The Addams Family

In amongst the craze of jukebox musicals and film to stage adaptations ruling current musical theatre trends, it’s refreshing to see a show based on a series of New Yorker cartoons – well…it worked for ‘Annie’ didn’t it – although, admittedly, Charles Addams’s Gothic model of the grotesque all-American family has featured on several other media platforms in the interim which are, no doubt, responsible for furnishing these characters with their commercial reputation – it’s arguably a show which has jumped on the current band wagon of modern shows though, it could also be argued that that’s not entirely true, setting it apart from the others in its game.  

This musical is cleverly crafted, what sets it apart from the likes of ‘Spamalot’ and the other resembling craze amongst the amateur theatre scene at the moment, of staging 90’s sitcoms, is that it’s not necessary to be a fan of any of the previous incarnations of the family to appreciate it. Furthermore, this show presents an original story and songs for its characters too, though the infamous Addams Family theme tune makes the occasional welcome feature, naturally.

The narrative is quite simple with one or two twists of suspense but at no point is there any real sense of tension. Though, this is not the overall intention of this satirical jovial comedy.  

Director, Paul Downham, makes some bold choices with this, his directorial debut, though they’re what some may call precarious – particularly for a first timer – they ultimately paid off. The idea of misleading a member of the audience to ultimately feature in the final scene of Act I to join in with the banquet was a wonderful inclusion, such a notion would horrify many adept directors yet the way this was handled was first-rate, providing several hilarious moments during ‘Full Disclosure’ – even offering the whirl winded audience member the cup at one point! The only sticky moment with this was leaving her alone on stage to fend for herself, in a blackout, at the end of the act when the cast clear the stage, which, although hilarious, was probably a tad unfair and somewhat unsafe. The other admirable move was casting the moon, usually a projected special effect, here we had a member of the ensemble donning a large foam moon which proved an excellent idea until they turned upstage to reveal the unsightly gaffer tapped construction of the headpiece which was a shame but nonetheless, still cute and comical in equal measure.  

Sam Bate proffers a Gomez with a springy Spanish Marx Brothers-flavoured tone to proceedings, undoubtedly the glue of the show. This role shifted Sam out of his comfort zone with this larger than life bravado Casanova character relying heavily on comedic skills with the expertise to build a rapport with the audience. I was certainly impressed with how Mr Bate handled the humour, uncovering some favourable asides whilst maintaining the malicious and playful qualities. Vocally, this was a walk in the park for Sam as he certainly appeared to deliver his numbers with ease and knack.  

Morticia Addams oozed sleekness thanks to Madeline Jones’ portrayal, her eyes and tone were captivating as she held her stances with poise and command. The slinky walk she adopted perfectly to work in a live performance environment as the usual yet iconic ‘legs glued together’ impression portrays somewhat obscure on stage, I’ve never seen it translate effectively until now, with this slight adjustment of a snake like wiggle to accompany her movements giving a nod to what we expect from her whilst making it not look so obstinate on stage, or as though she needs the loo. Madeline understood the attitude of the role and played the parody excellently …“just around the cor-e-ner” proffered my biggest laugh of the night. Excellent job!          

Whilst conveying a cinematic style as the sombre daughter, Eve Reynolds plays the cynicism of Wednesday Addams but still carries off the emergence of a happy Wednesday that this story requires, no mean feat to bear, whilst showcasing a sturdy and impressive vocal performance too.

A strong chorus of ‘Addams ancestors’ is well used by choreographer Suzi Cleary, she ensured that there is always something going on adding copious intrigue to these unspecified individuals offering scope of original creativity to the supporting ensemble, just one factor making this an excellent show choice for a youth production. I particularly appreciated the Siamese Twins.  

I never thought I’d express such an opinion but I fully support the idea to use backing tracks to accompany this production rather than a live band. Unless the band or orchestra are in amongst the action - on stage - at this venue, they don’t do justice to the music from where we’re sitting. I’ve yet to hear live musicians give full credit to a score in this venue when channelled through from the back room as it’s incredibly difficult to emulate the sense of live musicians when they’re channelled through to the auditorium. This space doesn’t lend itself well for full scale productions requiring live musicians unless they’re able to be on stage. It’s cheaper and the sound is far more balanced when using tracks in this venue and with the skill set available. Surprisingly, I didn’t feel as though we’d missed anything from not having a live band, a comment which will no doubt turn some people’s stomachs for a piece of musical theatre but there it is, I would not have felt cheated out of my ticket money with the lack of live musicians at this production which, as I see it, is the bottom line! Don’t get me wrong, some shows just wouldn’t work using tracks but with the logistics of this venue and space limitations, it was absolutely the right decision.

Whether intentional or not, Alfie Leech melted our hearts as Pugsley with his solo number, Alice Beineke played by Kyamma Cronshaw put in a sterling performance as Alice - the Mother-In-Law to be - and Sean Baker showed us pointers of comedy gold as Uncle Fester proffering the ear worm of the production.

Technical aspects are an area which are seldom mentioned unless something goes wrong which is the sad nature of the trade, however, the lighting design hit as especially striking in this presentation.

Dissecting the lyrics of Andrew Lippa, you can find that beneath the farce and wise-cracks quite often lies real poignancy amongst a score ranging from heart-warming to, quite frankly, utterly insane which all works brilliantly for such a narrative and collection of eccentrics.

From comic strip to children’s animation, a television series, several feature films but in 2010 it became (probably) my favourite medium for the Addams… this Broadway musical.  Never failing to be highlights in this show are the ‘unexpected’ moments – when Uncle Fester serenades his most unlikely of partners and when Tyler Acton’s transfixing Lurch finally takes centre stage. The big production numbers also have a real pizzazz about them. The entire production flowed with a desirable swiftness and the visual storytelling accompanied the script with distinction.

‘The Addams Family’ asks us to embrace the darkness, showing us that gloom and misery are often more inviting than the ordinary which is surprisingly heart-warming, a balance of cynical yet cheesy and welcoming to audiences and freaks alike!

Excellent job, PADOS Youth!               

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