Welcome to Legitimate Theater: a column dedicated to movie-based stage musicals. The goal of this series is to explore those stories that originated in films and eventually worked their way onto Broadway and beyond. By the end of each entry, there will hopefully be a better understanding of this odd but rampant trend in modern entertainment. Are these stories really worth telling through song and dance? How can it even compare to the technical prowess of a camera and seamless editing? Join me on this quest as I explore the highs and lows of this trend on the third Wednesday of every month and hopefully answer what makes this Legitimate Theater.
Opening
With Halloween upon us, it's time once again to find our haunts in the world of theater. When considering all of the major shows that have graced the stage, there are few that have as immediate cultural cache as that of The Addams Family. With an all-star cast lead by Nathan Lane, the show managed to feature the familiar levels of gallows humor with a childlike wonder that appealed to the entire family. Everything about the show was designed to entertain, finding actors vamping it up and giving the audience something mysterious and ooky. But does this show have more going on than cheap laughs, or is there plenty of art hidden underneath the surface, waiting for you to discover it?
A Quick Background
Tony Nominations: 2 nominations including Best Original Score
Based on: "The Addams Family" Comics
Music: Andrew Lippa
Lyrics: Andrew Lippa
Book: Marshall Brickman, Rick Elice
Prominent Actors: Nathan Lane, Bebe Neuwirth, Kevin Chamberlin, Krysta Rodriguez
Soundtrack
1. "Addams Family Theme"
2. "Overture"
3. "When You're an Addams"
4. "Pulled"
5. "Where Did We Go Wrong"
6. "One Normal Night"
7. "Morticia"
8. "What If"
9. "Full Disclosure"
10. "Waiting"
11. "Full Disclosure - Part 2"
12. "Just Around the Corner"
13. "The Moon and Me"
14. "Happy/Sad"
15. "Crazier Than You"
16. "Let's Not Talk About Anything Else But Love"
17. "Let's Not Talk About Anything Else But Love (Reprise"
18. "In the Arms"
19. "Live Before We Die"
20. "Tango De Amor"
21. "Move Towards Darkness"
Note: Listen to the music here
Song Exploration
Opening Song:
"When You're an Addams"
"When You're an Addams"
When dealing with The Addams Family, you'll need to mix in plenty of macabre humor while introducing your characters. The blase nature by which Gomez sings about his family in terms of death and misery is brilliant, capturing the show in a matter of seconds. Over the course of a few minutes, the show establishes itself as this clever pastiche that is as much reliant on the source material as it is skewering classic musicals in these odd ways. After all, why can't these monstrous characters sing ballads that would make Rodgers & Hammerstein happy? Everything about the show from here is delightful and captures the grossness inside all of us.
Carryovers
"Addams Family Theme"
There would probably be complaints if this wasn't there. Right off the bat, it comes as the opening chords of the show. It's almost instinctual to everyone in attendance to snap along, providing a fun comedic transition into the actual show. While it's not the complete number, it's a motif that will slowly become more integrated into the show starting on an orchestral level before getting vague references throughout. Still, you'll know you're in good hands based on how this brief track will make you feel. If you instinctually snap along, then this show will be for you.
High Point:
"Pulled"
While this is another early standout, don't let this be indicative of the show. It just happens to have a lot of strong numbers right off the bat. Here Wednesday manages to deliver a song that finds her in a bit of an existential crisis. Does she stay true to her love for the macabre and stay with her family, or does she give into the love of something more normal and boring? It's full of small comedic moments that find the show's penchant balance of classic musicals blending with off-beat gags that are delightful. More importantly, they're all inserted in such a way that they perfectly complement the song without overshadowing it.
Low Point:
"In the Arms"
While by no means a bad song, it's one of the duller in terms of punchlines. Most of the songs have a clever set-up before the joke, and here it mostly exists as a parody of Cabaret's "If You Could See Her" and uses squid imagery that is funny but can't sustain its length. It's cute and sweet in the way that all Addams Family songs here are, but at points, it is just a matter of how funny you found the idea. I can only hope that the stage choreography adds something to it. Though I'm willing to give it bonus points if this is all secretly some references to Thomas Pynchon's "Gravity's Rainbow." It's not likely, but it's uncanny how both use squids.
What Does It Bring to the Story?
Much like every show based on comic strips, it's more of a chance to write your own creative story based around these characters. From the lyrics alone, this sounds like a show that is about every character going upon their own journey of acceptance. It's hard to figure out what the continual story is for every character, but they all have satisfying arcs throughout the songs that end with a delightful acceptance to give in to the darkness and enjoy your own personal identity. Not only that, but you'll get some fun skewering of romantic ballads out of the deal as well.
Was This Necessary?
Yes
This is one of the more entertaining shows that I've covered in recent months. Luckily it captures the wit of The Addams Family and brings to life an interesting subversion of theater in the process. Everything feels perfectly designed to mix in macabre humor with wild musical numbers that I'm sure are more entertaining in person. The iconography already is colorful, so I imagine these songs have something majestic going on along with it. How do you not want to dance and learn the songs and quickly as possible? It may not be the best version of The Addams Family, but it's perfect enough at drawing an audience into the theater to discover why musicals are brilliant pieces of entertainment.
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