OVER RADIO)
JEREMY: One of the best choices I ever made was become a deputy sheriff.
I enjoy my job, which makes it easy for me
to do well at my job and to excel in my job.
- (KEYBOARD CLANKS) - (PHONE RINGING IN DISTANCE)
(SNIFFS)
JEREMY: I have to sometimes act more confident than I am.
I may be scared, I may be nervous, but I can't show that.
Acting taught me to do that.
CHILDREN: Forty, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90...
One hundred!
JAIMIE: All right, boys and girls, you did an amazing job today.
I'm so proud of you.
My memories of Santana are great.
My whole senior year was very exciting.
I mean, I went to all the football games, all the dances.
I was in the popular group. Straight As. I was homecoming queen.
1996 was definitely one of the highlights of my life.
BOY: I want spaghetti. That's what I want.
- GIRL: Daddy. - The house belongs to them.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
DEBBIE: My closet belongs to me.
I'm looking forward to a week...
(CHUCKLES) ...by myself.
Are you gonna do my makeup for the play?
- (BABY COOS) - Oh, my.
- Oh, my gosh. You ready for this, girl? - I don't know.
KATIE: Annie and I are good friends, but we don't get a lot of time
to see each other 'cause we're both busy with our kids
and their activities and family life.
- Oh, my God. - ANNIE: Hi.
- BENAIAH: Give me hug. - How are you? It's so good to see you.
BENAIAH: Figuring out who I was in high school
was a really interesting process. I did date girls
and then started dating guys.
Since high school, I've been on a pretty long, windy road.
- ANNIE: (SCREAMS) Ah, Debbie. - Here she comes.
- DEBBIE: Hi. - (ALL LAUGH)
Hi. (SQUEALS)
DEBBIE: I'm excited to get to revisit a time that I made some great friends.
I'm hoping it feels like it felt in '96.
I was really just living in the moment and having a good time with my friends.
And, generally, my time was more social...
than it was academic, says the future teacher, ugh!
- What are you guys doing? - I'm teaching.
- Me too. - Yeah. Yeah.
- Oh, my gosh. - Special education. Yeah.
- I do special education. - Wait. You're a special ed teacher too?
- No way. That's awesome. - Yeah. Oh, my gosh.
- What about you, Katie? - Stay-at-home mom.
- Nice. - Yeah.
Oh, my gosh. I do the same thing.
- Oh, my gosh. - No way.
- We're so connected. - You guys are so connected.
I wanna say I was a good kid but I had rebellious tendencies.
I needed an outlet. I need some people to call my friends.
I needed somewhere to be and something to belong to.
Theater actually saved me.
I don't have my glasses on, so I'm like, "Who is this?"
Oh, my gosh!
- I came here. I have so many questions. - I know.
- SARAH: Hi. You look good. - Hi. Thanks.
You know what I remember most about you two?
- DEBBIE: See, that's what I remember. - You guys were always together.
- We have a lot of catching up to do. - (ALL LAUGH)
- Oh, someone's coming. - We're doing it live.
Is that...
- Jarron. - SARAH: Jarron?
I don't think I knew him very well in high school.
- Good, how are you? - You look so awesome and so...
In high school, I was kind of a... Well, a wallflower,
and I was put into like this third-year drama class by accident.
Am I the only one here without kids?
Do you not have kids?
- They're overrated. - No, you can't say that.
- (ALL LAUGH) - JARRON: Yeah, you really can't.
- Hi. - Oh, my gosh.
Oh, my gosh, my people.
I'm Shenny.
I'm Jaimie.
And we are twins.
- We can speak Pig Latin. - SHENNY: Our twin language.
- JAIMIE: Yeah. - (SHENNY SPEAKING PIG LATIN)
(BOTH SPEAKING PIG LATIN)
(LAUGHTER)
- SARAH: Yeah, a little bit. - (GASPS)
- Hi. - Hi.
- Hi! - First day of rehearsal.
You must be feeling like so excited and...
- My cheeks hurt. - It's crazy.
I'm Marcia Milgrom Dodge. I'm your director for Annie.
I did the recent Ragtime revival on Broadway.
And got a Tony nom.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
This is Adam Wachter. He's our music director.
- Hi. - ALL: Hi.
- And this is Melinda. - I'm Melinda Sullivan.
I'm your choreographer.
And I'm so excited to be here and get you guys in your bodies.
So, really happy to be here.
MARCIA: So, we're missing...
- SARAH: Well, where is he? - MARCIA: He's working.
First thing we wanna do today is get those pipes working again.
- That's the first thing we're gonna do? - ANNIE: Okay.
Doing a production like this is crazy.
- DEBBIE: Hi. - Debbie, wanna sing a little?
- Yes. - (ALL CHEER)
My biggest job is to...
very quickly, like a radar...
suss out what their strengths are and what their weaknesses are.
(SINGING) When I'm stuck With a day that's gray and lonely
I just stick out my chin and grin
And say, oh
The sun'll come out tomorrow So you gotta hang on till tomorrow
I'm... I'm off.
(OFF TUNE) I'm on the wrong tune 'Cause I've drunk too much
Tomorrow, tomorrow
I love ya, tomorrow
(OFF KEY) You're always a day...
- Away - (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
SHENNY: You know, we weren't, like, a performing arts school
- so it's not like... - JAIMIE: No. We were Santana High School.
- We were just a bunch of kids... - We were all they had.
MARCIA: So, we're gonna take what is known in the professional world as a ten.
- BENAIAH: Okay. - JARRON: I'll be in my dressing room.
Yeah. (CHUCKLES)
Do you think they'll be able to take notes and make changes,
or do you think what they will do is regurgitate the performance
- that they originally... did. - MARCIA: That.
It's gonna be like riding a bike for them,
and so I think the hardest thing is gonna give... Me giving them...
- New direction. - ...new direction.
I don't know about any of you, but I didn't go to the reunion.
- Me either. - I couldn't make it.
