The Last Day!

Today, the 30th Anniversary Tour of Annie, The National Tour did it's final performance to a sold out crowd in Schenectady, New York.  It was a bitter-sweet day and one I will cherish for the rest of my life!

For the last two and a half years I have lived the dream of playing the iconic role of "Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks" on this national tour.  It is something that I never really thought I would do and something I can't imagine not having done.  It has been everything I ever hoped and dreamed that would be.  I have traveled to 49 states of our great country and performed in 48 of those.  I have traveled to 5 provinces of Canada.  My best guess is that I have done nearly 600 performances before over one million persons in over 200 cities.  I have played in some of the most beautiful and historic theatres in this country and stood in the footsteps of some of the greatest names to grace the stages of American Theatre.

I have gotten to know some amazing people including the creators of this amazing musical, its producers and presenters, the best stage hands in the business, the greatest management team and the most talented and gifted group of performers you can imagine including 19 little girls and 4 dogs.  I will cherish and remember each and everyone of you ever and ever and I fully intend on seeing everyone of you again and working with as many of you as possible.

Though today we say goodbye to this edition of Annie, I know that she has a long and prosperous life ahead of her and I look forward to visiting her often in the future.  This is not the last you have seen of this "Daddy Warbucks."

I have been asked frequently over the past few months what I will do now.  I don't know what the future holds but I do know that I plan on auditioning for future shows and continuing to work in the wonderful world of theatre.  I love performing and I even love touring.  So you will hopefully see me on the road again in the near future, if not as an actor then perhaps as a stage manager.  One never knows what the future holds.

It is a sad day and it is hard to say goodbye and to move on.  But if there is one thing I have learned from "Annie" it is that there is always a tomorrow and that if you approach that day with hope and optimism you never know what might happen.  And in order for there to be another opening of another show, a show has to close.

So in the words of the immortal "Oliver Warbucks,"  Yes girls, for you, and for all of us, this is going to be the beginning of a WONERFUL, NEW LIFE!

New Haven, CT

Today we arrived in New Haven, CT after a wild week of one nighters before mostly sold out crowds!  It fills like we have driven a gazillion miles on the bus this week but probably only 1,500 in reality.

This weekend we are performing at the historic Schubert Theatre here.  It is a beautiful, old Broadway style theatre.  When I think of going to an old Broadway house this is what I think of.  It was home to the world premiers of many of musical theatres greatest works including most all of the Rogers and Hammerstein musicals.  It is a real thrill to think of all the famous performers that have stood on the stage here and to be following in their footsteps.

Most of the performances are close to being sold out and tonights audience was great and the show went well.  To top it all off it was Ms. Hannigan's birthday (or at least the actor who plays her.)  And tomorrow my daughter is coming to New Haven and will see the show on Sunday afternoon!

We now have only TEN performances remaining.  As we draw near to the end I find myself avoiding thinking about the future.  I know that I will find work, and I know that I will continue to do theatre, but I don't like thinking about not holding the red headed orphan in my arms every night.  It will be hard to adjust to life without Annie, both the show and the people.  The only thing that makes it bearable is knowing that I will get to go home and hold my wife in my arms every night.  It will be good to be HOME!

Philadelphia Surprises

If you watched the news on Thursday of last week you would have thought that Philadelphia was buried under a foot of snow.  The reality was they had less than an inch while we there.

We performed at the Merriem Theatre which is home to the University of the Arts here and where one of my former students now attends.  The theatre has a long history and it was a lot of fun to do the show here, although it did present some unique challenges due to its limited backstage space.  But we did the full show before sold out audiences all weekend.

Saturday afternoon, Thomas Meehan, who wrote the book or script for "Annie" came to see the show.  It was a surprise to all of us in the cast to find out that he and his family had driven in from New York City to see the show.  He had his granddaughter with him and she was adorable.  He had nothing but good things to say about the show and made us all feel very good about the work we do.

Today is Monday and we have just finished our performance in Charlottesville, Virginia.  We performed at the University of Virginia here in the arena.  Performing in arenas is always a challenge as they are designed for that purpose and we often do get to use all of our sets.  It shouldn't effect our performance but I find that it doesn't take much these days to throw a kink into things.  While my show wasn't "bad" I didn't feel good about my performance afterward.  I will work doubly hard tomorrow and for the next two weeks to make sure that doesn't happen again.

I did a Meet-n-Greet before the show for some of their patrons.  While I didn't do a lot due to time constraints and other issues I did get a free University of Virginia T-shirt for my troubles which was nice.

Tomorrow we drive to Ashland, KY for another one-nighter.  This week will be long as we have three one night stays, a stop over and then a long weekend in New Haven, CT.  I will get to see Alayna in New Haven which I am looking forward to more than you can know.

The weather here was fabulous today!  The sun was out and it had to close to 50 degrees.  I spent the afternoon walking and enjoying a rare day where you could actually enjoy being outside.  Did I hear they are expecting another winter storm in the North East this weekend?  I HOPE NOT.   I will not miss the snow and cold of tour when I get home.  Give me a desert any day.