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''The Addams Family'' began try-outs in Chicago at the [[Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre]] from November 13, 2009 through January 10, 2010.<ref name="NYCWorkshop"/><ref name="Arrive2010">{{cite web|last=Gans|first=Andrew|coauthors=Jones, Kenneth|title=''Addams Family'' Musical to Arrive on Broadway in 2010|work=Playbill|date=2009-12-09|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135139-Morticia, Gomez, Wednesday and Uncle Fester Sing in Addams Family, Opening Dec. 9
''The Addams Family'' began try-outs in Chicago at the [[Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre]] from November 13, 2009 through January 10, 2010.<ref name="NYCWorkshop"/><ref name="Arrive2010">{{cite web|last=Gans|first=Andrew|coauthors=Jones, Kenneth|title=''Addams Family'' Musical to Arrive on Broadway in 2010|work=Playbill|date=2009-12-09|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135139-Morticia, Gomez, Wednesday and Uncle Fester Sing in Addams Family, Opening Dec. 9
|accessdate=2009-12-11}}</ref> The cast includes many names attached to earlier readings of the show, including Nathan Lane as Gomez, Bebe Neuwirth as Morticia, [[Terrence Mann]] as Mal Beineke, [[Carolee Carmello]] as Alice Beineke, Kevin Chamberlin as Uncle Fester, [[Jackie Hoffman]] as Grandmama, and Zachary James as Lurch.<ref name="Arrive2010"/><ref name="ChicagoCast">{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Kenneth|title=''Addams Family'' Musical to Star Lane, Neuwirth, Carmello, Hoffman, Chamberlin and More|work=Playbill|date=2009-02-26|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/129122-Addams+Family+Musical+to+Star+Lane%2C+Neuwirth%2C+Carmello%2C+Hoffman%2C+Chamberlin+and+More|accessdate=2009-07-23}}</ref> The [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] premiere is scheduled to begin previews at the [[Lunt-Fontanne Theatre]] on March 8, 2010, with an official opening set for April 8.<ref name=jerry>Jones, Kenneth.[http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135551-Zaks-Is-New-Patriarch-of-Addams-Family-Previews-Will-Now-Begin-March-8 Zaks Is New Patriarch of Addams Family; Previews Will Now Begin March 8"]playbill.com, December 29, 2009</ref><ref name="ChicagoCast"/> The show was originally expected to cost an estimated $10 million,<ref>{{cite web|last=Riedel|first=Michael|title=Broadway Musical ''The Addams Family'' Lands Bebe Neuwirth and Tempts Nathan Lane|work=New York Post|date=2008-06-25|url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/06252008/entertainment/theater/evening_up_addams_117140.htm|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref> with more recent reports budgeting the production at $15 million.<ref name="Shows&Stars">{{cite web|last=Riedel|first=Michael|title=Big Shows and Stars in Wings on Broadway|work=New York Post|date=2009-06-08|url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/06082009/news/columnists/big_shows_and_stars_in_wings_on_broadway_173183.htm|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref>
|accessdate=2009-12-11}}</ref> The cast includes many names attached to earlier readings of the show, including Nathan Lane as Gomez, Bebe Neuwirth as Morticia, [[Terrence Mann]] as Mal Beineke, [[Carolee Carmello]] as Alice Beineke, Kevin Chamberlin as Uncle Fester, [[Jackie Hoffman]] as Grandmama, and Zachary James as Lurch.<ref name="Arrive2010"/><ref name="ChicagoCast">{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Kenneth|title=''Addams Family'' Musical to Star Lane, Neuwirth, Carmello, Hoffman, Chamberlin and More|work=Playbill|date=2009-02-26|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/129122-Addams+Family+Musical+to+Star+Lane%2C+Neuwirth%2C+Carmello%2C+Hoffman%2C+Chamberlin+and+More|accessdate=2009-07-23}}</ref> The [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] production is scheduled to begin previews at the [[Lunt-Fontanne Theatre]] on March 8, 2010, with an official opening set for April 8.<ref name=jerry>Jones, Kenneth.[http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135551-Zaks-Is-New-Patriarch-of-Addams-Family-Previews-Will-Now-Begin-March-8 Zaks Is New Patriarch of Addams Family; Previews Will Now Begin March 8"]playbill.com, December 29, 2009</ref><ref name="ChicagoCast"/> The show was originally expected to cost an estimated $10 million,<ref>{{cite web|last=Riedel|first=Michael|title=Broadway Musical ''The Addams Family'' Lands Bebe Neuwirth and Tempts Nathan Lane|work=New York Post|date=2008-06-25|url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/06252008/entertainment/theater/evening_up_addams_117140.htm|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref> with more recent reports budgeting the production at $15 million.<ref name="Shows&Stars">{{cite web|last=Riedel|first=Michael|title=Big Shows and Stars in Wings on Broadway|work=New York Post|date=2009-06-08|url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/06082009/news/columnists/big_shows_and_stars_in_wings_on_broadway_173183.htm|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref>