And so now I feel like this is my chance.
Like I don't think I was, like...
had that many friends in high school to be able to go to a reunion,
because of the wall that I put up.
Because I was a Jehovah's Witness. Like, I didn't go to parties.
I didn't get to go out and hang out with people afterwards, so...
BENAIAH: Yeah.
I was gonna ask if you kept in touch with Katie.
- Mm-hmm. - JARRON: No way.
I was wondering that, too.
- No. - 'Cause you guys were just so tight...
- I know. - ...and inseparable in high school.
So, like, you guys don't hang out every weekend?
We've... I haven't seen her since high school.
- JARRON: No way! - Yeah. Yeah.
We actually kind of got into, like, a stupid argument even, I think.
And I don't even remember.
Like, I can't even tell you what it was about. It's just like...
eighteen, 19-year-old girl drama. And so...
And then it was just kind of weird again after that.
So, yeah, we just never really, like, reconnected.
- JARRON: Wow. - I know.
- DEBBIE: Maybe this is the reconnection. - BENAIAH: Yeah, you're right.
- That's what I'm thinking. - Yeah.
- Kind of crazy. - MARCIA: Still gotta see them dance.
And maybe we will be pleasantly surprised.
MARCIA: Five, six, seven, eight. Come on up.
- Come on up. - Come on, Jaimie.
(ALL CHEER)
- Yeah, girl. - Hey!
No, wait, who does that? What singer does that?
- Axl Rose. - Wow!
- Work. - Yeah.
- Faster.
MELINDA: I wouldn't say...
any of them are, like, natural dancers, but they have the willingness
to sort of just make a fool out of themselves.
And you gotta, like, be bad before you can be good.
- Go, Benaiah! - All right. Yeah.
(CHEERING)
ADAM: She's got technique.
- Katie, Katie, Katie. - MELINDA: You do like this.
- Hey. - (CHEERING)
- You guys. You guys. - Do you see her?
Ms. Dipuma!
- I know, I know. - My babies.
You get to work with my babies.
Ms. Dipuma was the English teacher and the drama teacher.
Ms. D was wild.
She's just passionate.
FEMALE VOICE: Okay. Ready?
In high school, she would have this cane.
She would beat the chair.
"No! No! You're doing it all wrong!"
- I was thinking... - Yes? You want me to help you.
I don't want a co-director, that's for sure.
I want you to play Mrs. Greer.
- Who's that? - (ALL LAUGH)
She works in Daddy Warbucks, and she's the head housekeeper.
- Mrs. Greer is featured in... - Wait a minute.
- You want me to be in this? - Yeah, we want you to be in this.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
- Would you like to do that? - Of course.
(ALL CHEER)
I think she's gonna be hilarious,
and I think she's gonna try to steal the show.
MARCIA: Have a wonderful evening.
Okay? And then we're gonna go through "Maybe" and "Tomorrow".
I'd kind of grown up performing.
So, after high school, of course, I wanted to do drama.
All my friends were, you know, applying for colleges.
And I was like, "I don't know.
"I'm gonna go to New York and be on Broadway."
ADAM: Can you try it? It takes practice.
It's not gonna be automatic. There's muscles in there
- that you also haven't used in how long? - Forever.
- Yeah. - ADAM: Forever.
- (LAUGHTER) - You have a good source for this song...
- so that your "Maybe" is connected to... - ADAM: ...to your real life.
- ...something personal. - ADAM: And is very deep...
I moved to New York City, and I performed, and I did all that.
And then I met my husband.
The last time I really pursued acting was before I got pregnant with Finn.
(SINGING) Maybe far away...
...Or maybe real near by
He may be pouring her coffee She may be straightening his tie...
ANNIE: It's hard not being able to perform just because I love it so much.
- (CONTINUES SINGING) - Right now, my kids are my passion.
And they're kind of what I'm doing right now. So...
it's on the back burner, but I'll get there.
Won't you please come get your baby...
ANNIE: Maybe I'll be this, like, older, you know, distinguished woman
and, you know, I'll be doing plays, you know.
Be easier to get parts then.
Maybe
(PIANO STOPS PLAYING)
- Wow. - ADAM: That's gonna be gorgeous.
Gorgeous.
ADAM: And when you've got, like, the wig and everything...
I mean, I assume there's a wig.
- ANNIE: Do I... Should I get something? - FEMALE VOICE: Yes.
ANNIE: Something orphan-like?
I think we should do, "It's a Hard Knock Life."
- FEMALE VOICE: Yes, yes, yes. - BENAIAH: Okay.
ANNIE: So, Jeremy's in the play. Where is Jeremy at?
JEREMY: In law enforcement, they say the first use of force the deputy has
is his presence.
And so I have to put on my game face, and you're not gonna intimidate me,
and I'm not scared of what I'm walking into. I'm confident.
- (ALL LAUGHING) - FEMALE VOICE: Oh, wait.
(CHEERING)
- Yes. - He made it.
Finally.
Hello, sir.
Jeremy and I were, I guess, essentially, the "it" couple
'cause we'd been together our freshmen, sophomore, junior, senior year.
- Hey! - Hey, who are you? Oh, my God.
People would rarely refer to Jeremy without saying,
"Jeremy and Jaimie." So, we were always together.
Jaimie was the homecoming queen and I was the homecoming king.
- (CHEERING) - JAIMIE: I love you guys.
JAIMIE: Jeremy and I thought we were gonna get married.
But then he broke my heart.
He started talking to some other girl, and...
just was a dumb boy.
So what about the rest of you? I wanna know what you,
like where do you live now?
- Um, I live in La Mesa. Yeah. - I thought you lived in New York.
Well, I moved back.
JEREMY: So, what are we doing? We're just...
- SARAH: Hi. - Good morning.
I don't know who I'm yay-ing for.
- You must be Jeremy. - I am.
- Hi, I'm Marcia. - Nice to meet you.
So you have a little catching up to do because...
That's all right. I've always been that way.
