THE IMPORTANCE OF ANNIE
SUMMER 2018 | artsLife 47
eaping Lizards! Annie: The Musical
is coming to town, appropriately
enough to raise money for a charity
that helps support group homes for
foster kids in Central Florida. A brand-new lo-
this version of the Tony-winning tear-jerker.
The optimistic carrot-topped waif — who
wins the heart of audiences and, of course,
Daddy Warbucks — will sing “Tomorrow,” “It’s
the Hard Luck Life” and other familiar songs
Theater between May 24 and 27. Showtimes
are at 8 p.m. each night, with a 2 p.m. matinee
on May 26. Tickets are priced starting
at $35.
iPrevail International Foundation, an Oviedo-
disaster aid to the Philippines following a series
of deadly typhoons. iPrevail launched
a subsidiary charitable organization, Foster
Friends of Central Florida, in 2017.
Unity Players was founded last fall by a
Lake Mary couple, Tristan and Kierstyn Bishop.
Tristan Bishop is a tech industry executive
who, after graduating from the University
of North Carolina in 1991, moved to San
Francisco and joined an a capella quintet
called the House Jacks.
Billed as “a rock band without instruments,”
the House Jacks toured the world,
not only singing but also vocally imitating
instruments such as trumpets, guitars and
harmonicas. They pioneered the use of the
“beat box” for percussion and performed
mostly original music.
In fact, the House Jacks are still performing
— only without Bishop, who left in 1997
because he grew weary of the group’s grueling
schedule. Still, he has only fond memories
of his years on the road, and participates
in occasional reunion concerts.
“We played as many as 200 shows a year,”
he recalls. “Along the way, we opened for
Ray Charles, James Brown, the Temptations
time. It was an honor being part of something
like that.”
Bishop — who couldn’t entirely leave performing
behind — then became involved in
community theater. In 2107, he appeared in
The Music Man at Mount Dora’s acclaimed
Ice House Theater.
Bishop sang bass in the comically befuddled
barbershop quartet, while his talented
10-year-old daughter Natalie — who’ll appear
as Annie in the upcoming production
at the arts center — played Amaryllis, one of
the juvenile leads.
L
F E A T U R E D P E R F O R M A N C E
LEAPING LIZARDS! THE CARROT-TOPPED WAIF
IS COMING TO THE AID OF LOCAL FOSTER KIDS.