Wednesday, March 13, 2013

The Addams Family Review at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney



For Tues 12th March 7 pm performance 2013

This evening I attended a preview performance of The Addams Family at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. I usually attend the theatre with friends or occasionally on my own, however, this time it was a rather unique experience. I was with my parents.
They do not usually go to anything with a bit of culture, but they expressed an interest so I arranged it. I went in knowing nothing about the plot or cast. Not really caring, just looking forward to a good musical. I found the opening number quite enjoyable, but I noticed my father quickly crossing his arms and staying like that for a while. I thought, ‘great, they won’t want to sit through the lot and I’ll be left watching it on my own.’ I certainly wasn’t leaving. I observed them starting to relax as the story got underway, wonderful, and then I was able to ignore them until intermission and just enjoy the show.
When I had first seen the posters for this show I noted that Wednesday (Teagan Wouters.) was too old, I did not realise this was a sequel to the old black and white series that we all know and love. Wednesday is now in her teens and is discovering boys. That also explains why Gomez Addams’ (John Waters) hair is going grey, with an emotional teenage daughter that is to be expected. Morticia (Chloe Dallimore) was perfect, she could have been the original for all I knew she played the role to perfection. The story flowed smoothly and I found myself wrapped up in the plot. I adored the scene with the birds, and Lurch (Ben Hudson) was Devine throughout the entire show. Pugsley (Liam Faulkner-Dimond) was his adorable self too. I was overjoyed when cousin It made an appearance and his little romance is adorable, as is Festers (Russell Dykstra) moon bathing scene. The reference to the sound of music was hilarious and the show left us on a nice cliff-hanger for intermission. Naturally when the show recommenced everything was resolved and they all lived miserably (happily) ever after. My particular favourite scene had to be the tango scene, I loved every aspect of it.
I won’t ruin the story for you by adding details.
I only have one major qualm with the show. It is sold as “
is appropriate for children ages 7 and up” There is one particular line about a sandwich by Grandma, (Meredith O’Reilly) which I wouldn’t want any child of mine hearing... If I was unfortunate enough to breed that is. I don’t mind it in the show, it made my jaw drop in hilarity, but there were a lot of children in the audience whose parents might have had to answer some interesting questions during the intermission. I myself, found it hilarious that my mother didn’t get it until after my instant reaction, yes my mind is permanently in the gutter, and I clearly drag others down with me when they realise from my reaction that something crude must have just happened.
The Costumes were stunning; they suited the characters and fit the story. The final costume change must have happened in seconds, they seemed to step off and back on again in completely different apparel. It was brilliant.
The sets were great and the transitions were well orchestrated, I won’t describe them for fear of ruining the surprise for anyone, except to say; brilliant! And I want that question chair.
The venue; as I mentioned on twitter, the Capitol Theatre is one of my favourite theatres. I first went there in 2000 to attend ‘Good News Week Farewell’ and have seen many things in it since, the last of which was ‘Love Never Dies,’ The LND Review on this blog is for the London performance at the Adelphi, not the Capitols one. The show changed a lot between those two.
The Capitol is old and classy with a charm all its own, it reminds me of that old book smell; you sit down and it smells like history, but you’re about to witness something new and exciting. It is a short walk through the park from Central Station, there is also nearby parking which is roughly around $10 from 6pm until midnight. The usher on door 3 is also very cute and very nice. No filming or recording or photography of the performance is allowed for obvious copyright reasons. There are restaurants nearby to dine and a bad coffee shop with a perfect view of the backstage entrance if you wish to wait around and meet the cast and get your merchandise signed and pictures taken.
The music and lyrics are by Andrew Lippa and a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. The songs are catchy and stay stuck in your head for the train ride home. I don’t know whether I will still have them in there tomorrow. There is an audio recording available for purchase at the venue, but I’d imagine it is the Broadway recording with a different cast. I always like to have one of the cast I actually saw perform it.


Site that photo came from

I found the show and the performance brilliant.
It’s showing at the Capitol in Sydney until April 28th. Do get along and see it, well worth the price of admission.