Your thoughts about The Addams Family

[HopeChanged]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:01pm

Hi all,
I have a chance to see The Addams Family at The Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine, which puts on excellent regional productions. My question: Did you like this musical, and why/why not? I did a search here, but didn't get a strong sense of how folks felt about it. I'm open to a fun, funny musical, but ... did you find it to be that? Curious to get your opinions, as they always help me make good decisions. Thanks!

Updated On: 9/27/14 at 06:01 PM

[blaxx]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:03pm

I'm open to a fun, funny musical, but ... did you find it to be that?

Run. Fast. Don't look back.

[Keiichi2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:04pm

This is not exactly a great musical, but I remember enjoying the performances of the original Broadway cast. Obviously, they won't be at your performance. I got enjoyment out of the show out of my love for the characters (big fan of the original TV series and the movies from the early 90s), but this isn't exactly a show you need to go out of the way to see.

[philly03]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:10pm

Great overture. Surprisingly only two songs felt remotely "Addams"-y, "Just Around the Corner" and "Move Towards the Darkness"... I rather liked "Pulled," however, also.

Overall thought it was a waste for the "Addams" brand. The films, and the television show are much better.

I likewise enjoyed the original Broadway cast - but it's hard not to like stage legends like Nathan Lane, Bebe Neuwirth, Terrence Mann and Carolee Carmello.

[mjohnson2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:11pm

A musical version of The Addams Family desperately needs style, and the version that we got on Broadway had anything but style, instead being corny, tacky, and bland. It was a pretty terrible musical adaptation of a great source material.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:29pm

It is La Cage Aux Folles with the Addams characters.
Pleasant enough. More interesting for the design. I know they are using the NETworks tour package, so not certain what condition it is in, but it is based on the original design.
(For the record, you CAN beat the original Broadway cast. Douglas Sills and Rachel Potter exceeded them handily. Also, The Morticia in the production understudied Bebe on Broadway.)

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:33pm

I was one of the rare few who really liked the show and saw the Broadway, Tour and Australian production, could it have been better, yes. Was it fun, mostly. Go enjoy.

[ShakinBaconGirl]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:35pm

It was a mess.

[ArtMan]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 6:47pm

I got a cheap standing room only ticket. Thank goodness that's all I paid.

[Broadwaygirl202]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:05pm

I happened to enjoy this musical a lot. I saw it on tour, didn't have a chance to see it on Broadway, but the non-equity tour cast was fabulous! It is a fun show, and if you like something that, then this show is definitely for you. I enjoy happy, upbeat shows that I can escape from the real world for a couple of hours, compared to shows that are dark or may require the audience to really pay attention (If/Then from everything that I have read online).

[blaxx]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:10pm

compared to shows that are dark or may require the audience to really pay attention (If/Then from everything that I have read online).

[tazber]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:13pm

I actually really enjoyed the show.

I found it humorous and tuneful.

I will say that a large part of my enjoyment was Nathan Lane, but if you can catch it at The Ogunquit I say go for it.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:18pm

I really love the show and have always had fun seeing it. Saw it many times on Broadway, Both Tours, and @ The Muny in St.Louis. If you want to go, I say go. It is probably best that you go and see what you think of it, because our opinions will be different and varied. I Love a lot of the songs, but I don't see how much it compares with La Cage except for the Meet the Family aspect- but even that isn't much of a comparison.

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:34pm

I don't think it was a great musical but I didn't hate it as much as some did here. I rather liked some of it...some didn't work at all. A lot of people didn't care for Andrew Lippa's score but I remember a few songs that really worked for me..including some mentioned above. I still love "Happy/Sad" that no one ever talks about.

I hear the newer version is much improved over the Broadway version which IMO was not ready when it "set" the show. Thank god we never have to see the squid or octopus or whatever that was ever again.

[tazber]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:39pm

I remember reading a review that singled out Happy/Sad as an example of the overall poor quality of Lippa's score.

I also love the song and was always perplexed why the reviewer chose that song to mention.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 7:47pm

^ That's my lest favorite song in the show. LOL. I get it's message and meaning, but it's just soo dull and boring to me.

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 8:14pm

And wouldn't life be boring if we all liked the same songs and music...

[darreyl102]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 8:18pm

Of Course!! who said it wouldn't be? That goes without saying.

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:08pm

Just FYI: The current property of THE ADDAMS FAMILY Musical is NOT what was on Broadway. There was a HUGE overhaul in 2011-2012, and all amateur and professional companies are granted rights with the revisions (to book and score).

I should know, I'm directing it this winter. :)

[mjohnson2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:14pm

I've read the new script, and while it is a massive improvement it's still pretty dreadful, and the score remains the same which prevents it from ever being good.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:33pm

^ The score HAS been changed, with songs added and replaced.

[mjohnson2]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:37pm

I mean that the score is still by Andrew Lippa, who is the complete wrong composer for the show.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:40pm

Nowhere near as bad as everyone claiming

Having said that, prefer Lippa's Big Fish score to Addams.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 9/27/14 at 11:54pm

Andrew Lippa had openly expressed that he wished he'd actually made those revisions when the show got to Broadway, but he didn't have enough time in-between that and the Chicago try-outs.

But with that being said, he was still Tony nominated for his work on The Addams Family (which was kind of by default since there were barely any original scores that year).

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:02am

Still can't believe they took out " Where did we go wrong"