On Wednesday 3rd and Thursday 4th April, The Creative Faculty at Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School staged a suitably ghoulish production of The Addams Family Musical. The show is based upon The Addams Family characters created by Charles Addams which depict an American family with an affinity for all things macabre.
The macabre and much-loved Addams Family discover that, much to their disdain, Wednesday has fallen in love with Lucas Beineke, a nice normal boy from Ohio. To make matters worse, she has invited the Beinekes to their home for dinner. On this hilarious, fateful evening, secrets are disclosed, relationships are tested, and the Addams Family must confront the one thing that they have always managed to avoid: change.
Sebastian Roberts gave a captivating performance as Gomez Addams, along with Morticia Addams played by the talented Eleanor Connell, and together they wowed the audience with their fiery tango, passionate delivery and impressive vocals. Rhys Millington’s performance of Fester was a brilliant showcase of comic timing, vocals and acting.
The musical also featured debut QEGS performances from Arran Parkinson (Lurch), Toby Saxty (Pugsley), Assia El-Sakka (Grandma) and Rayhan Jamil (Mal Beineke). A particularly moving performance was Toby’s rendition of ‘What If’. Seasoned QEGS performers included; Julie Mathew (Wednesday Addams), Lea Robinson (Alice Beineke) and Kyle Robinson (Lucas Beineke). Pupils from Years 6-9 formed the chorus of the Addams Family Ancestors and did so with great enthusiasm.
The Band sounded fantastic on the night and was comprised of Mr Garrett (piano), Mrs Simpson (keyboard), Ms Ferrarin (brass), Mr Topping (guitar), Mr Joseph (drums), Mr Braime (violin), and Mr Gould (saxophone), and the bass player was Year 11 pupil Zakariya Bux who did an excellent job.
The creative talent at QEGS was in abundance for the musical, not only on the stage, but also in terms of the set design, lighting and sound. Rebecca Mitchell was in charge of lighting on the night and fellow sixth-form student, Jarvis Davies, managed the sound. The backstage crew and front of house volunteers also did a brilliant job in ensuring that the performances ran smoothly.