‘It must be in the DNA somewhere' - Annie star credits her famous gran
Cast as the dopey but spirited Lily St. Regis in a new Annie production, she shares the stage with Australian luminaries such as Anthony Warlow. At 30, she has an infectious optimism, intelligence and a clear sense of her role in Australia's music theatre scene.
In fact, her cheerful nature echoes the very heart of Annie's appeal. Just as Annie brims with optimism in the grim surrounds of her 1930s orphanage, there's something about Dunn that's heartening amid our doomscrolling and global anxieties.
Perched in a chilly rehearsal room with a snug yellow beanie and opinions to spare, she's a spirited advocate both for original new Australian work, and for comforting revivals.
'People still need hope. I think its good to go back to your inner child no matter what age you are, and Annie reminds us of family and of passion. We need something that's uplifting and I think Annie is the perfect show for any age.'
In her iconic red dress, Annie is brave and optimistic amid depression-era misery. Based originally on the comic strip Little Orphan Annie that began in the 1920s, the tale tells of mean Miss Hannigan and her brood of neglected little girls. Annie is rescued by a would-be philanthropist, Oliver 'Daddy' Warbucks, who offers to host an orphan for a short spell in his mansion. Escaping squalor, Annie gets a taste of luxury and love.
Inexplicably, American president Franklin D. Roosevelt makes an appearance – with a bit to say about the New Deal, a nod to Annie's sense of fairness – and the dastardly duo of Rooster and his gold-digging girlfriend Lily set off to dupe Warbucks, and make money out of Annie's sudden good fortune.
The original Broadway musical, created by Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, opened in 1977 and blitzed that year's Tony Awards. Chernin's reflections very much bear out the need for hope and light in dark times.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Age
8 hours ago
- The Age
‘I'm grateful': Princess of Wales makes popular appearance at Wimbledon
The Princess of Wales has returned to Wimbledon for the first time since announcing in January she was in remission from cancer. Princess Catherine waved to the crowd and received a standing ovation as she entered the royal box to watch Iga Swiatek's historic 6-0, 6-0 victory over Amanda Anisimova in the most lopsided Wimbledon final in 114 years. She told American Anisimova, who wiped away tears as she came to terms with the result, that she should be 'so proud', according to BBC Sport broadcaster Clare Balding. The royal, who wore a green and purple bow to mark her role as patron of the All England club, also presented the Venus Rosewater Dish trophy to Swiatek, as she did Carlos Alcaraz after the men's singles final last year. Loading 'On court [the Princess] just congratulated me, and told me some nice stuff about the performance,' Swiatek said. 'Later on, I don't remember really because I was too overwhelmed. I didn't want to do any faux pas. I wanted to behave well. 'Overall, the process of getting the trophy from Her Royal Highness was something surreal. Since I'm a kid, honestly, I'm a big fan of the royal family. It was amazing. I really appreciated that [and] I'm really grateful that it was Her Royal Highness giving the trophy.' It is not known if Princess Kate, who is a big tennis fan and has struck up a friendship with Roger Federer, will be at Sunday's men's singles final between Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Sky News AU
8 hours ago
- Sky News AU
Stella women's literary prize picks battle with non-existent enemy as it fights 'male gender bias' in the book industry
Australia's 2026 Stella Prize - for women authors - includes a male judge. If inclusivity is embraced to the extent that gender is no impediment to judging a gender-specific prize, then inclusivity has been rendered relativist to the extent of being just ideology with good branding. Paradoxically, it would be considered insensitive, in the current climate, to allege that a male judge was hindering representation and the distinctive voice of dozens of prospective female judges, whose lived experience and perspectives as women might make them inherently more suitable as a judge of a literary prize from which men are exempt as entrants. The Stella Prize claims to fight for gender equality. The Stella website says it 'takes an intersectional feminist approach to privilege and discrimination. We are committed to actively dismantling all structural barriers to inclusion for women and non-binary writers'. This is a sociocultural delusion, ignoring that the publishing industry is disproportionately, almost overwhelmingly dominated by women - roughly 60 to 70 per cent of Australian novels published in recent years have been written by women. The most up-to-date Lee & Low publishing survey found that 71 per cent of people in the US industry are women, including 74 per cent in editorial roles, 70 per cent of book reviewers, and 78 per cent of literary agents, with that number replicated in a scroll through the Australian Literary Agents Association website. Stella boasts: "… Data-driven initiatives – including our long-running Stella Count - collect, analyse, and distribute research on gender bias in the Australian literary sector." Looking at their reports, the findings indicate the systemic bias they allude to is an illusion: 55 per cent of the reviews in Australian newspapers and periodicals are of female authors, Stella's own report found. Similarly, "gender distribution of reviewers by publication" found women leading in eight of the twelve sampled publications. Benjamin Law, the male judge in question, is an Australian writer and broadcaster, and a founding member of the Australian Writers' Guild's Diversity and Inclusion Action Committee. He read Jessie Tu's The Honeyeater and "thought it slapped hard." And he is a massive Torrey Peters "stan". Peters is the author of 'Detransition, Baby' - possibly the most insufferable, archly preening novel of the last ten years. The socio-cultural carve-out here could feasibly be that the prize is also open to non-binary writers, which would open it up to LGBTQ authors, which could just about open it to Law. After all, the prize states: "We recognise that what it