Audience delighted with 'The Addams Family' by Dannevirke Theatre Company

The cast celebrates end of show.

In front of sponsors and other invited guests, the Dannevirke Theatre Company finally got to perform before a live audience on Tuesday night, February 15 after almost a year of rehearsing and a postponement of the show fittingly timed for Halloween in late October 2021.

With most other shows being cancelled with depressing regularity the Dannevirke Theatre Company tried endless options to keep its hopes alive and finally found a way of getting around the 100-maximum audience by adding three extra shows in March.

In a town hall designed to seat 500 the restriction of only having 100 had its silver lining – social distancing was no problem! Confident the company could keep people safe it went ahead and the result for performers and audience was outstanding.

Gomaz and Morticia love to dance the tango.

In a set cleverly designed to transform effortlessly from grand house to forest to graveyard and the odd bedroom, accommodating items coming down and going up (the backstage crew had muscles as well as expertise) the Addams Family story unfolded and immediately set the scene of a family which deeply respected ancestors. These ancestors dressed in historically accurate costumes somewhat on the dusty and cobwebby side are constant backdrops to the events which unfolded.

Gomez, played by Shaun Newell, is the glue that holds the show together displaying all his talents for acting and singing with a distinctive accent, strong baritone voice and humour which have been honed in shows like Beauty and The Beast (Remember Lumiere?). With the news that his precious daughter Wednesday wants to marry a normal guy Lucas Beineke almost directly against his equally precious wife Morticia's wishes, he realises he is trapped.

Lissy Lochead as Gomez' wife Morticia is a relative newcomer to musical theatre in Dannevirke but a very experienced jazz singer and cabaret performer. She is the perfect foil. To the request to "act normal" at the forthcoming dinner where the two families will meet she replies "What is normal? What is normal to a spider is a calamity for a fly."

Again Lissy's narrative and singing are delightfully clear and strong and her poise on stage is eye-catching.

The other love of Gomez' life – his daughter Wednesday, played by Tania MacKay, is consumed with worry over her parents' potential reaction and that of her boyfriend's parents with great sensitivity but perseveres singing "I'm being pulled in another direction" pretty much summing up her problem. Her dialogue, solos and duets are amazing.

Another newcomer Ollie Dunn brings a vast range of experience in musical theatre from Palmerston North to play Lucas Beineke – Wednesday's boyfriend. His line "I can be impulsive. I just have to think about it first," reflects his determination to marry into the Addams family for the love of Wednesday.

Grandma played by Davina Graham with her private stash of potions provides the humour as only 102-year-olds can do while Pugsley played by 16-year old Reuben Te Huki who has stage confidence born of many dance performances and a delightful tenor voice to match, gets hold of some.

Eighteen-year-old Max Te Huki as Uncle Fester is unrecognisable so great is the transformation. As the creator of the plot, he morphs into an old man searching for the meaning of love. His dialogue and choral numbers are outstanding.

The Beineke parents played by veterans Cindy O'Sullivan and Gerard McKay withstand the shock of meeting the Addams courageously for the love of their son Lucas, Cindy once again treating the audience to her powerful soprano voice.

And Peter Sinclair as Lurch had the toughest dialogue issues. You have to be there!

With the ancestors providing the powerful chorus for the show, the dancers and children adding unusual elements and the hand appearing in the most unusual places, the show is complete and the audience responded, lifting the cast in energy as first nights always do.

Congratulations to the Dannevirke Theatre Company, director Melanie Silver, musical director Shasta Pene, choreographer Amy McDonald, wardrobe mistress Joy Murdoch and all the volunteers. You could do no more! Shasta Pene commented after the show: "It is in the cast's hands now. They have taken ownership."

The three extra shows prolong the season which runs from February 23-26 with the extra shows on March 4 (evening) and two shows on March 5 an evening and a matinee.