The cast does sound impressive, including Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth as Gomez and Morticia Addams.The score is from Andrew Lippa and the book, based on Charles Addams' ghoulish cartoons, is from Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, of Jersey Boys.
But what's most intriguing to me is that Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch of Improbable, a London-based theatre company, will handle the direction and design duties.
They were part of the team responsible for Shockheaded Peter, a show I'd never heard of before. It's based on a book of children's stories written in Germany in the 19th century that demonstrated, in very extreme ways, the consequences of bad behavior. Shockheaded Peter, with music from the British band Tiger Lillies had an off-Broadway run in 2005.
I found a clip from a British production. Now, I don't normally like scary stories and Shockheaded Peter is bizarre. But it's also visually stunning. And you don't need to watch the whole thing to get a sense of it:
The Addams Family is a very different project. Still, I am curious to see how McDermott and Crouch will put their stamp on it.
Their participation raises an interesting question: How do artists who are known for maybe more experimental, avant-garde work make the transition to mass entertainment? I mean, what's more mainstream than a big-budget Broadway musical?
Whatever they come up with, I'm hoping it'll be fun to watch.
