Larry Land

I loved most of it. Like everyone I was totally blown away by the performance not only of the wonderful young girl who played Annie, but the entire cast of those other young girls who performed with her. I’m a big Harry Connick Jr. fan, even if his dancing reminded me of how painful it still is to watch Rosemary Clooney trying to move as gracefully as Vera Ellen in scenes when they were performing side-by-side in “White Christmas.” But I have to hand it to Harry, he had the guts to get up from his piano stool and try something new. Not only that, his awkwardness as a dancer was consistent with the total persona of the character he played: a hard driven businessman hungering to somehow relate, even if awkwardly, to a vulnerable orphan in order to fill a void in his life. With the scenes involving the FDR character, the total production had an obvious political subtext that I’m sure will be criticized in the parallel universe of MAGA world. Personally, I don’t give a damn. The parts of the production most painful for me were when the camera focused on Miss Hannigan. If it’s possible to over-do a portrayal of a drunken and abusive headmaster of an orphanage, Teraji Henson drove it to the point of absurd vulgarity. On the other hand, what is there not to love about Nicole Sherzinger as Grace Ferral? I believe these live stage performances are among the best things shown on television. I hope they continue.