means to be a woman is not static and that rigid gender binaries reinforce inequality," suggesting that lived experience as a girl or woman is not a prerequisite to win a woman-oriented literature prize. From the submission criteria: "Entry is open to women and non-binary writers who identify with the Prize's purpose to promote Australian women's writing, in ways that align with the writer's own gender identity. This includes cis women, trans women and non-binary people." In this regard, non-binary writers have been granted a cultural skeleton-key to enter practically any literary competition. With the greatest sensitivity, in interviews and public profiles - including Men's Health, Star Observer, Sunday Guardian Live, SBS Voices, and Wikipedia – Mr Law consistently talks about being gay, with no mention of non binary identity. So there is, at best, an absolutely tenuous connection to the stipulation of "promoting Australian women's writing, in ways that align with the writer's own gender identity". At about this stage, the ideological prevarication and identity-sensitive pussyfooting will have turned your brain to mush. Womanhood, we're told, is an immutable characteristic - rooted in unique, lived experience that demands nurturing and protection in a literary world vulnerable to male hegemony (a hegemony that, statistically, ceased to exist a decade ago). Simultaneously, womanhood is mutable - open to self-declared gender fluidity, to non-binary redefinition, to the idea of a gendered soul. So, if you're a woman, submitting your manuscript to the women's only Stella prize, be conscious of the possibility of your work being assessed by a man - a culturally tuned-in, diverse, LGBTQ identifying published man - but a man, nonetheless. By 2012, when the Stella Prize was introduced, Australian publishing was already female-majority across all layers of gatekeeping, from editors to publicists and agents. In 2012, masculine themes (war, rural isolation, generational stoicism, etc.) were still critically respectable. Even non-urban, non-identity-centric male stories had a place. Literary agents were still receptive to quiet male protagonists, postcolonial masculine narratives, stories about fathers, veterans, male friendship, etc. But these were already waning. By 2012, diversity discourse was emerging forcefully. Male-authored manuscripts that didn't engage identity themes were becoming less fashionable, especially if they lacked a distinct 'hook' (e.g., trauma, cultural hybridity, queerness, etc.). There were already whispers in editorial circles about needing more 'own voices,' more 'underrepresented perspectives,' and less 'middle-aged white man navel-gazing.' Now, there is a strong diversity / identity tilt, and increasing ambivalence to traditional masculinity, which almost always must be shouldered with quotation marks. Masculine narrative spaces are borderline extinct, outside of genre writing. Male writers in 2025, submitting literary fiction that reflects traditional or psychologically subtle masculinity, face less editorial enthusiasm, fewer agenting opportunities, and lower prize prospects, meaning the situation for men, is now worse than it was for women when they felt compelled to band together to create the women's only Stella prize for literature in 2012. But even if someone instituted a male-only publishing prize - and imagine the opprobrium and scorn around that - It wouldn't occur to me to enter it, because any gender-specific prize, in 2025, is banal and dated. Nicholas Sheppard is an accomplished journalist whose work has been featured in The Spectator, The NZ Herald and Politico. He is also a published literary author and public relations consultant
Sydney Morning Herald
9 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Perfect ‘Hollywood' teeth are making way for something more realistic
This story is part of the July 13 edition of Sunday Life. See all 14 stories. In many cultures, a gap between the front teeth is a sign of good fortune. If you have such a gap, then you're definitely in luck right now as natural-looking teeth are having a moment. According to Sydney cosmetic dentist Dr Michael Cai, dental aesthetics come in waves, just like fashion. 'In the '80s, Madonna had space between her front teeth, and Kate Moss in the '90s also had natural-looking teeth with gaps between them,' he says. 'The perfect Hollywood look was popular a few years ago as a status symbol, but there is a trend now towards a natural-looking smile and the 'anti-veneer' look. We have fewer clients looking for perfect white veneers and more clients looking for subtle enhancement.' In a nod to natural-looking teeth, translucent ceramic veneers that mimic real tooth enamel are on the rise. Dr Cai says, 'During smile makeover consultations, the aim is for clients to articulate their personality and character. The objective is to achieve a pleasant and attractive smile that appears natural, as if no cosmetic dentistry has been performed.' Cai is a big fan of White Lotus actor Aimee Lou Wood and her 'supersized smile'. In an interview with On Demand Entertainment, the British star said that her smile might have made it difficult for her to play a convincing American: 'No Americans have my teeth! I'd have to get veneers! It's the teeth that give us [British] away.' Keira Knightley is another British actor with a well-developed sense of humour about her slightly wonky teeth. For evidence, look no further than her appearance on The Graham Norton Show, where she used her teeth to tap out Cher's hit Believe in front of Cher herself. Pure gold. Other big names on our dental love list include Robert Pattinson, Cynthia Erivo, Melanie Lynskey and Princess Catherine. The best way to care for teeth, no matter their shape or size, is to brush twice daily with a fluoride toothpaste and floss at least once a day to remove plaque and bacteria. 'Dental check-ups every six to 12 months are essential for early intervention and preventative care,' says Cai. 'Avoid aggressive brushing, which can lead to gum recession. 'Diet also plays a crucial role, so eat plenty of fruits, vegetables and dairy products and limit sugary food and drinks. Be mindful, too, of stain-inducing substances such as coffee, tea and red wine. And stay hydrated as this aids in naturally cleansing the mouth.'
