Annie will be the next musical adapted for a televised special on NBC as Annie Live! is set to premiere later this year. Annie first premiered on Broadway in 1977 starring Andrea McArdle as Annie. The musical was then adapted into a movie in 1982, starring Aileen Quinn. Eventually, Annie was modernized through the 2014 film remake, starring Quvenzhané Wallis and Jamie Foxx.
Deadline confirms that Annie Live! will air on NBC during the 2021 holiday season. While casting has yet to be announced, other important of the creative team have been revealed. Lear deBessonet, the artistic director behind the "Encores!" concert series and the creator behind Public Theatre's "Public Works," will direct Annie Live! Alex Rudzinski will serve as Live Television Director. Sergio Trujillo will choreograph, and in the tech department, Paul Tazewell will be the costume designer. Jason Sherwood will serve as the set designer. Finally, Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron will executive produce Annie Live!.
In Annie, the title character, an orphan in a facility run by the mean Miss Hannigan, believes that her parents left her there by mistake. When a rich man named Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks decides to let an orphan live at his me to promote his image, Annie is selected. While Annie becomes determined to find her true parents, Miss Hannigan creates a scheme to get Annie back in the orphanage.
NBC's Live! series kicked off in 2013 with Sound of Music Live! starring Carrie Underwood as Maria. NBC's Live! series also tackled Peter Pan, The Wiz, Hairspray, Jesus Christ Superstar and Dr Seuss's The Grinch Musical. Fox also initiated its own musical adaption series with Grease, Rent and The ions. ABC also ed in on the Broadway-inspired fun with The Little Mermaid Live!. It will be interesting to see NBC's live version of the classic musical when Annie Live! airs this year.
Source: Deadline
