MOUNT VERNON – Over 50 years ago, ‘The Addams Family’ captivated the American audience as a black-and-white television series.
Now, it’s been turned into a musical – and MTVarts has brought it to Knox County.
The Mount Vernon-based theatre group will open ‘The Addams Family, A New Musical Comedy’ on Friday night at Memorial Theater. They will perform six shows over the next two weekends:
- July 6 at 7:30 p.m.
- July 7 at 7:30 p.m.
- July 8 at 2 p.m.
- July 13 at 7:30 p.m.
- July 14 at 7:30 p.m.
- July 15 at 2 p.m.
Director Bruce Jacklin, in his 12th year with MTVarts, seemed excited about the twists that were added to an already iconic television production.
“This show is a campy, fun-loving musical that draws us into a family of ‘unique’ characters that we all know and love from the cartoons, TV series, or movies,” Jacklin said in a press release. “By peeling away their macabre exterior we expose their struggles that would make them seem like any normal family.”
Jacklin said that despite the series’ historic allure, it had not been turned into a musical until eight years ago. After it hit Broadway, the play had to go through the licensing process before it became available for community theatres and the public to use.
“So we waited and it became available, and this particular show, we just thought it was quirky enough,” Jacklin said Tuesday. “We’re trying to do something that’s just a little off-beat.”
MTVarts draws actors and actresses from across the Central Ohio region. The company also offers an artsIQ program for young actors, showing them the ropes of theatre before casting them in a junior production. This year, it’s Annie Jr.
This is MTVarts’ second production of the year, following The Diary of Anne Frank in May.
Jacklin said that like any production, the most challenging part of preparing for ‘The Addams Family’ has been adding the technical elements in the weeks leading up to opening night.
“We’re pulling everything together at this point,” he said. “Everything is kind of in peripheral that you’re all trying to pull into the nuclei.”
“The actors know what they’re doing; the choreography, all of those things were done several weeks ago. And then we just keep honing it in and we add technical elements, which is always very laborious and time-consuming, but it’s rewarding in the long run when you’re finished. If you’re working with the right team it can be very rewarding – frustrating, but out of that frustration comes the victory and the reward when it finally comes together.”
Jacklin noted that when it comes to the technical elements, the crew “doesn’t hold back.”
“If we need flying, we rent the flying equipment,” Jacklin said. “If it is visual effects, magic, anything like that; intelligent lighting that moves, any of those kind of technical elements that actually takes rehearsal, time, resources…that, to me, is the frustrating part, trying to get there as soon as you can.”
“You just need a very patient, resourceful team. And in the long run, on opening night, you get the pay-off.”
After weeks of preparation, Jacklin said that he and his cast are eager to pull back the curtain on Friday night.
“My philosophy is, there’s only one opening night,” said Jacklin, who has been a director for 30 years. “So you have to get it right.”
Tickets can be purchased online, at First-Knox National Bank’s main office on Mount Vernon’s Public Square, or at the theatre door one hour prior to showtime. Tickets are $15-$18 depending on seat selection. Children ages 10 and under get a $3 discount.
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