Review: Arendi's THE ADDAMS FAMILY: Creepy, Kooky, and Captivating

The performing arts education institute Arendi returned to the stage on January 27 and 28 2024 with The Addams Family musical at Teater Besar, Taman Ismail Marzuki. This production marks their return after 2019’s Into the Woods Jr. Arendi collaborates with leading Indonesian musical theatre creatives for the show, including Pasha Prakasa as show director, Andrea Miranda as vocal director, and Putri Indam Kamila as the choreographer. Wishnu Dewanta leads the music team as the music director.

The cast of Arendi’s The Addams Family consists of both students and professional performers. This review is based on the fourth show with Madeline Ionna as Wednesday, Daniel Immanuel as Gomez, Hitta Dewi as Morticia, and Daffa Syawlan as Pugsley. The photos provided by the Arendi team and used in this article show the other cast, with Princepessa Theolama as Wednesday, Dylan Suwarno as Gomez, Princessa Eclessia as Morticia, and Cattleya Akbar as Pugsley.

Like the hit Netflix series Wednesday, The Addams Family musical is based on the iconic cartoons drawn by Charles Addams of the eponymous family. The Addams are known to be black-clad eccentrics who are into the macabre as much as they love and support each other. And that off-the-beat, yet heartwarming message is exemplified by this production.

The musical revolves around the family’s oldest child, Wednesday Addams (Madeline Ionna & Princepessa Theolama), and her romantic interest in the very much normal Lucas Beineke (Peter Leonard Chung). She entrusts the secret to her doting father, Gomez Addams (Daniel Immanuel & Dylan Suwarno), and asks him to keep this secret from her mother, the loving but stern Morticia Addams (Hitta Dewi & Princessa Eclessia).

All the while, Gomez’s brother Fester (Adhimas Milano) already notices Wednesday’s budding romance and enlists the help of the Addams’ ancestors (Sky Solana, Evolette Alexandra, Jocelyn Fidelia, Ester Chrisanti Trihastuti, Ferencia Anabelle, Kayleigh Eloise Salim, Puti Nara Marteeza, and Angela Cherish Minov) to support Wednesday from the shadows.

To deepen their relationship, Lukas is coming to have dinner with the Addams, alongside his parents Mal (Marvel Prakarsa) and Alice (Clarissa Theophilia). Wednesday asks her parents to put on a normal facade so as to not scare the Beinekes away. 

When the Beinekes arrive, they meet the Addams clan, including the enigmatic and eccentric Grandmama (Claudya Christina), dubiously alive butler Lurch (James Leonard Chung), and Wednesday’s mischievous brother Pugsley (Daffa Syawlan and Cattleya Akbar).

Before the dinner, the families get to know each other; Gomez shows Mal around the eclectic house; while Moritcia and Alice share a heart-to-heart. Morticia declares that the secret to her long-lasting marriage is to never keep secrets from each other, while Alice scoffs at it, saying that keeping secrets is the only thing keeping her marriage afloat.

The dinner goes on without a hitch and the family starts playing “The Game”, a tradition in which each person goes in turn revealing a secret while drinking from a goblet. But Pugsley has a plan in mind: he’s snatched a truth serum from Grandmama’s stash and plans to slip it into the drink, in the hope of making her blurt out her true feelings that he thinks will drive Lucas away. Unfortunately, Alice takes a sip of the drink first; she blurts out that she’s trapped in an unhappy marriage and chaos ensues.

The next day, Wednesday worries that she’s too different from Lucas and their relationship will never work out. To prove his commitment, Lucas asks Wednesday to shoot an apple on his head using her trusty crossbow – blindfolded. Although she is initially hesitant to, she finally relents and shoots the bolt, straight at the apple.

As the youths work out through their romantic doubts, so do the parents. Gomez comes clean to Morticia and the latter, in turn, admits she has been too strict to Wednesday just like her mother was to her. On the other hand, both Mal and Alice reconsider their feelings, reminisce about the past, and their love rekindles.

With all conflicts solved, the two families come together once again. Fester launches himself to space to get with his one true love: the Moon.