- ...they had a day of moving and singing. - JEREMY: I'm so glad for them.
I really... I feel like they needed it.
When I was in high school, I don't think I auditioned.
I think that we talked about it,
and I think Ms. Dipuma said, "You're gonna be Daddy Warbucks."
MARCIA: We're gonna set up.
So everyone's gonna grab a chair and a music stand.
Well, he is the main character. Daddy Warbucks is the main character.
Besides Annie. I guess she has a good role, too.
So, gang, in order to give you the full production values,
- we've invited professional performers... - KATIE: Oh, good.
...to come and enhance our production.
So we're gonna bring them in so that you can meet them.
- Hey. - MARCIA: They're playing lots of things.
Yeah, lots of things. Okay.
So, we have to bring Jeremy up to...
- We need to get to know, I think... - Yeah, because yesterday,
we did kind of a chorus line where everybody came up and sang and...
I didn't sing when I was in high school. So, like... So...
- MARCIA: You faked it really well. - I don't even think I faked it that well.
I think I just showed up.
When you went to dances and stuff, what was the popular...
- JAIMIE: What were the moves? - What were the moves?
Oh, it was called "on the wall". It's where guys stand on the wall...
and they watch the girls dance. It is so great.
- MARCIA: No, you didn't do that. - I never danced.
I didn't dance at my wedding. I found my wife a dance partner,
said, "Have fun, and I'll see you at the honeymoon."
- (ROCK MUSIC PLAYING) - SHENNY: Our favorite song.
JEREMY: No, I don't dance.
MARCIA: I think Jeremy is gonna be my biggest challenge.
We haven't been in the trenches yet, but just from my first impression of him.
Can you turn to page 141, please? We're gonna start at the end.
- We are gonna do this fast and furious. - Yes, sir.
ADAM: Fabulous. Warbucks, you start this.
You sing.
The sun will come up tomorrow
(ALL JOIN) The sun will come up tomorrow
Good. That's just Warbucks alone. That's just for Warbucks alone.
- See where it says Warbucks on four? - JEREMY: I see it.
- ADAM: We know this. - You'll be fine.
ADAM: Here we go, from the top.
- Turn me. - Okay.
Walk, walk, walk.
Annie is about an orphanage full of orphans.
(SINGING) Ooh
MELINDA: Down. We're cleaning.
KATIE: Miss Hannigan is just horrible.
Doesn't treat the girls with any sort of respect or dignity.
- And then, whack! - (YELPS) Yeah.
Annie believes that her parents are out there.
"My folks are never coming for me. I gotta go find..."
My folks are never coming for me. I gotta go find them.
Annie gets adopted by the wealthiest man in New York.
You know my secretary, Miss Farrell, and this is my butler, Drake.
At the end, all the orphans get saved by Daddy Warbucks. Happy ending.
(HARMONIZING)
(CONTINUES HARMONIZING) High there. That's where you're gonna start.
Can you memorize where that feels in your voice?
I think you can.
(HARMONIZING)
(SINGING) I remember the way our sainted mother
Would sit and croon us Her lullaby
Accidentally being put into drama and kind of just falling into doing a play,
it was nerve-racking, but now I'm voluntarily doing it.
I think it'll be a good thing.
- Jeremy, you got this. - Seriously.
JEREMY: I have no fears going into this.
Like, I've been through so much in my life
that it's like, "This is just... This is fun."
My dad was just never around.
- JAIMIE: Like you never saw him ever? - Mm-hmm.
Do you feel like you have a hard time connecting with people then?
- Like attachment and... - No, because being a Jehovah's Witness,
you were going up to people's doors that you didn't know, you know?
It's like, "Hi. Have you found Jesus?"
You know? Like... but it would... Building those relationships was...
what I didn't do.
JEREMY: I was raised by my grandmother
because my mom and dad split early and... Like, before I was one.
- Where's your mom now? - She lives up in, like,
- Santa Clarita area. - JAIMIE: You said that.
- So she's still alive? - Hm-mm.
Like after she was, like, back in my life, it was all good.
Like for a while, like, when I was young. But when I had a son and...
(CHUCKLES SOFTLY)
JAIMIE: Mm.
(SNIFFS)
She didn't want to?
(SNIFFLES)
Does it hurt you the most that she didn't want that?
Yeah. Like... It's, like, my son.
I'm like, "How can I walk away from my two-year old?"
That's, like, my world.
JARRON: Growing up with no parents and the pain that that was,
I didn't wanna have kids 'cause I didn't want to ruin kids' lives
the way I felt mine was.
But, I met Whitney, and it's, like, she wanted to have kids,
and I'm like, "Yeah. You know, we can do that."
You're probably a really good dad though, huh?
Oh, yeah. Overdo it. I'm like...
But you know what, you can't over... Overdo love.
Right.
(SNIFFLES)
SARAH: But we didn't know that about each other in high school.
- Right. Right. None of you guys knew that. - SARAH: None of us shared.
And we weren't taught to, like, open up and communicate.
Yeah, so you're thinking that you're the only person
dealing with your own struggles,
but, you know, there's probably so many other kids.
- Everybody has their struggle. - Yeah. And, you know...
No matter how perfect you think their life is...
- Yeah. - ...or how they make it
look like they're... They got it.
Jarron, thanks for sharing that.
Thank you, guys, for listening, seriously. I think we should all share.
- All right. - We get to dance again?
MARCIA: Ms. Dipuma, you're on.
(SINGING) Cecile will pick out all your clothes
Green is her best color. No, blue, I think.
Your bath is drawn by Mrs. Greer
Soap? No, bubbles, I think.
- Okay. - Annette comes in to make your bed
MARCIA: Hang on. Hang on. Let's do that again.
- Mrs. Greer, you just... - I'm sorry.
...It's a walk and talk.
KATIE: Watching Patty be directed...
You could tell she's not comfortable with it.
Soap? No, bubbles, I think.
KATIE: She likes to be in the driver seat...
