Hampton students gear up for opening of 'The Addams Family' musical
Hampton High School's spring musical, which opens April 17, will bring to life the old and familiar Addams Family formula with a new take on one character.
“It's a really fun twist on a classic,” said Maria Scherer, who plays lead Wednesday Addams. “It's good to have a recognizable story to the audience, but I think they'll be blown away.”
Director and producer Dan Franklin said he has been waiting a couple of years to do this show at Shaler Area, so he was relieved when the rights for amateur productions were released in 2014. For those not familiar with the stage show, Franklin said not to worry. The musical is like watching an old episode of “The Addams Family” on TV.
“The music is fun. There's iconic characters everybody knows. It has an immediate sense of familiarity,” he said.
The story follows Wednesday as she falls in love with a “normal boy from Ohio” named Lucas, Franklin said. Hilarity ensues when Lucas' family come to the Addams' house for dinner one night to meet Wednesday's unusual family.
This year's cast of 43 students is fairly large, Franklin said, considering there are only 10 speaking roles. The rest of the students are in the ensemble, which represents the Addams Family's “ancestors.”
The success of last year's production of “Young Frankenstein” drew out more people; Franklin said there were nine new boys who came out to audition this year.
“The ancestors are so active throughout the show,” Franklin said. “We worked to maximize them in the show.”
The show also has a crew of more than 60 students, which includes set, costume, makeup, lighting, sound and props, along with a pit orchestra made up of 25 students.
Scherer, a senior, said her favorite part of the show is the music with its rock-pop vibe, but she also loves playing Wednesday. Scherer, who has been on stage since elementary school, attended the Pittsburgh CLO Academy and plans to study musical theater in college.
“She's a whole lot more than what you see in TV and movies,” Scherer said. “She's not as serious as you think. It's fun to see how Lucas makes her turn around.”
Lucas, played by senior Rob Clifford, is a normal prep-school kid from Ohio, Clifford said. He helps Wednesday see that maybe her family isn't so unusual after all.
This is Clifford's first musical and second time on the big stage. His first major role in theater was as Montag, the lead in the high school's fall play production of “Fahrenheit 451.”
“I fell in love with the play, the atmosphere, the family,” Clifford said. “I saw ‘Young Frankenstein' last year and was inspired. And I heard the musical is just a bigger family.”
Scherer said she can relate to Wednesday's struggles as a teenager trying to stay close to family but at the same time trying to foster a new love.
“She has this constant struggle to be serious and being in puppy love,” said Scherer, adding “The whole show is different than anything we've done before. No characters are the same.”
Rachel Farkas is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 724-772-6364 or rfarkas@tribweb.com.
