Dark, macabre, but above all disgustingly hilarious, The Addams Family The play that René Simard offers us today is in no way inferior to the versions that attracted crowds to Broadway and all corners of the world. Quite the opposite, actually.
We know the characters Gomez, Morticia, Wednesday, Pugsley and Co., who shook our youth through comics as well as films and television series. Nevertheless, thanks to the Quebec adaptation of the musical “The Addams Family”, skillfully directed by René Simard, we discover a new soul in them.
So the sickest of all families returns to their everyday life marked by ghosts, curiosities and torture, but in an adventure that is intended exclusively for the stage. This time, young Wednesday causes a stir in her family by announcing that she has found love… with a completely “normal” young man. And the arrival of this suitor – and his parents – at Addams Manor will cause quite a stir.
The reflection on difference and acceptance of others that we are taught here may lack subtlety, but in reality it is just a pretext for a series of musical pieces, performed by invariably exceptional performers.
Dark and gentle
Rita Tabbakh slips into the skin of Morticia with remarkable ease. In addition to the elegance and vocal variety that the character commands, she manages to bring nuance, warmth (yes, yes!) and panache. Like Gomez, Luc Guérin impresses with his unexpected vocal ability and the solidity of his playing and forms a dark and gentle tandem with his partner.
Luc Guérin and Rita Tabbakh lend their features to Gomez and Morticia Addams. MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
It’s also impossible to ignore the presence of a completely theatrical Tommy Joubert, who steals the show every time his stinky uncle makes an appearance. After notable appearances in Footloose and Rock of Ages, he returns to us here in spectacular vocal form worthy of the biggest names in musical comedy.
We would also be remiss if we ignored the work of Alexandra Sicard and Élysabeth Rivest, both of whom are notable in the respective roles of Wednesday and her future mother-in-law.
Brilliant team white
All of this is very well supported by the work of choreographers Katherine and Alexandre Leblanc, also known as Team White. We also recognize the duo’s signature in each of the numbers to which they have given their own touch; Yes, the choreographies are impeccable, that goes without saying. But above all, they give a timeless work, whose accents are sometimes outdated, a decidedly current and modern touch.
A bunch of dancers perform choreographies by Team White. MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
The day after the show premieres, the different songs don’t necessarily go through our heads because The Addams Family doesn’t have such catchy and memorable melodies as Mary Poppins, Cats, Tootsie and other villains of this world. But the performances, the voices, the choreography, the sets, the costumes… all of it continues to live in our hearts and souls. And that is ultimately the most important thing.
- Musical comedy The Addams Family runs at the St-Denis Theater in Montreal until November 5th and then from December 21st to January 7th. It will be on display at the Salle Albert-Rousseau in Quebec City for the 2024 holidays.