Maybe now this time...
(WHISPERS)
...and I wouldn't expect anything less. (CHUCKLES)
The sun will come out
Tomorrow
- So you gotta hang on - ADAM: Bet your bottom dollar
- That tomorrow - Tomorrow
(WHISPERS)
(OFF-TUNE) Tomor... (CHUCKLES)
ANNIE: (CONTINUING) I love ya, tomorrow
So, how would you feel about taking a buzzer and just going for it.
Please don't do that to me.
- Really? - I... If we can avoid that, I'd avoid it.
I have this thing about being completely bald. I wear it like this all the time.
It's easy that Daddy Warbucks is bald because, um...
I am also bald. Not by choice.
And I'm assuming not by choice for him either.
So then do we need to fit for a bald pate?
What's the shortest you feel comfortable?
Yeah. So a 0-3 is like... I usually do that on the side.
- Okay. It's part of your fade? Okay. - It's a 0-3, and I think it's...
So those of us in the bald world, we understand clip levels.
So the compromise is, we're just gonna use a really short razor
but not short enough that you won't see hair.
And I know that sounds so weird, but it matters to me.
ALL: It's the hard-knock life
- MARCIA: Hey. Yes! - ADAM: Oh, my God.
- Excellent. - SARAH: Thank you.
MARCIA: Okay. So that was, you know, day two.
And we're gonna stage the whole, sort of, first half of the show tomorrow.
- All right. Thanks, everybody. - FEMALE VOICE: Thank you.
- ADAM: Thank you, guys. - SARAH: Bye. Thank you.
JARRON: Hey.
ALL: Hi.
(JEREMY EXCLAIMS, LAUGHS)
- JAIMIE: All right. - FEMALE VOICE: Perfect.
Well, hi.
- That's so funny. - That is a flashback.
Yes.
SHENNY: She wears the crown all the time around the house.
Okay. So here's the question. If you could go back...
to high school and tell a younger Jaimie
something that you really need her to know as she's growing up,
that's important for her to know, what would you tell her?
- Gosh. It's like what year, what time. - I would tell myself to...
run as far away from Santee as pos... No.
I'm just kidding. No, no, no, no, no, no.
Like, it was hard to fit in in Santee.
Like, it was just... It was different. I don't know.
It was a funny environment. Like, I... You know, I remember, like,
you know, coming out... And even like the article and all that.
- What article? - Like, respecting gay people.
- You wrote an article in our school paper? - Wait. Wait.
I need you to rewind. What are you talking about right now?
- I do remember The Consultant. - Remember our school paper,
- The Consultant? - Yes.
There were a couple kind of gay bashings that happened in school.
I don't know if you guys remember, but it was...
There are a couple guys who were put in the trash cans.
- No way. - I just wrote this article about
you don't have to, like, accept them but respect them,
and respect them as humans.
And it was during the time I was starting to come out myself.
Somebody threw like a full soda can at my head from a moving vehicle.
- What? - BENAIAH: And, like, I got hate mail.
- There was this huge backlash. - JAIMIE: Oh, that's heartbreaking.
And we didn't... I don't even know that, like, I don't... I feel just as bad
'cause like I didn't even know any of that happened.
- Yeah. - ANNIE: I know.
Like, I knew... You know what I mean? It's like I kind of knew you had c...
You know, I knew you had cancer, you know. Like didn't you, like, go off stage
- and like throw up, I think? - This is gonna sound really dramatic.
I didn't know if I was gonna live, so I wanted to...
- I wanted to have a blast. - Why is that dramatic?
- Like you have freaking cancer. - That's so dramatic, Jeremy.
- It's a little dramatic. - ANNIE: It's so dramatic.
- KATIE: Dude, you had cancer. - Such a drama queen.
JEREMY: Being 16 and diagnosed with cancer was scary.
You think that that's for old people.
Um, you don't think that happens to someone your age.
I was in and out of the hospital a lot.
You know what's crazy is, when they take away school,
you really, really wanna go.
I was on medications, and so those medications made me tired.
And, so Ms. Dipuma, she knew I was tired but she knew I wanted to be there.
And so she made it available to me that I could come into her room
and I'd find one of the couches,
and I would just sleep it off for a period.
I was determined to do all the things that they said I couldn't do.
I was determined to go to school.
I was determined to hang out with my friends.
And I was determined to enjoy the life I had.
KATIE: Dude, none of us got that. Dude, did any of us get that?
- Jaimie did. - JAIMIE: I did.
JEREMY: Do you remember what you brought to my house?
- What was it? - Okay. So I had just gotten home
from having, um... They were doing, um...
all that colon work on me.
And, you remember me doing that? You came that day.
- You were there that night. - I do remember that.
And you pulled out this poster,
and it was... You had cut out like a million magazine pictures.
- Do you remember this yet? - Yes.
And it was like all these weird things, like...
like a giraffe on a head of a man
and all these weird things, and at the very top, it said,
"See, you're not so different."
- ALL: Aww. - And it was...
it was huge... 'cause one of the biggest things
I didn't want was to stand out or be different.
JAIMIE: That was a really scary time. I remember when his fair fell out.
I remember thinking, "Oh, if I'm with this person in high school, like,
"we're going to get married. I'll never have kids,"
because they were saying he'll never have kids.
So, I just remember that as a junior, thinking about that.
Like, "Oh, I might not ever have kids if we get married because he can't."
So those are the weird things you think about
when you're in high school.
JEREMY: I wasn't supposed to have kids either, and I had two boys.
And they still tell me I can't have kids. Like, well...
"This is Cameron, this is Connor, and I want you to talk to my wife."
- So... - KATIE: And, now you are good.
I'm great. Last time I went to an oncologist
was probably five years ago,
and they said, "Yeah. You don't have to go anymore."
KATIE: Oh, my gosh!
- Cheers, you guys. - ANNIE: Yeah, let's do this.
KATIE: Cheers, pals.
- ANNIE: Cheers. - JAIMIE: Cheers.
(JAIMIE SOBBING)
Wait. No... Yeah?
(SINGING) Little girls Little girls everywhere I turn
I can see them
Little girls, little girls, night and day I eat, sleep, and breathe them
I'm an ordinary woman With feeling...
- (COUGHS) - Oh, you need water?
JAIMIE: This is me. I love it. Look at this.
(LAUGHTER)
JAIMIE: This is why I wanted to do the show.
- MALE VOICE: You're saying it's... - Yes. It's becoming the character.
- It's stepping out of yourself doing this. - Yeah, and you can't do that in real life.
Miss Hannigan is mis... misunderstood.
She wants to feel like a woman. She wants to feel sexy and pretty,
but she's stuck with all these little girls all the time.
- Does anyone want to do a puzzle? - Me.
JAIMIE: Miss Hannigan's more mature now.
Seventeen-year-old Miss Hannigan did not have to wear Spanx.
MALE VOICE: A little tight. (LAUGHS)
You think it'll work?
MALE VOICE: Let's try this one.
- Okay. - MALE VOICE: That's pretty cute. (LAUGHS)
Thank you. Yes.
That's why they're called fittings.
Brother, you're never fully dressed Without a smile
- So - Senator
- So - Janitor
BENAIAH: Being here brought up a lot of emotion because it was...
It was really difficult in Santee.
A lot of people were very conservative, very religious,
including my family was pretty religious.
(SINGING) Never fully dressed
BENAIAH: I just didn't feel like I had a lot of support.
But drama class just became this place
where I really discovered and found myself.
Ms. Dipuma is amazing because she's very motherly in so many ways.
You know, that's maybe not the first thing that comes to mind
because she's always bossing us around or voicing her opinion about things,
but she could always kind of tell when things are going on with you.
She just connected. The other day, we were talking,
and she said, "You know, I communicated with you the most
"just through the eyes. And it wasn't even verbal."
I haven't seen her in over 20 years.
So it was just so much fun to be connected and reunited with her.
(LAUGHTER)
- Actually, I'm allergic. - Just open your mouth.
- Oh, my God. That's right. - I'm allergic to the barbecue.
Yeah.
MARCIA: I heard Annie is getting her fitting.
- MALE VOICE: She is. - I have to see.
We have the boots for the orphans. She has... she has her flats,
- two black flats. - Yeah, black flats.
- Okay. - Oh, so, can we... Mm.
It's kinda, like, sexy.
It's like grownup Annie.
ANNIE: I'm feeling so many emotions right now
that I did not think I was going to feel.
I thought you guys were going for that, and I was like, "No."
- Going for what? - Like me being like in heels,
- and looking like an adult. - MARICA: No, no, no,
- we want you to look as... - Okay.
...little a girl as possible.
If it's not good, you know, like, if I'm not good,
then it's like... I don't know, everyone remembers it being good.
You know, I remember it being good.
So I feel like in that way, it's like, I don't wanna let anyone down.
Yeah.
- Is it... is it possible to... - I think I left something in here
- that was like, uh... - Is it possible to, um, hide,
like, not show so much skin?
- ANNIE: Oh! - Maybe.
(SINGING) I don't need anything but you
Now try it together.
- I don't... - I don't need any...
(HARMONIZING)
Two, three, four, one.
- BOTH: I don't need anything but... - (ANNIE LAUGHS)
- We're gonna get this. - ANNIE: I'm feeling really overwhelmed.
I'm just like...
I'm, like, so overwhelmed.
It's too much. It's, like, a lot.
Um...
This is so stupid. Now I'm crying about it.
- Can I rest? - Yes.
And then, like, come back, try it tomorrow.
- Yeah. - Okay.
You know how they say you can never go home again?
Like, I just feel like... like we shouldn't have gone home again,
like... It's like you...
You have like a memory of something, and I feel like it should stay that way.
(SIGHS) And I feel like... It's, like, this isn't gonna be a good memory,
I don't know. I just feel like there's, like, a lot on my shoulders, and...
I just don't know how I'm gonna put it on. Hold on.
This is so stupid. I didn't wanna do this
'cause it's like I'm having a meltdown already.
Can I just have a second? (SNIFFLES)
(SIGHS)
JAIMIE: All right.
- DEBBIE: Okay. Where's the reprise? - JAIMIE: Okay. And there's the other one.
DEBBIE: Let's see if I remember it.
BOTH: (SINGING) Easy street
- Easy street... - (LAUGHS)
DEBBIE: It was interesting this morning, waking up in a bed by myself
'cause my kids are always sleeping in bed with me,
and at first I was sad, and then I was like, "Wow, this is kind of nice,"
so I, like, spread out, and then I realize,
"Wait. I don't wanna spread out, like, I like the feet in my face."
- Just... - Did I make that look easy?
...as much as I can take.
Let's go get a beverage.
JAIMIE: I think we earned it.
DEBBIE: So, yeah, I really am having, um, I guess a conflict internally about
is, "Am I having a good time being without them
"or am I desperately missing them?" I think it's a mix of both.
- Hi. - Hi.
- How are you? - WAITRESS: I'm good. How are you?
- Good. - Good, thank you.
- WAITRESS: How can we help you? - Can we please get two of those?
WAITRESS: Of course. Would you like them warmed up?
- Yes. - Yes, please.
- Hi. Good morning. - Hi.
- How are you? - How are you?
- I did. I went home and... - You went home with your family?
- Yeah. It's so good to see them. - Oh, yeah, that's good, that's good.
Today, it feels completely different than yesterday,
because yesterday, I was so scared. I'm like, "I can't do this."
But, um, I had a good night's rest last night, and it's all...
I mean, it's all fine.
FEMALE VOICE: Hold on tight to your forehead.
Oh, my gosh. I'm gonna look like an old lady.
(LAUGHING)
So hilarious.
Like, I'm just rolling with the punches now.
...have those shoes yet?
They are coming for you. Christina's out buying them for you right now.
ANNIE: If I'm being completely honest, I look ridiculous.
I do not think I look like a ten-year old.
Like, who are we kidding right now?
But I will embrace it, and I will make you believe that I'm a ten-year old
when I'm out there, okay? You better believe me.
(SINGING) It's the hard-knock life for us
It's the hard-knock life for us
- 'Steada treated - We get tricked
- Steada kisses - We get kicked
It's the hard-knock life!
This is the Annie souvenir sweatshirt.
And I know it goes with my complexion perfectly.
(SINGING) Hey hobo man, hey Dapper Dan
You've both got your style
ROBERT: I remember how small she seemed compared to a lot of the other kids,
but how her voice projected.
She could've played any part in the show.
Even... even Sandy the dog. She'd bark. (BARKS)
No, just kidding, just... But she's... she's a real show person.
Listen, I've got a date with a ten-year old little girl.
- Eleven! - I'm sorry, Barney. I'm mistaken,
she's 11.
Jeremy had never really tried out for anything quite like the high school...
production play.
(RATTLING)
(AUDIENCE LAUGHING, APPLAUDING)
GARRY: I think he did pretty decent at it when he got out there and did it.
Probably wasn't an Academy Award nomination but, uh, he did well.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
FEMALE VOICE: So the objective is to cover... this.
JEREMY: Oh, this has to work for you 'cause I'm not going shorter.
- Come on. That's working better. - Hmm.
FEMALE VOICE: The thing is, is I can't cover texture.
- You have a great-shaped head. - I hear you.
- And I under... - And I am not a diva.
- And I totally under... But... - No, I'm not. Don't say "but."
- How's it going in here? - FEMALE VOICE: But you...
JEREMY: She wants me to go shorter.
I can't do it.
- Can't. - JEREMY: I hate it.
Okay.
It's not about how I look. It's really not.
I... And I feel kinda stupid, to be honest with you.
I just... That's the one thing I don't like.
No, no, like shaved, like bicced.
I, like, had a moment like where it's like, "Argh."
Is that stupid? Am I being stupid?
JEREMY'S WIFE: (OVER PHONE)
I don't know.
I don't know. I just feel like it like makes me look like...
It makes me look like I've got cancer.
JEREMY: All the things they told me I wouldn't be able to do when I was sick,
I did. So I had... No school, I went to school.
No friends, I hung out with friends. No activities, I did all the activities.
Um... They told me I had to lose a bunch of weight, I actually gained weight,
that's a problem. But...
And then the one thing, and I don't think I really had
ever thought about it until, like, when they really put me to it.
Um, the one thing that they said...
would happen that actually happened
was losing my hair, and I... and I couldn't fix that.
And I think that's hard for me.
It's so dumb, I'm like a freaking girl.
No offense.
I feel like a freaking girl.
Like, crying over hair.
That is the dumbest thing in the world.
JEREMY'S WIFE: (OVER PHONE)
It kind of is.
But you get me, right?
I've spoken to more than a thousand people claiming to be your parents.
- But they were all liars and fakes. - ANNIE: Oh, gee!
I need one of those dancers. Let me see if she'd help me.
- SARAH: With yours? - What are you guys doing?
- JAIMIE: What about the money? - JARRON: Well, we ain't got...
I don't... I don't remember anything.
So, do you have to sit here right now or could you take me outside?
MALE VOICE: Ricky is just gonna come down and pick you up.
And you're just gonna... He's just gonna walk you up to...
- PATTY: That spot. - ...that spot for you to do your line.
I say my, "Soap? No bubbles, I think."
Soap? No bubbles, I think. (CHUCKLES)
We gotta do that over.
Soap? No bubbles, I think.
Soap? Hmm.
I'm gonna... Do you think they'll care if I like...
Can they add a few bars if I go...
Soap?
No bubbles, I think.
- We can ask. We can ask. - Do you think they'd get mad?
- I'm joking, honey. - If you want to.
I'm joking.
I'll do Italian. (CHUCKLES)
(MIMICKING ITALIAN ACCENT) Soap? No bubbles, I think!
(SINGING) We know you're gonna like it
(CONTINUES SINGING) Walking forward And you're singing and we stop.
Here
PATTY: I started with my left foot.
- MALE VOICE: Let's do... - PATTY: So we have to do that
- like three or four times... - FEMALE VOICE: Okay.
- ...so I do my right foot. - MALE VOICE: Let's go to the right wing.
(TRUMPET PLAYING)
(ORCHESTRAL MUSIC PLAYING)
MARCIA: Set up for top of show.
Mama? Mama? Mommy?
- MARCIA: Where's Annie? - Annie?
- FEMALE VOICE: Annie? - ANNIE: I'm coming.
I think it's going very well.
With all the lights in their face and the orchestra playing things
that they haven't heard before...
(SINGING) Maybe fo...
It's a big cluster of chaos.
(CHUCKLING)
So as soon as Annie turns to wave, come in and push her.
- (GROANS) - Caught ya!
We've hit some snags with some of the singing abilities.
(SINGING) NYC
- Your bath is drawn by Mrs. Greer - Soap? No, bubbles, I think.
Brother, you're never fully dressed Without a smile
Some women are dripping with diamonds
Okay. There's little bumps in the road.
JAIMIE: We'll get it.
SARAH: Debbie.
Keep going, keep going, keep going.
Gee, Annie is on the...
ADAM: We're ready, guys, go ahead, thank you.
"Annie, one of the orphans from here."
Oh, I'm sorry. Annie, one of the orphans from here.
MARCIA: I'm being very optimistic about it.
Plus, we have a dog!
Come here, boy!
Good Sandy! Good, old Sandy!
Oh, dear.
We're gonna fix what we can fix, and then we're gonna do this show.
(SINGING) Tomorrow, tomorrow I love ya
Tomorrow, you're always a day
Away
There we go. That's something.
ADAM: Bless them, they're working so hard.
