Written by: Michelle Rotuno-Johnson, The Marion Star
MARION — The story of “Annie” was brought to life on stage 35 years ago, and audiences were introduced to a curly-haired girl who just wanted to find her parents and get out of the orphanage she was forced to call home.
The Marion Palace Theatre troupe will bring this Depression-era story to life in July. Two of the young actresses in the play were adopted, as Annie is at the end of the play. But their stories are far different from the title character’s, and from the characters they are playing.
“Annie” starts in the Municipal Orphanage, a dingy building in New York City run by the mean-spirited Agatha Hannigan. Miss Hannigan makes Annie and her friends in the girls’ ward scrub the floors and discourages them from laughing or having a good time. She confesses during the show that she actually hates children, though she does love mixing alcoholic beverages. Annie escapes the orphanage, but is caught. While she is in Miss Hannigan’s office, an assistant to billionaire Oliver Warbucks comes to the orphanage to find someone to participate in the Christmas program at the mansion. Annie heads to meet Warbucks and finds a strong connection with a man whose life is so different from hers.
Orphanages are no longer typical in the United States, so there is no chance of a story like Annie’s ever happening. And the young actresses in the Marion Palace Theatre’s production both say they didn’t really think about their connections to the play: at rehearsals, they’re just kids enjoying their time on stage.
The DeGood family
“Annie” is Tiffany DeGood’s first production with the Marion Palace Theatre. She is playing Tessie, an orphan who lives with Annie. The 11-year-old has a connection to the titular character. But she wasn’t adopted at 11, as Annie was: she came to Pat and Robin DeGood at 6 days old, as a foster child, from Marion County Children Services. She was their first foster child: in fact, Pat said they received their license to be a foster home the same day they got a call about Tiffany. “She couldn’t be any more ours,” said Robin. Tiffany thinks it’s kind of cool that she shares a similarity with Annie. “But I didn’t have to go through what Annie did,” she said. “I think about my biological parents. Sometimes it’s confusing.”
She said she wasn’t really thinking about her own personal story when she tried out for the play. She has known she was adopted all her life, and doesn’t think about it all the time. She has met her biological father, and visits with him occasionally. She said it was “kind of scary” talking to him and meeting him, but she wanted some sort of connection.
Robin says it is key for parents to let their child know if he or she is adopted. She and her husband both had experience with fostering when they were younger: Robin’s mother and father were foster parents, and Pat’s aunt and uncle ran a cottage home. Tiffany said she would consider adopting or fostering when she gets older. “There are kids out there who don’t have a family,” Tiffany said. “They need to be loved, too.”
The Radloff family
Jia Radloff is in her fifth production with the theatre at age 8. She plays Molly, one of Annie’s friends in the orphanage. It’s a comedic role, and Jia says she enjoys making people laugh.
Jia was born in Qichun, China, a very rural county in Hubei province. Adam and Jackie Radloff adopted her from an orphanage when she was 15 months old. “She cried nonstop for about 24 hours,” Adam said.
Jia’s adopted sister, Schwen, is also 8. She was adopted from Nanjing, China, the capital of Jiangsu province, at 6 1/2. Adam said that he was “definitely the oddball” in a city of 8 million people when he went to pick her up. Schwen also lived in an orphanage, and her parents said she doesn’t talk about it too much. The situation was somewhat like in “Annie,” with girls sleeping 30 to a room in bunk beds and wearing worn-out clothes. However, Schwen did say that the people at the home were not mean like Miss Hannigan.
The sisters watched the 1982 film version of “Annie” before Jia tried out for the play. “Some parts I was scared, other parts I was happy,” Jia said. She didn’t really think about her personal ties to the character.
Adam said it would be close to impossible to find any information about Jia’s birth family, but said she hasn’t asked too many questions yet. Jackie said they sometimes discuss the possibility that Jia’s mother and father had some artistic tendencies, since Jia enjoys the theater so much. They were told to expect more questions about her heritage and history when she reaches adolescence. “She’s a very levelheaded kid,” Adam said.
“Adoptions are a very special day”
In Marion County, three children have been adopted already this year. Six adoptions are pending. Terrie Robinson, community education and placement services coordinator at Marion County Children Services, says nine adoptions would be the most in the county in the last four years.
She said 30 to 35 families are registered as foster families yearly. Nationally, 75 percent of foster parents end up adopting the kids they care for. Robinson said the number is higher in Marion County. “It’s a good thing,” she said. “We’re very fortunate.” She said foster families are much better than orphanages or group homes. “Our first goal is to keep them in their community and be served in the least restrictive environment,” she said.
Children come into the care of Children Services for many different reasons. Some children stay in treatment facilities if they need special attention. If parents aren’t suited to take care of their children, Robinson said, the office tries to place them with a family member or friend. If there is no possible kinship placement, they can be put in foster care.
Robinson said one of the happiest moments for social workers, agency members and others involved in the adoption process is when a child finds a “forever home.” “Adoptions are a very special day,” she said. Annie Warbucks, as well as the DeGood and Radloff families, would probably have to agree.
