The Addams Family is a Halloween classic that leans into pushing the envelope of what is normal, and the musical is no different; however, it gives a little twist as we find the dark Wednesday Addams (Mackenzie Albert) has fallen in love and is now engaged with Lucas Beineke (David Murphy) a son from a “normal” family. Uncle Fester (Dave Rama) is this odd omnipotent-esque narrator who tries to ensure that the engagement is accepted by the family. Will their love flourish or wither? 

Lost Baggage Musical Theatre was a company that was leading the front on shows during the pandemic and this production has shown how much they’ve grown since. From the costumes to the casting, The Addams Family was a perfect choice for LBMT and this show was studded with so many moments of excellence.

General Direction

What really makes this production stand out is the amazing casting job done. Each character was well-fleshed out with how eccentric these characters are; however, there were some choices that I personally did not enjoy as much. Gomez Addams (Theresa Graham) did not shine as much as I wanted them to. They suffered from having wild character choices and had no chemistry with Morticia (Catherine O’Farrell). For two characters who have always been portrayed as passionate fires, the onstage chemistry was frigid from the start and only warmed to a moderate flame. Lurch (Cameron Wood) is one of those characters where they’re purely there for comedy and everything written for that character is all about timing. A lot of folks would write Lurch off as an easy character with no lines and not much to do, but it’s extremely hard to play a character with almost no dialogue and make them funny. 

Musical Direction

Vocally, the show was very solid from solos to group numbers; however, because of how solid it was, the moments where it wasn’t were very noticeable. Primarily, Lucas Beineke had moments during Crazier Than You where he did not hit the mark in rhythm and/or pitch. For a duet, you are very vulnerable and it shows that it did require more practice. It doesn’t help when you can’t see the band and they can’t really see you to adjust. Just a slight mention as well, the whole second act for the night I went was marred by a violinist who tried to quickly tune their instrument and sadly missed the mark. One thing I truly did not like about the casting of Gomez was the songs. It’s very clear that Gomez’s range can hit those notes, but the power and volume needed to sustain them were not there. I found myself straining to hear the words for most of the show and I wish they balanced it either through playing with octaves or by balancing the volumes of the mics.

Choreography

Now the choreography in this show was stunning. The ensemble numbers were big and flashy, but lacked a little energy; however, where Kathryn McLaren really shone in her choreography was the tango. Seeing some elements of classic ballroom, Morticia and Gomez did a fantastic job to the point that this was the only moment in the show where I believed that they loved each other.

Design

I feel like a record when I say I love simple sets and this is not one of those times. The set itself was a little more complex than simple and had moments of great transformation, even if a wall almost fell on a stagehand! I do wish they worked a little harder on the gates with the Addams family letter on it as for most of the show it looked more like an “H” than an “A”. The sets were accompanied with great lighting to create a dank and dingy atmosphere perfectly suited for a Halloween show. The costumes for the show were also out of the park, especially with how well the ancestors were dressed. My only gripe is with Morticia: a character so well-known for her hatred of colour. Although her dress was very beautiful, the little highlights of colour were definitely not the choice for the character, who traditionally has always worn black with red accents for her lips and nails.

Standouts

Some standout performances I had were Mackenzie Albert for having some crazy talented vocals. Grandma (Melodi Uygur) and Alice Beineke (McKenna Mellon) were some of my favourite performers with both great vocals, but outstanding comedic performances that had me in stitches.

Overall, it is very clear that LBMT has been improving on the quality of their shows and The Addams Family is a great example of a show done well. I do believe that they still have some room to improve because even though they are a rather small company; comparatively, there are newer companies who have already exceeded their best. I hope LBMT either drops how much they’re doing in a year and focus all efforts into making fewer shows, but with higher quality.