‘Addams Family’ musical succeeds as a crowd-pleaser

Costars Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth lead an expert Broadway company

BY MICHAEL SOMMERS

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

BROADWAY REVIEW

First Charles Addams' macabre cartoons in The New Yorker seeped into the cultural mainstream, next came the much-rerun TV sitcom derived from his characters, and later on two popular films. Many people are thus fondly acquainted with the Westfield artist's ghoulish folks.

So it wasn't much of a surprise that the audience at a preview for "The Addams Family," which bowed Thursday at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, enthusiastically clapped in rhythm to the sinister six-note sitcom theme quoted in the opening bars of the new Broadway musical's overture.

Next they screamed with delight at the initial reveal of the entire Addams clan in a typically seedy pose, perfectly incarnated by a priceless company led by Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth, who are dead-ringers for dear Gomez and Morticia.

Then everyone — other than some critics, I suspect — settled back to more or less enjoy the show, which isn't the greatest Broadway musical comedy ever written (not by a long shot) but at least serves as a crowd-pleasing trampoline for some high-flying performances and several inspired theatrical bits.

Brewed by "Jersey Boys" writers Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, the story basically recycles "La Cage aux Folles": A teenaged Wednesday falls in love with a regular guy and invites his Ohio parents to the spooky Addams manse for dinner — and implores her bizarre relations to act normally for one night.

Gracious as ever, Gomez and Morticia try to be conventional but their darksome lifestyle overwhelms uptight Ohioans Mal and Alice Beineke, who unwillingly become overnight guests.

Such familiar plotting means that some time is wasted with unfamiliar non-Addams characters. Terrence Mann and Carolee Carmello ably depict the visitors (Carmello erupts into crazy vocal fireworks during a "Full Disclosure" dinner sequence) but no one's paying Broadway prices to see "The Beineke Family."

Enforced by zestful players, the screwy Addams personalities fortunately prevail for most of the show. Swaggering about in dapper pinstripes and brandishing a fencing foil, Lane is an ever-ebullient Gomez who adoringly partners Neuwirth's slinky and slyly droll Morticia. And, yes, the two glide off into a "Tango de Amor" ballroom spin that pleases viewers greatly.

In some magical way, a glowing Kevin Chamberlin is both cuddly and creepy as Uncle Fester. His gentle "The Moon and I" ballad proves to be a weirdly lovely highlight featuring a ukulele-strumming Fester ecstatically cavorting in midair with the shining object of his affections while a starry chorus croons.

Jackie Hoffman's outrageously snarky Grandma and Zachary James' mumbling Lurch provide further outbreaks of amusement in this not consistently entertaining musical. Composer-lyricist Andrew Lippa's score is spotty at best; Morticia's bouncy "Just Around the Corner" anthem to mortality and a ‘20s-style vo-dee-o-do "Let's Not Talk About Anything Else But Love" rank among Lippa's catchier tunes. It's too bad his lyrics are awfully lackluster.

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.

"The Addams Family" continues an open-end run at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 205 W. 46th St., New York. Call (877) 250-2929 or visit www.theaddamsfamilymusical.com.