I will begin this review by letting you all in on a little secret. At the college I attend, I am a double major in Journalism…and Theatre. Yes! It’s true! Yours truly is a thespian and an avid lover of all things musical theatre *holds skull with jazz hands*. That being said, I have a tendency to judge quite harshly when it comes to musical theatre performances as musical theatre is the genre that I hold nearest and dearest to my Judy Garland obsessed heart. This past weekend, I was lucky enough to catch a performance of The Addams Family musical in Chicago as it was being tested out on us Windy City dwellers before it hits The Big Apple. I’ve been absolutely eager to see this production take flight and I finally was given my opportunity.
I would first like to state that the set design, light design, sound design, costumes, and scene transitions were absolutely fabulous. The Addams house looked creepy, cooky, mysterious, and yes…a little spooky. With monsters that come out of beds move and carry Pugsly away while he slumbers with his six toes, a moon that Fester falls for, and even a gigantic venus flytrap that eats mice on stage while we watch it clump down its throat; the technical aspect of the film was absolutely magnificent.
Second, the sound. I’m normally picky picky picky when it comes to music and I was terribly afraid the music for this show was going to be nothing more than these Gothic and dark songs that did nothing more than depress the audience. I was pleasantly shown otherwise. The music was very catchy and very “Broadway”. The love song, the dance break, the upbeat fiesty “I gotta figure this out” jam, all came power packed with just a hint of the macabre for this show. I found the music to be highly intelligent, as well as impressive. The pit playing had a hell of a brass line and I was very impressed. A lot of people are giving Bebe Neuwirth negative reviews as far as her voice is concerned and honestly, I had no problem with it. She was playing up the character (impecably I might add) as Morticia Addams. This includes her singing. There are parts where her voice switches from her natural singing voice to the “Morticia” singing voice and this shouldn’t be picked on so much. If you listen to the soundtrack to Little Shop of Horrors, you’ll notice Audrey’s voice does the same thing. This is because you can only have a character voice for certain notes before you end up sounding like a lousy singer. I will say that I found Fester’s songs to be a bit excessive. One of the most entertaining parts of the show and yet the one scene I would cut (the show runs a bit long for Broadway) is his love song about the moon. We see him floating in the air and yet as much as I enjoyed it, it didn’t play any necessary part for the storyline. Any producers reading this, cut that scene somehow…or shorten it. The voices of Gomez, Pugsly, Wednesday, Fester, The Beineke family, and the big surprise in Lurch were all absolutely phenomenal. I have made it my unrealistic theatre goal to one day play Wednesday on Broadway and to adopt the little boy playing Pugsly.
The acting was of course wonderful and I will say I have found a new obsession with Jackie Hoffman which is the actress and facial contorting genius behind the character of the Grandmama. Her lines were absolutely hysterical and her delivery was brilliant. She was the standout character of the entire show and a true star.
The show was based on the cartoons rather than the films, but the creators made the very VERY intelligent move by doing a ton of throwbacks to the characters that honestly, we’ve learned from the movies and television series. Fester’s light bulb in the mouth was a huge hit, as well as the special guest appearances of Thing, Cousin IT, and the infamous sword fights. The full arm kisses and the iconic snapping theme song all made the show all the more enjoyable by throwing us audience members a bone.
All in all, the show was awesome. Now it isn’t to say this show is better than Wicked or Spamalot which both recently played in Chicago, but it is definitely worth seeing and if I could scrounge up the funds, I’d go see it again in a heartbeat.
My friend went to see this in Chicago and raved about it as well! Unfortunately she did not see Nathan Lane in the role of Gomez, but the understudy was great apparently. I can't wait to see this when it officially starts touring. Seems like a very fun musical.
Comics? The single panel cartoons appeared in the New Yorker Magazine. Charles Addams was a cartoonist, not a comic artist.
Thank-you for the clarification, I've edited the post as appropriate :)
Great! I am encouraging my friends to see it before it moves on to Broadway. Could be another smash hit for Nathan Lane.
Only one negative comment. Bebe's singing. I know she was singing in character, or doing a bad Kate Hepburn schtick, but it was distracting. Nathan's Gomez also started singing "in character" the night I attended a few weekends ago, but thankfully, he changed over to his great natural voice for the last 75% of the play. I hope to see it again before they leave and I look forward to the improvements as they tune up for Broadway. Grandma stole the show! A great character.
Agree with your review 99%. The moon song needs to be shortened not cut. But I didn't really think that much of lil pugsley. Acting was OK, but his song could also be cut. Surprised you didn't gush as much as I have been about Nathan lane, and lastly I would add- as a 40 year old guy- I thought this was 10 times better than wicked. certainly funnier.