Written by: Michelle Rotuno-Johnson, The Marion Star
MARION — The story of “Annie” was brought to life on stage 35 years ago, and audiences were introduced to a curly-haired girl who just wanted to find her parents and get out of the orphanage she was forced to call home.
The Marion Palace Theatre troupe will bring this Depression-era story to life in July. Two of the young actresses in the play were adopted, as Annie is at the end of the play. But their stories are far different from the title character’s, and from the characters they are playing.
“Annie” starts in the Municipal Orphanage, a dingy building in New York City run by the mean-spirited Agatha Hannigan. Miss Hannigan makes Annie and her friends in the girls’ ward scrub the floors and discourages them from laughing or having a good time. She confesses during the show that she actually hates children, though she does love mixing alcoholic beverages. Annie escapes the orphanage, but is caught. While she is in Miss Hannigan’s office, an assistant to billionaire Oliver Warbucks comes to the orphanage to find someone to participate in the Christmas program at the mansion. Annie heads to meet Warbucks and finds a strong connection with a man whose life is so different from hers.
Orphanages are no longer typical in the United States, so there is no chance of a story like Annie’s ever happening. And the young actresses in the Marion Palace Theatre’s production both say they didn’t really think about their connections to the play: at rehearsals, they’re just kids enjoying their time on stage.
The DeGood family
“Annie” is Tiffany DeGood’s first production with the Marion Palace Theatre. She is playing Tessie, an orphan who lives with Annie. The 11-year-old has a connection to the titular character. But she wasn’t adopted at 11, as Annie was: she came to Pat and Robin DeGood at 6 days old, as a foster child, from Marion County Children Services. She was their first foster child: in fact, Pat said they received their license to be a foster home the same day they got a call about Tiffany. “She couldn’t be any more ours,” said Robin. Tiffany thinks it’s kind of cool that she shares a similarity with Annie. “But I didn’t have to go through what Annie did,” she said. “I think about my biological parents. Sometimes it’s confusing.”
She said she wasn’t really thinking about her own personal story when she tried out for the play. She has known she was adopted all her life, and doesn’t think about it all the time. She has met her biological father, and visits with him occasionally. She said it was “kind of scary” talking to him and meeting him, but she wanted some sort of connection.
Robin says it is key for parents to let their child know if he or she is adopted. She and her husband both had experience with fostering when they were younger: Robin’s mother and father were foster parents, and Pat’s aunt and uncle ran a cottage home. Tiffany said she would consider adopting or fostering when she gets older. “There are kids out there who don’t have a family,” Tiffany said. “They need to be loved, too.”
The Radloff family
Jia Radloff is in her fifth production with the theatre at age 8. She plays Molly, one of Annie’s friends in the orphanage. It’s a comedic role, and Jia says she enjoys making people laugh.
Jia was born in Qichun, China, a very rural county in Hubei province. Adam and Jackie Radloff adopted her from an orphanage when she was 15 months old. “She cried nonstop for about 24 hours,” Adam said.
Jia’s adopted sister, Schwen, is also 8. She was adopted from Nanjing, China, the capital of Jiangsu province, at 6 1/2. Adam said that he was “definitely the oddball” in a city of 8 million people when he went to pick her up. Schwen also lived in an orphanage, and her parents said she doesn’t talk about it too much. The situation was somewhat like in “Annie,” with girls sleeping 30 to a room in bunk beds and wearing worn-out clothes. However, Schwen did say that the people at the home were not mean like Miss Hannigan.
The sisters watched the 1982 film version of “Annie” before Jia tried out for the play. “Some parts I was scared, other parts I was happy,” Jia said. She didn’t really think about her personal ties to the character.
Adam said it would be close to impossible to find any information about Jia’s birth family, but said she hasn’t asked too many questions yet. Jackie said they sometimes discuss the possibility that Jia’s mother and father had some artistic tendencies, since Jia enjoys the theater so much. They were told to expect more questions about her heritage and history when she reaches adolescence. “She’s a very levelheaded kid,” Adam said.
“Adoptions are a very special day”
In Marion County, three children have been adopted already this year. Six adoptions are pending. Terrie Robinson, community education and placement services coordinator at Marion County Children Services, says nine adoptions would be the most in the county in the last four years.
She said 30 to 35 families are registered as foster families yearly. Nationally, 75 percent of foster parents end up adopting the kids they care for. Robinson said the number is higher in Marion County. “It’s a good thing,” she said. “We’re very fortunate.” She said foster families are much better than orphanages or group homes. “Our first goal is to keep them in their community and be served in the least restrictive environment,” she said.
Children come into the care of Children Services for many different reasons. Some children stay in treatment facilities if they need special attention. If parents aren’t suited to take care of their children, Robinson said, the office tries to place them with a family member or friend. If there is no possible kinship placement, they can be put in foster care.
Robinson said one of the happiest moments for social workers, agency members and others involved in the adoption process is when a child finds a “forever home.” “Adoptions are a very special day,” she said. Annie Warbucks, as well as the DeGood and Radloff families, would probably have to agree.