They want the performance to go as well as it could.
I mean, you know.
I wouldn't, like, pay a lot of money for it but I would still wanna see it.
- BOY: Hey, mommy. - Hi, bunny.
How's it going?
- BAILEY: Mommy! - I miss you.
Bailey, look. Do you see the poster?
DEBBIE: There's not many opportunities as an adult
to have a moment to, like, kind of shine.
DEBBIE: One, two, three.
(SINGING) Easy street...
DEBBIE: I'm excited to stand up there and belt out a little song
and do a little dance and, you know, hopefully, have that moment
where I just see my kids looking at me like,
"Hey, she can do something else.
"You know, she's... she's a star."
You know, tomorrow, you're gonna get to see me do that on stage.
I love my kids! (LAUGHS)
JEREMY: Show day.
I think the pressure is on, but I'm actually feeling really grateful.
This is an experience unlike anything I ever thought I'd have.
So, here, you can... This is what they're doing,
we're doing... Check it out.
- All right. Cool. - And see your, like, see your work...
- My work? - ...on TV, right?
- Nice to meet you. - Thanks a lot.
JEREMY: I think the toughest part for me has been accepting
some of my own weaknesses and accepting some of my own vulnerabilities.
I didn't have a choice if I got sick. I didn't have a choice if I lost my hair,
but I'm here. Now, I can choose if I'm gonna lose my hair or not.
And I love that it's my choice whether I do or not.
- Oh! You look amazing, sweetheart. - FEMALE VOICE: You did it?
- I did. - FEMALE VOICE: That's Daddy Warbucks.
- Such a big boy. Such a biggie boy. - Shut up.
MARCIA: This is an enduring show, it's, like, Annie.
You can't screw up Annie. You have to honor it.
It demands it of you, it's so good.
Let's go make the best show we could possibly make.
- Right? - ALL: Yeah.
PATTY: Break a leg, everyone.
Miss Hannigan, here I come.
Let the transformation begin.
PATTY: You got this.
You have done such a great job in rehearsal,
you're gonna look beautiful, your hair is gonna be done,
you're passionate, but remember, it's not about you tonight.
It's about you giving to the audience.
I couldn't have asked for a better Sandy if I wanted one.
Then there you go, you get a treat because you're just so good.
Katie, what are... what are you...
This is the... I know you hate my questions.
I'm trying to make it not deep.
So for you, which is more sad, tonight being over
or 1996 being over?
- Tonight. - Really?
- Yeah. - For what reason?
Because in 1996, I'd see you guys at school on Monday.
Ah, that's true.
I think seeing Katie and, you know, we hadn't really talked in so long...
We're actually having a lot of fun together.
I was like, "Give me your email, so I could send you a copy of the dance."
I think we're gonna, I hope, you know... I think we're gonna hang out after this.
Maybe see more of each other.
Yeah, and I planned to never see you fools again, so that's true.
- It's like... - Thanks.
JAIMIE: Hot mush today.
I really want to go. Blow the whistle and be like...
She's very excited. I think she's been, uh, looking forward to doing
something like this for a long time, so here's her chance.
So we're excited to see how she does, right, guys?
ADAM: I think we're starting. Here we go.
Today is opening night.
What will happen, I don't know, but I know it will be worth watching.
Maybe not hearing but watching.
- Oh, I'm gonna throw up. Can we just go? - So nervous. Can we just...
- Start the show, please. - Start it.
I really have butterflies like...
I do, too. All of a sudden, I'm like, "I know I just peed,"
but I'm like, "I gotta pee again."
Break a leg except don't actually break a leg
'cause that would end badly. Actually, don't break any bones.
Do you know that saying, break a leg?
Sometimes, I've heard it, "break a legend," like, short for legend.
So, there's some legendary performances associated with this.
- Gonna break... - (ALL GASP)
- Oh, my God. - Oh, my God.
Hi, guys.
Hello.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
KRISTEN: Yes, a good one.
- You guys, how do you feel? - We're excited. We're excited.
- Excited, excited. - Very thankful.
I'm thrilled to be here.
Being on stage and watching people on stage is the time I feel most alive.
And literally, being on stage in high school
was the time that I found myself, it's when I found my self-esteem
'cause prior to that, I was like, "What's self-esteem?"
And I just love sharing this community with other people who know
what it feels like to be on stage and feel like someone else
but also more yourself than you've ever felt.
So, have a great show.
- Thank you. - KRISTEN: You're welcome.
- JARRON: Thank you. - KATIE: Oh, dear God.
- Now I'm even more nervous. - JAIMIE: Okay. That was awesome.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
No, don't do anything embarrassing.
- Gather around. - Okay, hey, so let's do this.
Everyone looks so good. Jeremy, your zipper again.
- Oh, for the love of Jesus! - PATTY: Oh, my God, honey.
Do you guys remember, this is what we did every show?
So, why wouldn't we do the first and the last time we do it together,
- we should do it this way. Pray? - JAIMIE: Pray.
God, this really has been a fate-filled week.
Thank you for each and every one of these people here
because they represent really important people in my life
and I know we represent really important people to each other,
and this has been a life-changing experience, so thank you.
In your name, Amen.
- JARRON: Amen. - Hands in the middle, on three, Annie.
One, two, three.
Annie!
(AUDIENCE CHEERS AND APPLAUDS)
- Hi, everyone. - (AUDIENCE CHEERS)
I am so excited to welcome you to the re-imagined performance
of Santana High's 1996 Annie.
And I could stand up here all night and tell you how thrilled I am
with these folks and how hard they have worked.
But I really wanna see it. So, without further ado,
- please enjoy Annie. - (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Oh, my God. Oh, my God.
(EXHALES)
(SOFT TRUMPET PLAYING)
(SNORING)
Mama? Mama? Mommy!
- PEPPER: Shut up! - DUFFY: Can anybody
get any sleep around here?
- Mama? Mommy! - I said shut your trap, Molly.
