The programme describes this production as a musical comedy and there was certainly plenty of both on show at this performance presented by the East Cheshire Musical Theatre Company, who can always be relied upon to put on a first class and highly entertaining show. I cannot remember ever seeing a production with so many one-liners on the comedy front that had myself and the rest of the audience in absolute stiches throughout the whole of the show’s duration. I have to say right from the start that every single member of the cast on stage did an absolutely superb job, not just the main characters but also the members of the company (The Ancestors) who’s singing and dancing, choreographed superbly by Sally Hilliard, brought the whole production to life (or death, if you prefer!)
The story is based on characters created by Charles Addams, who many will be familiar with from the television programme of the same name. The action is set at the Addams family mansion in Central Park in New York City and tells the tale of young Wednesday’s romance with a “normal” boy named Lucas Beineke, who is invited to dinner with his parents at the Addams abode. The happy couple plan on using the evening get-together to announce to both sets of parents their intention of getting married, which initially does not go down well with either couple. The Addams family soon realise that something is amiss when, having worn entirely black for the past eighteen years, Wednesday turns up to the dinner wearing a yellow dress, much to her mother’s horror!
Following on from the dinner, the cast take part in an Addams ritual called “The Game” in which each person is obliged to reveal an inner-most secret, which of course leads to much trauma within the families and threats of leaving from the Beineke family. There is much toing and froing amongst the cast but eventually all is settled to everyone’s satisfaction amidst much singing and dancing from the company. And of course Wednesday (beautifully played by Isabelle Brunton) and Lucas (George Rolfe) win the approval of their respective sets of parents and all ends happily – with even Fester, wearing a rocket strapped to his back, blasts off to be with his love the moon!
There are many more idiosyncrasies within the storyline which are too numerous to cover in this brief review but suffice to say that all members of the cast are able to give full reign to their characters within the constraints of the plot.
The excellent cast was highlighted by the outstanding performance by Jon Gardner as Gomez Addams, who needed to have not just a good singing voice but a very strong stage presence, which he accomplished in a superb manner. He was ably complimented by Kate Longden who was excellent in the role of his wife Morticia Addams. The whole thing was held together by the character of Fester, played by Ivor Farley, who seemed to be the glue that held everything together and was definitely the link in the chain for the whole production.
This was a highly entertaining and well produced show which Heidi Fletcher has done a brilliant job with producing and directing another outstanding East Cheshire performance. I must also mention the contribution made by the 10-piece orchestra conducted and directed by Ed Nurse, it always makes a huge difference to any production to have live musicians taking part and each played their part wonderfully well. I was also impressed by the way that a minor technical issue with one of the microphones was corrected rapidly and efficiently by the backstage personnel, who are often overlooked when it is often their prowess that can make or break a production such as this. I must apologise to all the cast members who have not been named individually but rest assured their contributions were equally valid.
The show continues until Saturday 3rd May and I would recommend it wholeheartedly if you like an evening of singing, dancing and loads of laughs! Don’t miss it!
Reviewer: David S Clarke
Reviewed: 30th April 2025.
North West End UK Rating: