News

Carly, local actresses and Macy set to open ‘Annie’

Carly Gendell plays Annie and Macy plays Sandy in 'Annie,' opening Friday at the Flat Rock Playhouse.

By Bill Moss, Published: June 9, 2017

Jia Hind (left) and Cate Boyette (right) play the orphan Kate in “Annie,” starring Carly Gendell.

Actress Lara Hayhurst is also the dog handler for Macy, who plays Sandy.

MOSS PHOTOS

Jia Hind and Cate Boyette are seated on either side of Carly Gendell, a professional actress from New York who plays Annie in the beloved musical opening Friday at the Flat Rock Playhouse.

Jia, 12, and Cate, 11, alternate playing Kate, one of the orphans with a speaking role in the show. They also perform in the ensemble, which keeps them moving on the dance floor.
Playing alongside Carly has given the young local actresses a taste of the big time. When they’re asked if they aspire to become a professional actor like 12-year-old star from Broadway they quickly say “Yes.”
Jia, Cate and eight other young actors will do their best to sing and dance their way into patrons’ hearts when the show opens Friday night. Jia has been taking dance at the Asheville Ballet Conservatory since age 5 and played the lead in the Studio 52 production of “A Thousand Cranes.” Cate has performed in Studio 52’s “Wizard of Oz” and “Alice in Wonderland” and as Bet in “Oliver” on the Hendersonville Community Theatre stage.
“Annie” may be the biggest hit the two local girls have ever been associated with — thanks to Carly and her thousand-watt smile and singing chops. A precocious 12-year-old, Carly has been acting since age 6, when she played the smaller “Annie” role of Molly in her hometown of Beverly, Mass. She made her professional debut at age 10 as Marcy in “Andrew Lloyd Webber’s School of Rock: The Musical.” In the playbill notes, Carly thanks her mom and dad, who is staying with her in Flat Rock for the run of the show, and big sister Haley, who is studying arts and entertainment management at Pace University in New York.
Carly won the role in an intense competition.
“The casting director got hundreds of submissions,” said Dane Whitlock, the Playhouse marketing director. “We pared it down to 25 and then five.”
Would-be Annies had to sing “Tomorrow” and read lines from a scene with Daddy Warbucks.
This is the second time Carly has played Annie. The first was at the Portsmouth Theatre in New Hampshire. She thinks she’s able to bring more depth to the character now that she’s older.
“I hadn’t really developed by emotions on stage,” she said.
Given her winning personality, poise and talent, Carly is sure to light up the stage. The only risk of upstaging might come from Macy, a 9-year-old rescue who plays Sandy. Macy greets a visitor who is interviewing Carly, which turns out to be something of a no-no. Macy can only interact with Carly and her trainer, lest she decide to go off script and seek a pet from the wrong orphan.
“We thought originally we were going to train our own and then we decided that was a really horrible idea,” Whitlock said.
During casting Playhouse managers noticed that an actress who auditioned was a certified dog handler. That led to the renowned dog trainer Bill Berloni, who has trained hundreds of animals for theater, film, television and commercials. Once the decision to hire a Berloni dog was made, the decision about where everyone would stand and move was locked in — no questions asked.
“The blocking for Bill Berloni’s dog has to be the same,” Carly said. “They’re not training her. They’re training me.”
Adopted from a rescue shelter in Oklahoma City at age 18 months, Macy first performed as Sandy in the summer of 2010 and has appeared in more than two dozen “Annie” productions coast to coast since then.
Macy’s trainer is Lara Hayhurst, who plays the small role of Star to Be and performs in the musical ensemble. Hayhurst stands just off-stage, maintaining eye contact and using hand motions to show Macy went to lie down, when to lie still and when to walk.
One another dog, a guest rescue from show sponsor Blue Ridge Humane Society, will be featured in each performance.

SHIRTTAIL

“Annie” opens Friday and runs through July 8 on the Mainstage of the Flat Rock Playhouse. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. For tickets call 828-693-0731 or visit www.flatrockplayhouse.org.