- JULY: Oh, stop shoving the poor kid. - (MOLLY CRYING)
She said nothing to you.
- PEPPER: She keeps me awake and she... - JULY: No, you're keeping us awake.
Gee, I dreamed about having a mother and a father again.
But you're lucky, you really got 'em.
I know.
- Somewhere... - ADAM: (WHISPERS) Here we go.
- Three, four... - May...
ADAM: Hold on.
(SINGING) Maybe far away
Or maybe real nearby
He may be pouring her coffee
She may be straightening his tie
- (WHISPERS) I'm nervous. - (AUDIENCE CHEERING)
So long, dumbbell.
Good luck.
Uh-huh! Caught ya!
Oh, for this one's shenanigans,
you're all gonna get down on your knobby little knees
and clean this dump till it shines like the top of Chrysler building.
Get to work. Now!
ALL: Yes, Miss Hannigan!
Why any kid would want to be an orphan? I'll never know.
(AUDIENCE LAUGHING)
JAIMIE:
You did great. What are you talking about? You did good.
(SINGING) Empty bellies life
Rotten smelly life!
Full of sorrow life!
No tomorrow life!
I'm gonna cry.
(EXHALES)
So special. Don't cry.
(MUSIC CONTINUES)
- (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) - FEMALE VOICE: Whoo!
Oh, my God.
(WOMAN HOOTS)
LT. WARD: Ain't he a stray mutt around here?
ANNIE: Oh, no, sir.
- Hey! - Okay.
Let's see him answer to his name.
Well, you know, sometimes he doesn't answer
- his name 'cause I just got him and... - LT. WARD: So, call him.
Come here, Sandy. Come here, Sandy.
Come here, Sandy!
- Good, Sandy! Good, Sandy! - (SANDY BARKS)
(SIGHS)
What's next? What's next?
- Okay. - "Little Girls."
- Yeah, you're getting adopted next. - Do I have to change?
- I have to change, right? - No, no, no. Not yet.
MISS HANNIGAN: (SINGING) Some women Are dripping with diamonds
Some women are dripping with pearls
ANNIE: Wait.
(SINGING) Send a flood, send the flu Anything that you can do
To little girls
(SONG ENDS)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(SINGING) Cecille will bring you All your clothes
Green is your best color. No, blue, I think.
(SINGING) Your bath is drawn by Mrs. Greer
Soap? No, bubbles, I think.
(SINGING) I think I'm gonna like it here
- Welcome! - (SONG ENDS)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
- Hello, everybody. - MALE VOICE: Sir.
GRACE: Good morning, Mr. Warbucks. Welcome home.
- MR. WARBUCKS: It's good to be home. - How was your flight from Chicago?
Not bad, only took 11 hours.
- Grace? - GRACE: Yes, Sir?
Messages?
(WHISPERING)
(SINGING) NYC, the whole world Keeps coming
I'm in everybody's way.
Okay. I'm gonna go this way.
Popcorn?
- (GASPS) - (GROANS)
Do you want to go over anything, or we're ready?
(WHISPERS)
Merry Christmas, Miss Hannigan.
Oops! Pardon me, blondie.
- Hiya, Sis! - MS. HANNIGAN: Rooster?
They finally let you out of prison?
What were you in for this time?
Some old geezer said I swindled him out of 1100 bucks!
MISS HANNIGAN: And why would he say that?
Because the Rooster swindled him out of 1100 bucks.
I don't even know what's next. Do you know what's next?
MALE VOICE: Warbuck's office.
ALL: (SINGING) Easy street
Easy street
That's where we're gonna
Be
(SONG ENDS)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
JARRON:
You guys were amazing.
JARRON:
Goodbye, Mr. President.
- Grace, find out what democrats eat. - Yes, sir.
(LAUGHTER)
(SINGING) You've both got your style But brother, you're never fully dressed
Without a smile
(MUSIC CONTINUES)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
This is the end, right?
- Yeah, practically. - (SINGING ON SCENE)
- Wow. That was fast. - I know.
MR. WARBUCKS: I want to adopt you!
- Adopt me? - Yes or no?
Well...
There's no one in the whole world I'd rather have for a father
than you Mr. Warbucks!
(LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE)
(SINGING) Tomorrow, tomorrow I love ya tomorrow
You're always a day
Away
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(SONG ENDS)
I'm just glad we're here tonight to see him be able to do it
'cause he was so sick, you know?
I mean, we didn't know he was gonna make it.
And, um, he's here tonight and...
I cried.
Happy tears. Good tears.
- It's Mommy, baby. - She's so confused.
Can Mommy have you?
Hi, baby.
This was the best show I've seen tonight.
As a matter of fact, it's probably the best show I've seen since 1996.
You know what, we're gonna take Rooster home,
and I think the wife will like it.
I love you.
That's a wrap.
Where's my flask? I gotta get to bed.
Was Mommy fantastic? Is Mommy fantastic?
BOY:
- Yeah. - Aw, thank you.
You guys like it? Was it fun?
ANNIE: I know I said before, "You can never go home again."
I mean, you know, we were younger in the other one,
but the feeling was still the same.
I'm completely ecstatic. But I'm so tired.
So, Annie has left the building.
- ALL: (SCREAM) Annie '96! - FEMALE VOICE: We did it!
(CHEERING)
ALL: (SINGING) It's the hard knock life for us
- 'Steada treated - We get tricked
- 'Steada kisses - We get kicked
It's the hard knock life
GIRL 1: Don't it feel like the wind Is always howlin?
GIRL 2: Don't it seem Like there's never any light?
GIRL 3: Once a day, Don't you wanna throw the towel in?
ALL: It's easier than puttin' up a fight
GIRL 1: No one's there when your dreams At night get creepy
GIRL 2: No one cares if you grow Or if you shrink
GIRL 3: No one's dries when your eyes Get wet and weepy
ALL: From the crying Ain't this place to sing
It's the hard-knock life
- (SONG ENDS) - (APPLAUSE)