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Nomads Musical Theatre
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The Nomads Musical Theatre web site is at www.nomadsmusicaltheatre.co.uk.
Facebook NomadsMusicalTheatre. Twitter: @NewburyNomads

Last production

Where

Corn Exchange, Newbury.

Reviews of The Addams Family

2nd to 5th October 2024

Review from the Newbury Weekly News.

Ghoulishly good musical comedy

The Nomads are always keen to rise to a new challenge and The Addams Family, performed at the Corn Exchange last week, certainly played to the group’s many strengths.

From the opening chords from Nic Cope’s well drilled orchestra – da-da da-da click click – the audience were completely engaged.

This new musical by Marshall Brickman, Rick Elice and Andrew Lippa finds Wednesday Addams coming of age and falling in love with Lucas, a ‘normal’ boy from Ohio. As her father Gomez struggles to withhold the news of their impending nuptials from his wife Morticia, the couple host a hilarious Cage aux Folles style dinner for Lucas and his parents, resulting in ‘full disclosure’ on all sides and testing the family’s relationships with one another and the world outside.

One of the big challenges of a production like this is that the characters are already so well known and the casting of the show was a real triumph.

Stuart Honey immersed himself completely in the mysterious Hispanic character of Gomez and was perfectly matched with Holly Lucas as Morticia, the two displaying faultless comic timing in their strained encounters. Matt Collins, almost unrecognisable as Uncle Fester, brought a warm eccentricity to the role while Kate Brown was deliciously wicked as Grandma. Jamie Ledwith’s all-American father Mal Beinecke and Freya Wilson as wife Alice provided a fine foil for the Addams’s outlandish behaviour.

It was great to see so many new faces in lead roles, including Charlie Holland, vocally very confident in the role of Lucas, and Erin Tingle, brilliantly cast as evil brother Pugsley. Rhianon Mone, as Wednesday, showed a real depth of character and was very well matched with Morticia and Gomez.

Finally, Anthony Whitaker brought impressive physical humour and pathos to the looming character of Lurch.

The show owed a lot to the chorus of ghosts, lurching across the stage and gathering menacingly in the background. And with excellent choreography from Holly Lucas and Anna Neary, the cast really came together to create the spooky atmosphere required.

Congratulations to directors Stoff Rands and Pete Warbis and producer Carly Thompson for a great production, and to the backstage team for the amazing set and special effects.

A special shout out, too, to the make-up artists and hair and costume team who transformed the large cast into the Addams Family that we know and love.

MARK LILLYCROP

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