The Addams Family Values
With all the awful horror films currently making fans howl in pain like lost puppies, I never realized my enjoyment for the genre would return with a trip to Pequannock Township High School in my native New Jersey to see The Addams Family.
On Saturday, March 24, I found myself sitting in a seat at the school’s auditorium to engage in their rendition of the musical, which originally appeared on Broadway. I’m not a fan of song and dance storytelling (though Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s “Once More with Feeling” still rocks my mind), but I caught a previous musical from director Nancy LaShure and knew this play was worth the time.
Nancy has a way of extracting the best from newbie child actors to seasoned Broadway performers, and I had a feeling her streak would continue with these teen thespians.
High School Horror Musical
Once the house lights dimmed, William Arnold and his orchestra began bringing Andrew Lippa’s music to life. And as soon as the curtain opened, I was already sold thanks to Kurt Stelzenmueller’s set design, which often gave hints of German Expressionism as I looked at a cemetery gate with the Addams family ready to tell their ghoulish little tale.
The student performers didn’t disappoint. They brought the songs and story to life with a tremendous chorus of fashionably white-clad and undead Addams family ancestors.
Uncle Fester’s the teller of the tale, and Ben Afflitto embraced his inner Max Schreck portraying Count Orlock playing Fester, to keep the audience laughing with endearing awkwardness from songs to hearty one-liners. Nancy told me that when Ben learned she wanted Fester to play the ukulele, he brought his own instrument to the audition.
In this Addams family story, wicked Wednesday (Giana Valero) falls pigtails over Mary Janes for straight-laced Lucas (Eric Bunce). This leads to a dinner between their families where worlds collide – and it’s worse than expected because these crazy kids have a special announcement to make…
Kevin Chesney brought Gomez to the stage with panache while Sydney Levine truly embraced her inner Morticia to play his Goth glamour wife. Steve Cusimano seemed like a young Seth Green as he made the often forgotten Pugsley cool for a welcomed change. Eric Sayre must be the real life spawn of Lurch, and Kara Gilliam proved to be the Grandma who may not give the best advice but may make the weirdest cookies. The other major performers were that straight, all-business and no fun couple of Lucas’ parents, played by Jack O’Connor and the no-holds-barred performance of Kylee Stelzenmueller.
Whether The Addams Family at a high school or Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, there’s always the chance for small disasters: missed lines without recovery, a prop that doesn’t work, or watching an actor do a face plant. Maybe the worst of all is bad timing that kills the flow and blows a joke.
None of that happened.
Every teen performer brought zeal, power, and love to the stage, and three stood out for their presence.
For a teen, Levine became a mature, self-assured woman that would have impressed both Caroline Jones and Angelica Houston. Her own special touch was to play the elusive Morticia a bit more deadpan to the point where she seemed on the verge of death from sheer boredom like a Gothic Greta Garbo. Her voice maintained an air of maturity while her singing rocked.
Fans of Wednesday would have found a new poster child in Valero’s portrayal of the creepy little Goth girl you’d want to take home to scare the neighbors. As a sadistic Lolita, Valero brought verve and charm to the role, and with a steady and impressive vocal range her voice shook the walls.
Gilliam seemed a bit low key at first, but this was her version of playing opossum. When it came time for Grandma to take the stage for real and shine, she delivered the laughs from the voice of a two-pack a day Jewish spinster with one cat too many. Her acting and antics kept the audience laughing like mad, and it was hard to imagine a freshman having such confidence and depth. She had walked into the audition already in character and the director was sold.
Thanks to the director, the performers’ confidence shined through, and with such a cool and creepy family, the students were having an excellent time on stage, including the crew that kept the whole machine humming without a hitch. I can’t remember ever taking part in a standing ovation for any high school performance of any kind, but this cast deserved it.
The Creepy, the Cool, and the Confident
The Addams Family may be more fun and fantasy than horror ala Tim Burton, but the story and performances resonated in creating a wonderful musical. And the beautiful centerpiece to this play, based on Marshall Brickman’s and Rick Elice’s book, is that we should all release our inner weird and love everyone else for simply being the honest soul they are. Hard to beat a message like that.
Besides seeing many talented young people who I hope will continue to perform on stage as well as on screen, they’re leaving with cool traits because of the arts that will help them in the real world.
Performing in a play instills leadership, confidence, and team work, as well as timing and improvisation. Better still, if mistakes are made on stage, no one can yell “cut,” and crying and running away isn’t an option because the show must go on, as the old adage goes. I have no doubt these future leaders will press on regardless of what comes their way because of what they gained on stage.
And with an excellent director and mentor like Nancy LaShure, I have no doubt Pequannock Township High School will put on excellent musicals and plays for years to come.
The Plot Sickens: Check out Billy Crash’s review of Last Girl Standing!
Billy Crash
Also known as William D. Prystauk, he loves great, in-depth characters and storytelling in horror, and likes to see heads roll, but if you kill a dog on screen he’ll cry like a baby. Billy co-hosts THE LAST KNOCK horror podcast on iTunes, and can also be found on Twitter, LinkedIn, IMDb, Amazon, Behance, YouTube, Instagram, and Google+.
(Photos of The Addams Family from Facebook.)