On December 28, 2009, [[Jerry Zaks]] was named as creative consultant, to supervise "significant changes."<ref>Hernandez, Ernio and Jones, Kenneth.http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135550-Producers-Hire-Jerry-Zaks-to-Oversee-Changes-to-Addams-Family-Musical "Producers Hire Jerry Zaks to Oversee Changes to Addams Family Musical",]playbill.com, December 28, 2009</ref><ref name=jerry/>
On December 28, 2009, [[Jerry Zaks]] was named as creative consultant, to supervise "significant changes."<ref>Hernandez, Ernio and Jones, Kenneth.http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135550-Producers-Hire-Jerry-Zaks-to-Oversee-Changes-to-Addams-Family-Musical "Producers Hire Jerry Zaks to Oversee Changes to Addams Family Musical",]playbill.com, December 28, 2009</ref><ref name=jerry/>

Revision as of 16:16, 30 December 2009

The Addams Family
File:Adams family musical.jpg
The Addams Family promotional poster
MusicAndrew Lippa
LyricsAndrew Lippa
BookMarshall Brickman
Rick Elice
BasisCharles Addams' comic strip The Addams Family

The Addams Family is an upcoming musical with music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. The show is based upon the characters created by cartoonist Charles Addams in his comic strip The Addams Family, which depicts a ghoulish American family with an affinity for all things macabre. While numerous film and television adaptations of Addams' cartoons exist, the stage show does not draw from these portrayals of the characters.[1] After a tryout in Chicago, the show is slated to open on Broadway in April 2010.

Plot summary

It’s a dismal day at the Addams family’s manse, with the ever-approaching storm clouds reflecting the gloomy atmosphere that has beset the household. Daughter Wednesday, now eighteen years old, has found herself experiencing a surprising new sensation, one that frightens both her and her family: she has fallen in love. Lucas Beineke, the object of her affections, comes from a seemingly normal family, and he and his parents Mal and Alice are on their way to the Addams’ estate to become better acquainted with the family over dinner. Brother Pugsley, who has been largely ignored since Wednesday’s involvement with Lucas, begins to miss the attention his sister previously paid to him and pleads with her to torture him once more. Meanwhile, mother Morticia finds herself conflicted over her ever-maturing daughter’s newfound feelings, while oblivious father Gomez simply wishes things would remain the way they were. As they learn to relate to the Beinekes and cope with Wednesday’s romance, one thing is certain: the Addams family will never be the same. The producers have announced on their official Facebook page that a cast album will also be released in April.

Background

On May 21, 2007 it was announced that a musical adaptation of The Addams Family was in development for the Broadway stage, with an anticipated opening during the 2009–2010 season after an out-of-town tryout.[1] The production company attained the rights to the show from the Tee and Charles Addams Foundation, marking the first time that Charles Addams' comic creations would serve as the basis for a stage production.[1] The Addams Foundation, which has been said to have "complete control" over much of the show, insisted from early on that, instead of merely drawing the plot from The Addams Family television series or films, the production team devise an original musical based solely on Addams' cartoons.[2]

Broadway veterans Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice were brought onboard to write the book, with Andrew Lippa providing the show's score. Improbable Theatre founders Julian Crouch and Phelim McDermott will be directing and designing the production, with choreography by Sergio Trujillo.[1] Crouch has said that, when brainstorming ideas for the overall appearance of the show, he and McDermott turned to Uncle Fester for inspiration, asking themselves "If Fester was going to do a Broadway show, what kind of Broadway show would he do?"[3] The partners describe the result as "an off-beat take on 19th Century Gothic."[3]

Production history

Between August 4 and 8, 2008, workshop and private industry presentations of the show were held in Manhattan. The cast featured Nathan Lane as Gomez, Bebe Neuwirth as Morticia, and Annaleigh Ashford as Wednesday.[4] A second two-week workshop was held in January 2009, with an industry presentation on January 27, 2009. In addition to the earlier cast, Kevin Chamberlin played the part of Fester, with Zachary James as Lurch.[5]

The Addams Family began try-outs in Chicago at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre from November 13, 2009 through January 10, 2010.[5][6] The cast includes many names attached to earlier readings of the show, including Nathan Lane as Gomez, Bebe Neuwirth as Morticia, Terrence Mann as Mal Beineke, Carolee Carmello as Alice Beineke, Kevin Chamberlin as Uncle Fester, Jackie Hoffman as Grandmama, and Zachary James as Lurch.[6][7] The Broadway production is scheduled to begin previews at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on March 8, 2010, with an official opening set for April 8.[8][7] The show was originally expected to cost an estimated $10 million,[9] with more recent reports budgeting the production at $15 million.[10]