I came to this site as a result of a google search for reviews of this show for I saw it last night. I have to respectfully disagree with the review. This show, as most shows on the way to the Big White Way, will not be the show I or any of the other respondees saw when it hits New York next spring. If it did, it would close before you could exhale. That said, it will be tweaked. It is full of trite theatrical gimmicks and has no focus, at one time channeling Little Shop of Horrors. The music is strictly Broadway but that's what it should be. The cast is exceptional. Neuwirth and Lane are not going to New York with the show in its current condition. But that's what pre-Broadway productions are for–fixing things. The book is a problem, and I am very confident it will be fixed. Spamalot in Chicago had the same problem, and Wicked didn't play Chicago until after it was a hit in New York.
Cannot wait to see what it looks like in New York in the spring.
Just saw it tonight, and have to agree that the comedy is great, the cast great, but the songs were quite ho-hum. Seemed like the usual mixture of Broadway styles that seems so common these days. I couldn't remember one song by the time I got home, not a good sign! You need a good hook and keep repeating it on occasion to really sell it, and the only one that seemed to hit with the audience was when snippits of the original TV themesong were introduced in some numbers. The sets were great, and it was a nice opportunity to get out for an evening, but I have to wonder how long this will play on Broadway.
The show was a disjointed production of one-liners, not very funny I might add, with ho-hum music that was instantly forgettable at best. In its present form the show will not last a week on broadway. A shame to waste such an obviously talented cast on such a mediocre script. The theme of love did not carry the performance. The dance troupe choreography needs a major overhaul. Most of the time they were just twirling around the stage. One scene has them dueling with swords–this scene should be eliminated altogether. Sadly, there is not much that moves this play forward.
saw the show last night..it is so funny to me and a clear indication of how different tastes are… we were with about 20 people and after the show we all raved at the Moon scene that you did not enjoy.
I wished that scene was longer, go figure. However Bebe's voice does not add to the show. A stronger voice in her role would only add to the show.
Bebe Neuwirth is a dancer, and her dancing, the way she moves, were terrific. It's not unusual for a show to have some people who are strong singers and others who are great dancers. I don't think her singing is such a problem, considering she is playing Morticia Addams.
I absolutely agree with you about the Uncle Fester Moon song. It was charming, but the scene seemed stuck in, as if it had to fill some gap. It needs to be made more essential to the plot, or it needs to be (alas) cut.
hmm, i found this page thru a search at google too. I saw this show on its first night 13th of november and thought it was BY FAR THE BEST show I have ever seen. My wife and I travel along way to see every broadway show there is and it was WAAAAY better than wicked. it was origional, funny, catchy and very well produced. I was not impressed with bebe's voice either, but was impressed with her performance. yes thought gramma was great, and thought fester was best is the vocals, never missed a note. did run slightly long, but to those who think the show wont last a week in NY are, well, really high. the show would be a hit in it's current form, and would do well with a few cuts. either way it will be a few years till we get to see this show back in chicago…..another thing to throw in> wow who'd think Rockford IL would have such a great theater .. was there recently to see david copperfield.. Coronado.. was so impressed with it.
:)
I saw this the second night – Nov. 14 – and enjoyed it. Didn't LOVE it and I really wanted to. Ms. Neuwirth's voice is distracting enough to be detrimental IMO. And quite a few things just didn't quite work – like the monster under the bed scene. It was fun but not mesmerizing in the way "Wicked" is. The music is not terribly memorable. It will need some work on timing and lines before it hits Broadway, but even then, will have mediocre script and music. Loved the sets and the nods to the very successful show and movies. But…
(BTW, reviewed the second Addams Family movie recently and was amused to see that Nathan Lane played a police officer in it and so had a chance to observe the perfect Raul Julia in the role of Gomez.)
I am seeing the show in a couple of weeks and was looking to see what reviews have been saying so far. I've heard great things about the show for the most part.
The reason for my comment, however, has little to do with this show, but rather your commentary on it. The fact that one would put Wicked and Spamalot on the same level of caliber is ridiculous; one was written as a heart filled family musical trying to get young people to the theater, whereas the other was a groin-centered sausage fest. And judging from what I've read about The Addams Family, it cannot be compared to either of those other productions. If you're going to compare shows to others that have been through Chicago, at least pick better shows.
I saw The Addams Family last year and loved it! Lane and Neuwirth were fantastic as well as Krysta Rodriguez. The story line and music were very entertaining and tickets weren't cheap, i got them from Ticketsinventory.com …hopefully they do make it on Broadway again. https://www.ticketsinventory.com/theatre/the-addam…
It’s one of my favourite shows; I would see it again in a heartbeat!
My husband and I saw the show yesterday, 12-26 and we both found it very enjoyable. As for the cast, Bebe looked the part, and acted and danced well, but her singing left much to be desired. Still I enjoyed her, though I'm not sure she's the best choice for a Broadway run. Nathan Lane did Gomez justice and the actor who played Uncle Fester was spot on. The show had to be about Wednesday, as she had the best chops. The last comment made me smile as I told my husband I liked this show better than Wicked. I'm just ookie, I guess.
Really? People liked it? Not even the producers think it works. They recently replaced the director. If it lasts more than a week on Broadway, I'll have to see it again because it will undoubtedly be a different show than the one I saw in December.