TV favourite Claire joins cast of Annie in Oxford
Coronation Street and Brookside star to play spiteful villain
Claire Sweeney will star as Miss Hannigan when the much-loved musical Annie comes to Oxford in December.
The actress, singer and TV presenter played Cassie Plummer in Coronation Street and is well known for her role as Lindsay Corkhill in Brookside. Her other credits include roles in Clocking Off, Holby City, Merseybeat, Candy Cabs, Scarborough, The Good Ship Murder and Benidorm.
Set in 1930s New York during The Great Depression, the musical tells the story of young Annie, forced to live a life of misery and torment at Miss Hannigan’s orphanage. Her luck soon changes when she's chosen to spend a fairytale Christmas with famous billionaire, Oliver Warbucks. Meanwhile, spiteful Miss Hannigan has other ideas and hatches a plan to spoil Annie's search for her true family.
With its Tony award-winning book and score, the production includes the songs It’s the Hard Knock Life, Easy Street, I Don’t Need Anything But You and Tomorrow.
Claire's many West End credits include playing Roxie Hart in Chicago at the Adelphi Theatre, and Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, playing opposite Patrick Swayze, at The Piccadilly Theatre. Claire’s other stage credits include starring roles in national tours of 9 to 5 the Musical, Crazy For You, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Legally Blonde, Hairspray and September in the Rain. She has played the title role in Educating Rita alongside Matthew Kelly, and in 2011 she starred in a new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black's one-woman show Tell Me on a Sunday. Claire has also toured in the hit show Sex In Suburbia, which she co-wrote, following its successful run at the Royal Court Liverpool. Other theatre credits include Willy Russell's classic Shirley Valentine, White Christmas, Shout!, a world tour of Fosse, and The Play What I Wrote.
Claire will star alongside Alex Bourne as Oliver Warbucks, Tanisha-Mae Brown as Grace Farrell, Christian Cooper as Rooster, and Amber Kennedy as Lily St. Regis.
Alex Bourne has played the role of Oliver Warbucks in the West End, in Toronto and on a UK rour. His other theatre credits include The Wizard in The Wizard of Oz at the Gillian Lynne Theatre and on a UK tour, Edna Turnblad in the UK tour of Hairspray, Sam Carmichael in the UK tour of Mamma Mia and Khashoggi in We Will Rock You in the West End. He also played Fred Graham in Kiss Me, Kate at the Chichester Festival Theatre and the Old Vic Theatre, for which he was nominated for the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical.
Tanisha-Mae Brown’s theatre credits include Singin’ in the Rain at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Brigadoon at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Guys and Dolls at The Bridge Theatre, Evita at Curve, Leicester, and UK tours of The Lion King and Chicago.
Christian Cooper most recently played Rolf Gruber in The Sound of Music at Curve, Leicester. Amber Kennedy’s theatre credits include the UK Tour of Sister Act the Musical, UK and international Tours of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and the international tour of West Side Story.
Annie runs at the New Theatre from December 15 to January 2. Visit atgtickets.com/Oxford to book.