"The Addams Family" Rises from the Dead: What does this mean for BMHS theatre?

Sam Hoppe, choreographer, instructs cast members.

By Nicolaj Arroyo

Arts & Entertainment Editor

October 2021

The state of 2020’s musical, “The Addams Family” has been up in the air since COVID-19 restrictions were put in place. Students in the orbit of theatre had been wondering what this year’s production would be and what the future of BMHS Theatre entailed. I spoke with the director of theatre, Gregory Wallendal, about “The Addams Family”, COVID-19 restrictions, and the future of theatre.

The Addams Family is being rebooted! With a new cast (for the most part), does it feel new or more nostalgic ?

A little bit of both. I feel like it's nostalgic because it is the same set, costumes, and a few of the same cast. We already did all the prep work for it, so it sort of feels like we're just redoing what has been done before. Yet, at the same time, it is almost an entirely new cast and crew. That means new interpretations and character interactions.

None of the new cast members have ever worked with me before, so we're building new relationships, new skills, and new expectations. We have a different choreographer as well, because the original choreographer couldn't work it into her schedule, so now Ms. Hoppe has taken up the job and is bringing her own interpretation to the production.

Why reboot Addams Family instead of having a non-musical play in the fall like there usually is?

When the COVID shut down happened, I retained the rights to perform Addams Family through the publishing company, Theatrical Rights Worldwide. Show rights are expensive, and a lot of money was invested in this production with the set, costumes, props, flying apparatus, and production design. We never had any shows and never had a chance to recoup those expenses. While I will end up spending some of my annual budget rebooting Addams Family, it is a fraction of the cost of putting the production on in the first place. Then, the fact that we had the set, props, and costumes all assembled and taking up space, so one option was to just flip the fall play and spring musical--have a musical in the fall and a play in the spring. While I considered this, I decided that this was an opportunity to put on 2 musicals in one year--something I would never be able to do with my regular budget. While this disappoints a small number of people who love the non-musical play, it is a huge boon for our musical theatre lovers. And there are a lot more musical theatre lovers than there are play-only-lovers. While some people don't consider themselves singers and dancers, I would encourage them to audition anyway. There are often non-singing/non-dancing roles in musicals.

What will the performance look like during the pandemic? Will the cast be wearing masks?

Even if the cast and crew have to wear masks during the rehearsal process and backstage during the show, our goal is to perform on stage without masks. Lots of schools are doing this. I am strongly encouraging the cast and crew to be vaccinated. Those who are not will be expected to get regular testing. The cast has made a commitment and is willing to be tested as often as possible in order to be maskless during the performance.

What's in the future for theatre this year? There have been out-of-the-box theatre projects of late (puppet shows)! Will there be more projects similar to this, or will BMHS theatre be going back to formal productions?

The puppet show last year was a fun project and an amazing success. We wrote our own full-length production, and students involved played multiple puppet characters, and it was a great way to put on a show during the pandemic. It is unlikely that we will return to that model, however, as I would prefer to get back to our regular season next year of the fall play and spring musical. Special late-spring projects might be an option to keep students engaged throughout the year. Stay tuned to find out what the second musical is this year. I am hoping to announce it by the end of Homecoming Week.