THE ADDAMS
FAMILY
ADDAMS FAMILY A MIXED BAG OF HALLOWEEN TREATS
By ANDREW SHACKLEY
Valley Press Staff Writer
Lovers of the Addams Familys
various media incarnations
in print, on TV and on film
will find plenty to love in Palmdale
Repertory Theatres newest musical
Production though not without
frustration.
Typical of Palmdale Repertory's
Halloween shows, Addams Family"
is a visual splendor. Costumes
and make-up feel authentic to the
characters origins and the sets, while
smaller in scale when compared to
previous Halloween season finales,
give the stage an appropriately Gothic
character (especially the Familys
gaudy front gate).
Beyond the superficial aesthetic
and through no fault of the Palmdale
troupe, the actual play (from a book
Addams Family a mixed-bag of Halloween
Treats by Marshall Brickman and Rick Ellice
with music and lyrics by Andrew
Lippa) lacks a uniform tone and
quality throughout its nearly three
hour runtime.
Although purporting to be based on
the original Charles Addams single
panel strips that once published in
The New Yorker, Brickman and
Ellice have chosen to churn a fair
amount of the musicals gags and set
ups straight from a modem sitcom.
It finds Wednesday in love and
secretly set to wed a rather sheepish
hoy from Ohio named Lucas. Much of
the comedy comes from Gomez (who
has vowed to never keep a secret from
his wife, Morticia) trying to keep this
secret engagement just that
until the time is right.
It's a thin yarn to be sure, but
the troupe does what it can with the
material and succeeds in elevating
most of the play in spite of itself with
a host of line comedic performances
from Courtney Unander (unhinged as
Wednesday), Austin Lacroix (wide-eyed
and uncertain as Lucas), Dave
Sullivan (alternately stuffy and fun-loving
as Lucas s dad) and Christine
Sullivan (as Lucas loopy mother).
Chief among them is L. Michael Wells
arguably the finest and most
versatile actor in the Valley in
the shows surprising centerpiece
role, the flamboyant Gomez (once
occupied by Nathan Lane during
the show s original 2010 Broadway
run). He captures the physicality
and inherent comedy of his character
with ease and earns some big laughs.
Christine Maag-Yander is stoic
and effective as Morticia and a tine
foil for Wells. Young David Alvarado
(as Pugsley) and Krista Waite (as
Grandmama Addams) have some
nice scenes together; between Davids
scene of smoking and torture at
the hands of Unanders Wednesday
and Waites reminiscing of more
psychedelic days, they provide adults
with the sort of humor that should
swing over kids heads.
Shea Dittman and actor/director
Brandon McCravey are perfect
physical representations of their
characters (Lurch and Uncle Fester).
Dittman gets the most comedic
millage from saying nothing at all (or
even with just a few grunts or a look)
THE MUSICAL
AV PRESS OCT 2016
and McCravey is as manic as Jackie
Coogan.
McCravy s direction keeps the
stage bustling with activity and
Carrie McBryants choreography
particularly in the shows penultimate
number Tango de Amor is light
and fun.
Andrew Lippas music is showtunes all
the way, but he implements a flavor of
Flamenco for a weird musical identity
that suits Gomez s many solos and
featured songs well, but few others in
the show.
Outside of When Youre an
Addams (which opens the show
after a brief overture, complete with
Thing T. Thing leading the audience
in the Family s famous snaps), the
songs rarely stick. Gomezs Trapped"
and Not Today successfully rise up
from the grave, but that s due more
to Wells' energetic performance than
the tunes themselves.
Some opening night technical
gaffes reared their heads, but the
cast and crew pushed through some
extended scene changes that left the
audience in the dark for minutes
at a time, and some lighting issues
without too substantial an effect on
the show.
The Addams Family tends to
lean a bit too much on audiences
familiarity with the license and seems
afraid to truly try something new.
Thats disappointing since Palmdale
Repertory seems more than capable
of taking these characters to new
heights. It s a mixed bag, but theres
some genuine treats to be had.