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New And Improved Addams Family Musical Hits Broadway Running
Catherine | Mar 09, 2010 | Comments 17
photo by Matt Hoyle
The highly anticipated new musical “The Addams Family”, starring Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth, held its first preview on Broadway last night at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Following an eight week Chicago try-out, the show has undergone some changes in the last few weeks, thanks in part to the input of Tony Award winning director Jerry Zaks, who was brought in as a creative consultant. Time will tell if the changes are enough to quiet the critics, but initial chatter is definitely positive:
…the audience responded like it was a rock concert…
…not only are there great tunes, but the lyrics are great…
…the laughs were big and constant…
…a new song (“Live Before We Die”) and a lovely one at that…
…the essence of the story is much more focused now…
With the collaborative efforts of such a fantastic cast….
Nathan Lane (Gomez); Bebe Neuwirth(Morticia); Kevin Chamberlin (Uncle Fester); Jackie Hoffman (Grandma); Krysta Rodriguez (Wednesday); Wesley Taylor (Lucas Beineke); Zachary James (Lurch); Carolee Carmello(Alice Beineke); Terence Mann (Mal Beineke); and Adam Riegler(Pugsley)…
and a dream creative team …
Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice (Book); Andrew Lippa (Music and Lyrics); Julian Crouch and Phelim McDermott (Direction and Design); Sergio Trujillo (Choreography) and Stuart Oken (Producer)….
there’s no way this show won’t just keep getting better and better!
If you have seen the show, or even if you just want to see the show, please feel free to share your thoughts here. Other readers value your comments!
About the Author:
I love the Adams Family TV series, loved the first feature film and can’t wait to see the show. Thanks!
Rick Elice & Marshall Brickman. Loved their Jersey Boys. This one can’t miss.
Saw the show tonight, and overall, found it great. The book was tight, and more original than I thought possible. Really great performances of Lurch, Grandma, and Pugsly, and Nathan Lane has the audience eating out of his hand once again, but sdorry to say, Bebe Neuwirth was a major disappointment. She has one outstanding dance number in the second act, but her singing was not even adequate, and all of her interactions with other characters are pretty lifeless, and not in a good way.The relationship between the young lovers is pretty weak, until their “I’m Crazier than You” duet redeems the whole thing. Ghost and Fester choreography is very inventive–a pure delight. Even with the majorm casting misstep with Morticia, it’s well worth seeing.
Saw the first act last night. Left at intermission, sad to say. Extremely weak. Bebe’s breasts looked fabulous, but they could not carry the show.
Wow. You BOUGHT a ticket for a PREVIEW, and then were so picky you actually left at intermission. Perhaps next time you should wait till previews are over ….
Steve, my preview ticket in the mezzanine cost $100. By the time a show is in previews on Broadway, we are not talking about rehearsal time. Audiences are paying full freight and a show should be almost “there,” with some tweaking of timing and such. Certainly a preview audience paying high ticket costs after the show has opened out of time has the right to be picky.
meant to say “out of town,” not “out of time.”
My friend saw the show last week and laughed her head off. I love Nathan Lane so I’m going very soon.
I saw the show on Monday night, and enjoyed it very much overall, which I wasn’t sure I would. I wasn’t that familiar with either the TV series or the cartoon strip, but it didn’t matter.
I very much enjoyed the contemporary humor, making references to Jackie Gleason’s “The Honeymooners”, health care, home schooling, and texting. There was one corny, yet still funny, line about a potential name change for Wednesday as she grows older (which anyone can guess).
The crowd loved the show and the two leads. Nathan Lane gives his normal exceptional performance. I don’t agree with Jill above about Bebe Neuwirth; while she’s not Barbra Streisand or Patti LuPone, her singing was adequate and her interactions with the other characters were fine. I loved Jackie Hoffman as Grandmama (with an inside joke saluting the TV series) and the Uncle Fester and Pugsley characters. Sergio Trujillo (”Jersey Boys”) struck gold again with his choreography of the ghosts.
My favorite song was “Morticia”, sung by Lane and the ghosts, but close runners up were “When You’re an Addams” and “I’m Crazier than You”. Krysta Rodriguez as Wednesday has a strong voice. I do agree with Jill that we did have to wait for the “Crazier” number for the chemistry between Lucas and Wednesday to become apparent, but the wait was worth it!
There was a standing ovation for all, and it was indeed a fun night.
We saw the show on Saturday night (the 13th). Lots of fun. I don’t think the plot is all that great, but there were so many fun moments and great performances that I didn’t care.
