THE ADDAMS FAMILY

In July 2021, almost 100 pupils from Years 10 to 13 returned to live theatre with a sell-out run of macabre musical comedy...

Everybody’s favourite macabrely dysfunctional family was brought to life in Emanuel’s superb Senior Musical of 2021. Charles Addams’ deliciously morbid creations, gently mocking the ‘ideal’ 20th century American nuclear family, have come a long way since his original 1930s cartoons.You might now know them better from the 1960s live-action television series, or the 1990s films starring Anjelica Huston, or perhaps even the 2019 animated feature. In 2010, The Addams Family Musical opened on Broadway, with sensational music and lyrics from Andrew Lippa and a witty script from Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice . We quickly knew that this would be a fantastically fun production for the dramatic talents of Emanuel students, and —following the disappointing early closure of our previous musical, Oliver!, owing to the pandemic — we were determined to get this ghoulish masterpiece on the stage.

With Covid still a risk, the production was not without its hiccups, as Harry (U6WGD) recounts on pages 18-19, but we are so proud of how maturely and resiliently Emanuel’s students rose to the many challenges of mounting this production. Our three separate casts were phenomenal, and everybody behind the scenes worked tirelessly to create this memorable addition to Emanuel’s always inspiring and exhilarating theatrical output. The Drama department congratulates everybody involved.