The Addams Family

Adaptations! There are lots of them in the musical world. This time, we're listening to the Addams Family musical. Now I won't be able to stop snapping my fingers. Thanks a lot, random generator.

The Addams Family has lyrics and music by Andrew Lippa and the book is by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It opened up in 2010, and as of the current date, it's still open! If you want to see it, hurry, because it's closing on December 31.

What would you expect from the overture? If it didn't have that familiar finger snapping, I don't think anyone would want to see it (I'm kidding, of course). It's a pretty overture with lots of Gomez's dancing music thrown in there and some slow parts reminiscent of something Danny Elfman would create.

The first song is "When You're an Addams". It's a celebration of what it means to be an Addams. This song takes place at a family reunion for the Addams family. It's got a Latin feel to it and it's a pretty exciting song. You have to love Nathan Lane. The point is that an Addams loves all things weird, morbid, and dark. At some point in the song, they summon their ancestors from the dead.

"Pulled" is sung from the perspective of Wednesday to Pugsley. She's feeling strange (or in a non-Addams way, normal.) She's fallen in love with her normal boyfriend who is coming to dinner. She really seems to be disturbed by this. Oh, and she's torturing Pugsley during this song and you can hear his gleeful screams. Oh, you Addams'.

"Where Did We Go Wrong?" has Gomez and Morticia worrying about the ways Wednesday is changing and how very un-Addams like she is becoming. They want to cancel the dinner in order to keep it from getting "worse". It's a fun song only because of how peculiar the Addams family is.

"One Normal Night" has Wednesday and her boyfriend, Lucas, pleading with their families to be "normal" for one night. It doesn't go as terribly as one might expect. Wednesday appears in a bright yellow dress, Gomez and Lucas' father share a drink and Gomez shows him the pet squid. After an insult by Wednesday toward her mother, she runs off.

"Morticia" refuses Gomez's invitation to a tango. It's a pretty song, coming from such a weird guy. Of course, Gomez's idea of things that woman might want to hear would only work for an Addams.

"What If?" has Pugsley slipping a potion into Wednesday's drink that will bring out her dark side...Smart idea, kid. He's afraid that she'll never torture him again. You have to admire his masochism, I guess.

"Full Disclosure/Waiting" has the Addams' playing a game with their guests. They all have to confess something. This is an incredibly fun song. During the course of the song Morticia feels insulted by Gomez. Oh, I love Fester in this song. Pugsley's idea kind of falls on its face here as Lucas' mother drinks the potion on accident and Wednesday announces that she's marrying Lucas.

Act II starts with "Just Around the Corner" is a joyous song about death being around the corner. Morticia sounds like your typical Diva here.

"The Moon and Me" gives us an interlude here with a love song to the moon. It's funny and yet somehow sweet. The opening with the acoustic guitar is particularly pretty.

"Happy/Sad" is a song from Gomez that expresses his joy for Wednesday finding love, but lamenting her growing up. I can't say much about this song besides that, but I really like this one.

"Crazier Than You" has Lucas letting Wednesday shoot an apple off his head with her crossbow. It's a pretty awesome duet between the two and has them both gravitating toward each other. :)

"Let's Not Talk About Anything But Love" has Gomez and Fester trying to get Lucas' father to open up. You have to love these characters. It's great that the "normal" one is so apprehensive about love while the "weird" characters are all about love. The reprise has Grandma joining in.

"In the Arms" has Mal confessing his love with Alice (after having been embraced by the giant squid). I am all for more songs about cephalopods in musicals.

"Live Before We Die/Tango de Amor" has Gomez professing his love for Morticia after having inadvertently pissing her off the whole show. It erupts into a tango eventually and those are always fun, but it leaves something to be desired just listening to it. I'm sure it's awesome on stage.

"Move Toward the Darkness" is the finale song. Fester strapped himself to a rocket to get to the moon. It's a pretty good song for the finale with all the characters coming back to sing. It's about facing your fears and coming out strong.

Overall, I'd say it's an enjoyable show, though I doubt I'd pay full price to see it. I'd probably try getting lottery seats.