I agree with Jill about Ms. Neuwirth – I found her performance to be TOO lifeless, and here singing pretty bad. But it didn’t matter so much, because Jackie Hoffman, Kevin Chamberlin, and especially Nathan Lane were so great. I thought they paid just enough homage to the TV show without overdoing it. It was a fun night at the theater.
I suspect that critics will not be wild about the show, although they can’t help but love the performances. That said, it will probably do just fine at the box office, especially as long as Nathan and Bebe are starring. The Addams Family is a known commodity for many potential audience members, as are the stars, and audiences will (at least for the most part) leave happy. I did.
March 19 2010.
Having seen the show in Chicago last November, I knew that some of the numbers would be changed. The show was good abd Bebe Neuwirth wasn’t that bad as some people have indicated. I will have to get the cast album to see what changes were made, as I will not be in NYC until November, and if still running will see again, plus “Love Never Dies”, just received the cast album and it is wonderful.
Catherine, can you tell us if you are paid by any of the producers or associates of The Addams Family? Thanks. It would be nice to know if this blog is actually independent of those who have an interest in the show’s success.
My husband sure wishes I was paid for this! But no, I am not affiliated with the show.
Hi, Cath,
glad julia asked the question re: payment. It is really good that then you can let us all know that you are NOT affiliated with the show!
Such fun to read about the ADDAMS FAMILY musical via your and other remarks.
Hope to see it some day.
cheers, jo ann
I’ve never gotten the impression that this blog “shills” for the Addams Family musical. I’m surprised at how negative some of the comments and posts are.
The Addams Family – Broadway Play
Don’t Believe Everything You Read:
A Review of the Broadway Play, The Addams Family
By Marilyn Baron
Petit Fours and Hot Tamales Writing Blog
Recently, my husband and I flew to New York to visit my daughter and we met my sister and her husband and my mother there. I was the designated trip planner, and it’s hard to come up with a Broadway play that I thought everyone would like or had never seen. We finally settled on The Addams Family, which was officially opening the weekend we arrived so there were no reviews available until the last minute. I purposely didn’t want to read the reviews before I saw the show, but when my husband handed me The Wall Street Journal with the review, I couldn’t resist. That critic and another one in The New York Times didn’t give the play a rave review.
Well, we already had the tickets and I was optimistic. I wanted to see Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth. And we had great seats, just four rows back in the orchestra. We were a divergent group of six, representing various generations that included: my 20-something daughter, my husband and myself, (I won’t tell you our ages), my sister (or hers), our mother (especially not hers – let’s just say she’s a grandmother ten times over) and my brother-in-law’s cousin.
Well, apparently the bad reviews didn’t keep people away. The house was packed and everyone LOVED the show, my mother especially, which was worth the price of admission. It got a standing ovation. People clapped or snapped at the right time – ba-da-da-DUMP snap, snap. The reviewers claimed the songs weren’t memorable and the plot was predictable. But there’s a lot to be said for nostalgia and the strength of the Addams Family franchise. Theatergoers were really into the show. The special effects and the staging were wonderful and the acting (I thought) was superb. I appreciated the humor and thought the timing was perfect. I laughed a lot and I even stuck around the stage door for autographs. I thought it was a very smart, satisfying production.
There’s a lesson to be learned, I think, that can be applied to our writing. I’m unpublished, but I’m sure there are published writers who receive bad reviews of books that their loyal readers love. In my opinion, these reviewers are not always in touch with their readers. One reviewer did admit that the show would undoubtedly run until he was “older and grayer.” So what he was essentially saying was that the show didn’t live up to his lofty expectations but that it would probably be a popular success. From what I could gauge from the audience’s reaction, I have to agree with him.
Everyone has different tastes in movies, books and plays. So don’t let one or two bad reviews poison the well.
My recommendation: Go see this show!
I’d be interested in comments from other people who enjoyed this show.
Visit the Petit Fours and Hot Tamales Writers Blog to find out what other people thought of the post.
http://petitfoursandhottamales.com/2010/04/the-addams-family-broadway-play/comment-page-1/#comment-8495
or visit http://www.petitfoursandhottamales.com and go to the second Saturday April 24 post.
Marilyn Baron
Reviews are not always accurate!! I can’t wait to see the show when it tours next fall. The score is addictive and Nathan Lane is brilliant in everything he does. Take my advise!! Never read a review and just go see the show. If a review is bad, chances are you caught the critic on a bad night lol. Go check out Addams Family!! I’m sure it won’t disappoint.