Last year, Katie Farnell and Emily Groenendaal shared the role of Nellie in “South Pacific” at Croton-Harmon High School.
This year, they share Annie Oakley in this weekend’s production of “Annie Get Your Gun,” about a girl who is determined to outshoot, outsing and even outspit the man she loves, Frank Butler.
Playing Butler are brothers Travis and Jeffrey Crowley.
“Annie Get Your Gun” tells the story of Annie Oakley and Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, with a score full of Irving Berlin songs, including “Doin’ What Comes Natur’lly,” “You Can’t Get a Man With a Gun,” “Show Business,” “Sun in the Morning” and the can-you-top-this duet, “Anything You Can Do.”
Written in 1946, “Annie Get Your Gun” isn’t exactly politically correct, but Farnell said she doesn’t mind.
“The whole plot of the show is, like, a guy will never love you if you’re better than him at something,” Farnell said. “But I kind of like the corny, sort of old-time shows. I think it’s cute how she’s trying to be different.”
While she’s a great show woman, Annie feels out of her element among those with an education, Farnell said.
“She’s warm-hearted but very uneducated, so I try to think of someone who has been raised well, but who doesn’t really know how to read, can’t really write. But someone who has worked hard, who loves what they do, loves being who she is despite being looked down upon by all these people because she can’t read and write.”
Senior Travis Crowley shares the role of Frank with his brother Jeffrey, a sophomore.
“He’s an interesting guy. On the surface, he seems like a nice guy who cares about other people, but he’s really into himself,” he said. “Whenever Annie shows him up, he throws a hissy fit. It happens three times.”
Sharing the role with his younger brother is ideal, he said: “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Jeffrey sees Frank as “an old-fashioned, chivalrous kind of guy.”
“For lack of a better word, he’s a player. He has a song where he says he has been with girls all over, but now that he meets Annie he realizes he can’t go back.”
While Jeffrey said he likes the song “My Defenses Are Down,” when Frank admits he’s falling for Annie, Travis said he’s looking forward to the battling song “Anything You Can Do.”
“I think we’re going to have a lot of fun with it,” he said.
What: “Annie Get Your Gun”
Where: Croton-Harmon High School, 36 Old Post Road South, Croton-on-Hudson.
When: 7:30 p.m. March 19, 20; 1 p.m. March 21
Tickets: $10; $5 students; seniors free. At the door.
With: Emily Groenendaal, Katie Farnell, Travis Crowley, Jeffrey Crowley, Jake Tuttle, Jason Potel, Max Weinstein, Max Anderson, Jack Coen, Matt Migliorelli, Dan Kadish, Michael Yates, Allie Ivanoff, Kamille Perry, Jonathan Fletcher, Chris Mahar, Caroline Bannon, Jesse Morsberger, Nick Coccaro, Emily Brandt, Ben Goldsmith, Jamie Gordon, Margeret Livingston, Maggie Dinger, Cassie Samuels, Stephanie Vlad, Juliet McCarthy, Joe Minkler, Emily Goldberg, Max Davidson, Mellisa Shawcross, Aaron O’Brien, Windy Aldeborgh, Dustin Neidhart, Jolie Glickman, Josh DeMichele, Matt Ost, Audrey Huigens, Meg Collins, Caroline Spring, Susie Gardiner, Mallory Pound, Lizzie Tate, Sara Maclean, Isobel van Hagen, Rachael Attias, Olivia Faure, Kathleen Gagnon, Zoe Williamson, Amanda Coker, Meg Collins, Joe Soucy, Gaby Whalen, Veronica Miasch, Carly Gaccione, Mizuki Arai, Anais DiCroce, Abby Risner, Amanda Feigin, Jenn Feigin, Kaleigh Herron, Rebecca Rose, Hannah Moy, Sylvia Lustig, Nina Braca, Simon Sharp, Charlie Frattini, Evlyn Gardener, Dea Barvieri, Allison Smith, Thomas Holmes, Matt Pucci, Chris Hand, Sam Higgins, Emily Markowitz
2 Comments
Ms. Katie Farnell has done an outstanding job in her 4 years with Croon-Harmon Theatre Productions. She has tremendous voice and we hope it will take her far. Congratulations on another great show.
And to top it all off she’s got a wonderful laugh.
Those Crowley boys are so talented. They will be huge, just watch.