On December 28, 2009, Jerry Zaks was named as creative consultant, to supervise "significant changes."[11][8]

Musical numbers

Original cast

Reception

After the January 2009 workshop, theatre columnist Michael Riedel of the New York Post wrote that The Addams Family was generating much buzz, saying the show was packed with "many funny wisecracks" and a "brilliantly funny" cast.[2] However, Riedel also suggested that there was still room for improvement in terms of the plot and claimed that Lippa's score received mixed reviews from the audience, with one attendee stating they "didn't leave humming any of the songs."[2] Additionally, it was noted that the popular theme from the title sequence of The Addams Family television series was missing from the show's score.[2] However, Riedel later reported that the producers managed to strike a deal with the song's composer Vic Mizzy, who has granted them permission to use his famous tune in the musical.[10]

The Variety review of the Chicago tryout said "Lippa's music moves through a series of classic styles -- the cabaret torch song 'Second Banana' for narcissistic Morticia, suddenly obsessed with her own aging; the jazzy/swingy/catchy 'Let's Not Talk About Anything Else but Love,' sung by Kevin Chamberlin's Uncle Fester, a semi-narrator who establishes the (literally) over-the-moon romantic sentiment; the lovely, Sondheim-ish ballad of contradictory emotions, 'Happy/Sad,' which Gomez sings to Wednesday when her relationship with Lucas hits a predictable bump...the show [is] overcrammed and underfocused...From a structural perspective, the storytelling is all rising action followed by rapid and not really convincing resolution... it's very funny, with special nods to Chamberlin, whose ultra-corny number 'The Moon and Me' is a comic highlight, as well as to Hoffman and Lane."[12]

After the official premiere in Chicago, Chicago Sun-Times theater critic Hedy Weiss wrote a laudatory review.[13] Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones' review was more nuanced. While he found the musical enjoyable, he felt "the show is hijacked by the Addamses behaving weirdly (i.e. normally)" and that Morticia's "crisis of confidence about getting old" is "a very uneasy narrative twist" and perhaps too far out of character.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Jones, Kenneth (2007-05-21). "Go, Go, Go Gomez! Addams Family Musical, by Lippa, Brickman and Elice, In Development". Playbill. Retrieved 2009-07-23.
  2. ^ a b c d Riedel, Michael (2009-01-30). "Good Reviews Come from Inventation-Only Reading of The Addams Family Musical". New York Post. Retrieved 2009-07-23.
  3. ^ a b Jones, Chris (2009-05-11). "Addams Family musical, coming to Chicago, reveals stars and story". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2009-07-24.
  4. ^ Jones, Kenneth (2008-08-04). "Lane, Neuwirth, Chamberlin, McCarthy and Arden Featured in Addams Family Reading". Playbill. Retrieved 2009-07-22. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ a b Jones, Kenneth (2009-01-14). "Addams Family Sings Together in NYC Workshop of New Musical, With Lane and Neuwirth". Playbill. Retrieved 2009-07-23.
  6. ^ a b Gans, Andrew (2009-12-09). Gomez, Wednesday and Uncle Fester Sing in Addams Family, Opening Dec. 9 "Addams Family Musical to Arrive on Broadway in 2010". Playbill. Retrieved 2009-12-11. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ a b Jones, Kenneth (2009-02-26). "Addams Family Musical to Star Lane, Neuwirth, Carmello, Hoffman, Chamberlin and More". Playbill. Retrieved 2009-07-23.
  8. ^ a b Jones, Kenneth.Zaks Is New Patriarch of Addams Family; Previews Will Now Begin March 8"playbill.com, December 29, 2009
  9. ^ Riedel, Michael (2008-06-25). "Broadway Musical The Addams Family Lands Bebe Neuwirth and Tempts Nathan Lane". New York Post. Retrieved 2009-07-24.
  10. ^ a b Riedel, Michael (2009-06-08). "Big Shows and Stars in Wings on Broadway". New York Post. Retrieved 2009-07-24.
  11. ^ Hernandez, Ernio and Jones, Kenneth.http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135550-Producers-Hire-Jerry-Zaks-to-Oversee-Changes-to-Addams-Family-Musical "Producers Hire Jerry Zaks to Oversee Changes to Addams Family Musical",]playbill.com, December 28, 2009
  12. ^ Oxman, Steven.The Addams Familyvariety.com, December 10, 2009
  13. ^ Weiss, Hedy. "Freakier Than Your Family: Unlikely Group Functions Fabulously in 'Addams' Premiere", Chicago Sun-Times, 11 December 2009, p. 35.
  14. ^ Jones, Chris. "Needs More 'Family' Time", Chicago Tribune, 11 December 2009, Section 5, p. 1.
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