Based on the iconic characters created by legendary cartoonist Charles Addams, THE ADDAMS FAMILY is an all-new musical comedy starring Tony Award winner Roger Rees as Gomez and stage and screen star Brooke Shields as Morticia. THE ADDAMS FAMILY features an original story. It's every parent's nightmare. Your little girl has suddenly become a young woman, and what's worse, has fallen deliriously in love with a sweet, smart young man from a respectable family. Yes, Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has a "normal" boyfriend, and for parents Gomez and Morticia, it's a shocking development that turns the Addams house upside down when they are forced to host a dinner for the young man and his parents.
THE ADDAMS FAMILY has a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice (librettists of the 2006 Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Jersey Boys), music and lyrics by Drama Desk Award winner Andrew Lippa (The Wild Party), direction and design by Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch (Shockheaded Peter, The Metropolitan Opera's Satyagraha) and choreography by Sergio Trujillo (Next to Normal, Jersey Boys).
Handsomely designed by Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch of 'Shockheaded Peter' repute, the slick production packs plenty of tricky visuals including a giant squid and a spectral ensemble of Addams ancestors. McDermott and Crouch remain credited as directors but after the show's Chicago tryout, veteran helmsman Jerry Zaks was tapped as 'creative consultant.' The results are an expert, energetic attraction that could be far sharper in terms of composition, but likely to satisfy anyone who loves the Addams, appreciates terrific performances and really wants to have more of a comfortable than a brilliant Broadway experience.
But in many ways, the show feels wrong. Broadway's instinctive need to entertain seems at odds with the cartoon's low key style. In fact, the last thing you'd expect the tango loving Morticia and Gomez to do is yuk it up for laughs. But that's precisely what's going on for the most part. Andrew Lippa's eclectic score is uneven, featuring a few winning numbers playing on the conceit that normal values are reversed with the Addams' preferring dead things and gloom. But even that's inconsistent as the story inexplicably turns sentimental in spots. Bookwriters Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice of 'Jersey Boys' fame have come up with a plot right out of 'La Cage Aux Folles.' They've aged daughter Wednesday giving her a boyfriend with conservative parents who the kids invite over for dinner, expecting the Addams' to straighten their act. Besides being unoriginal it's uncompelling to boot.
2010 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
2011 | US Tour |
National Tour US Tour |
2021 | UK Tour |
UK Tour |
2024 | West End |
West End |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Costume Design | Phelim McDermott |
2010 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Costume Design | Julian Crouch |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Nathan Lane |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musica | Kevin Chamberlin |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Carolee Carmello |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design | Natasha Katz |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lyrics | Andrew Lippa |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Music | Andrew Lippa |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Musical | The Addams Family |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Set Design | Phelim McDermott |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Set Design | Basil Twist |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Nathan Lane |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Bebe Neuwirth |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Kevin Chamberlin |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Carolee Carmello |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Set Design | Phelim McDermott |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Set Design | Julian Crouch |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Andrew Lippa |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical | Kevin Chamberlin |
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