STAGE

There will be a tomorrow for “Annie.” “Annie 2,” a sequel to the long-running Broadway musical about the world’s most famous orphan, is on the books to open in New York next March after tryouts in Washington and Boston. “This story is not really as much a sequel as it is a continuation,” says Martin Charnin, lyricist and director of the original “Annie” which arrived on Broadway in April 1977 and ran for 2,377 performances. That show ended with the imprisonment of Miss Hannigan, the villainous matron who ran the orphanage, and the adoption of Annie by the wealthy Daddy Warbucks. “In ‘Annie 2,’ Miss Hannigan is still in prison, and her one dream is to wreak havoc on Annie and get revenge,” says Charnin who again will supply the lyrics and direction. Dorothy Loudon will be back as Miss Hannigan, a role that won her a Tony Award 12 years ago. A new 11-year-old Annie is yet to be cast. In a dozen years, “Annie’s” price tag has gone from relative orphan status to big bucks. The original was budgeted at $800,000. “Annie 2” will have a budget of $6 million.