Arendi’s return to the stage is monumental. This is not only the biggest venue they’ve ever had, but with a worthy production to boot. Enlisting the creative direction of longtime theatremakers, led by director Pasha Prakasa, paid off.

The actors and production really made the most out of the whimsical script. It is a joy to watch the witty lines, fun choreography (in many different styles), and unexpected developments, and I found myself smiling throughout the show.

Addams Family also has the best performances in an Arendi show so far. Although the cast is composed of both students and veterans, the actors come together as very evenly matched, a testament to both the creative direction and the talents’ hard work. However, there were some minor enunciation issues that made some lines hard to catch.

This review is based on the fourth show, with the corresponding cast. Madeline Ionna as Wednesday is a revelation. The young actress has not only a strong and clear voice, but the vocal technique to really make the most out of it. Her Wednesday has a calm yet commanding presence as she makes her demands and navigates her relationships.

Playing as Morticia, Hitta Dewi slithers around the stage with intimidating confidence; her take on the character is reminiscent of previous versions: dark, mysterious, yet graceful. As another up-and-coming actor, she already showcases an exquisite control of the stage and her performance.

Opposite her is Daniel Immanuel (who also goes by Dante) who had perhaps the most substantial material, with a complex interwoven web of secrets and emotional dilemmas. He executed all parts beautifully: the loyal husband trying to keep a secret, the father fretting over his beloved but increasingly independent daughter, and the patriarch trying to keep the family together.

The other members of the family also played their parts in the story with aplomb; Fester is kooky yet lovable; Pugsley is a rascal with an adorable adoration for Wednesday; Grandmama is delightfully weird, and with an iconic constant hunch in her posture; the ancestors adorably flitter and flutter about, conspiring with Fester to help Wednesday; and, in the ending song, Lurch surprises the audience with a great bass singing voice after spending the whole show just vaguely grunting.

Of course, as the Addams’ counterparts, the Beinekes play just as crucial a part. Peter as Lucas has a princely charm to him, both in demeanor and vocals; Marvel as Mel is perhaps the most appropriate casting in the whole cast, bringing maturity and awkward dad energy that’s immensely familiar; and Clarissa as Alice’s frenetic attempt at maintaining her marriage – and her dwindling happiness – easily garners sympathy.

As a group, the performers can stand toe-to-toe with many professional productions, an impressive feat. It should be noted, however, that the material of Addams Family itself is neither particularly dramatic nor narratively complex; its main concern is to deliver a heartwarming, comedic story. And in this regard, it does well.

Accompanying and collaborating with the performers is Wishnu Dewanta’s music. In the press conference, the music director opened up about how challenging it was to find a team of musicians capable enough to play the musical’s vibrant and deceivingly complex score. But the result is astounding: it is perhaps the richest, most opulent orchestration for a stage musical of this caliber in recent memory. The various instruments come together in harmony, bringing Andrew Lippa’s lively Broadway score to life. It’s also worth mentioning that the show has exceptional sound engineering, making for a satisfying auditory experience (a rarity in this venue).

The production design has some highlights. The costuming is rife with Indonesian elements; for example, Gomez is wearing striped beskap reminiscent of his trademark suit, while Morticia dons an elegant black kebaya. These are beautiful pieces that are a smart, creative, and culturally relevant take on the Addams’ usual attires; however, as the setting is otherwise still explicitly American (their house is located in New York City’s Central Park), it causes a bit of a disconnect.

As for the set design, Arendi’s The Addams Family utilizes one big interconnected set piece that has two levels for the most part, typically as the family mansion’s interior. It is relatively simple, but the team also uses video projection in the background to help set the space. Although perhaps not as grand and impressive as the mansion might deserve, it is perfectly functional.  The highlights are the foreboding hanging vines hugging the proscenium and the patterned flooring; both greatly help with setting the mood for the audience entering the theater. 

Arendi’s return to the big stage with The Addams Family is not only a comeback, but a big leap forward. By bringing in industry professionals to work together with students, the show is not only greatly entertaining throughout, but also technically impressive. It is endearing, funny, and heartwarming. It enables up-and-coming performers to get a chance to both work with experts and experience performing on a big stage. Most importantly, it retains the Addams Family’s values, especially that no matter how weird you are, family love and support conquer all.
 

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