The Addams Family
at University High School

Reviewed on April 28, 2017

Caroline Ullem
St. Margaret’s Episcopal School
Submitted for publication to OC Varsity Arts

Full Disclosure: University's Addams Family is Full of Goulish Fun!


Caroline Ullem is a freshman at St. Margaret's Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano .

Fester is in love with the moon, Pugsley loves to be tortured, and grandma brews potions- and you thought your family was weird! University High School brings new life to a spooky production of "The Addams Family".

When Wednesday Addams brings home her boyfriend and his normal family to meet her morbid, misfit relatives, chaos ensues, causing countless spooky mishaps. Despite the morose and bone-chilling story, the ensemble is engaging and energetic, and they use abrupt movements to show their mortality. They are continuously committed to their characters, even when they have to hold difficult poses for long periods of time as statues.

Dalton Nguyen as Gomez Addams is overly dramatic and suave through his continuous Spanish accent and purposeful motions, especially when expressing his passion for his wife. Ellen Eshraghi continuously emphasizes Morticia's feline, sleuthing ways by slinking around the stage. Gomez and Morticia are passionate and loving towards each other, most notably in "Tango de Amor" where they dance across the stage professing their love for each other.

Wednesday Addams (Shaden Ahadi), a rebellious teenager with a craving for darkness, transitions from cold and unwelcoming to a girl in love by standing up straighter and using voice inflection to sound more hopeful. Corinne Alsop plays Fester, the eccentric uncle of the Addams', who is clearly insane as demonstrated through tics such as hand motions and laughing eerily at each twist and turn. Lurch, played by Franklin Duffy, shows his zombie-like character through groans, grumbles, and hand motions to express his meaning.

The lighting, envisioned by Lauren Bee, shows contrasts throughout the play, such as the light pink backdrop of love scenes with Wednesday and Lucas versus red lighting to show the passion between Gomez and Morticia. Equally as powerful as the acting, the costumes (pulled and created by Maribel Cervantes) represent the essence of each character by using bright colors for the "normal" family, black for the Addams', and white and grey fabric for the ghostly ancestors. Complementing the costumes, Norhan Abolail designed the makeup of the skeleton-like dead ancestors by using contouring and face paint to fit each character.

Comforting all offbeat or oddball people, University High school's "Addams Family" unites all through outstanding acting and beautiful technical elements, making everyone feel as if they are part of "The Addams Family".

Rebecca Bogdanovic
San Juan Hills High School
Submitted for publication to OC Varsity Arts

Spook and Spunk Collide in University's "Addams Family"

Rebecca Bogdanovic is a senior at San Juan Hills High School in San Juan Capistrano


Thick, eerie clouds of white fog permeate the stage, as brilliant flashes of blue light reveal the faces of a solemn family. With their grunting zombie butler and grotesque fascination with 15th century torture devices, the Addams household is anything but conventional. Yet through dynamic song and dance, University High's production of "The Adam's Family" shows that "normal" is largely overrated.

Dalton Nguyen portrays the fiery Gomez Addams through his tall, proud stance and looks of longing devotion to his wife. With swaying hips and a tall confident posture, Ellena Eshraghi captivates as Morticia Addams. Sauntering seductively across the stage, her sultry vocals resonate powerfully in "Just Around the Corner."

With her unwavering frown, crossed arms, and unamused eyes, Shaden Ahadi is Wednesday Addams. Despite her character's lack of sunshine, Ahadi brings energy to the role, especially through her girlish squeals of delight and animated facial expressions in "Pulled." Benjamin Sui counters her dark personality as the sweet Lucas Beineke. Together the two share endearing moments throughout "Crazier Than You" as they stare lovingly into each other's eyes.

Corinne Alsop takes the stage as Fester Addams, embodying this unique character through hunched posture, wild eyes, and whimsical pantomimes. Her squeaky, high pitched voice elicits much laughter, especially as she proclaims her undying love for the moon in "The Moon and Me."

Shocked by the idiosyncrasies of the Addams family, Mitchell Rogers and Sarika Mande are Mal and Alice Beineke. Through wide, innocent eyes and squeals of disbelief, Mande transitions quickly from conservative housewife, into a possessed, psychotic state in "Full Disclosure." Rogers also embodies the change in his character, as his nasally, whiny vocal tone and bossy demeanor melt away to reveal his fun-loving, enthusiastic side.

Costume design by Maribel Cervantes highlights the stark contrast between the two families, as the Addams are dressed in dark, morbid black, and Alice Beineke in a bright yellow dress and her husband in a white, collared shirt.

The cast and crew of University's "Addams Family" portrays the abnormalities present within each family, showing the importance of embracing differences, and never apologizing for who we are.

Mariah Lopez
Tri-School
Submitted for publication to OC Cappies Facebook Page

Crazy clashes with normal in University "The Addams Family"

Mariah Lopez is a sophomore at Tri-School in Anaheim

While monsters under the bed, torture devices, and dead people are generally avoided, University High School embraces them with vigor in their phenomenal production of "The Addams Family". In the play, Wednesday Addams has given her heart to an average boy from Ohio, Lucas Beineke. It is when she tells her father, Gomez Addams, that she has given him her hand in marriage as well that the real conflict begins. The secret creates tension between Gomez and his wife, Morticia, until the audience is not the only thing snapping in time to the music as both families struggle through dinner.

The entire cast at University banded together to embody their characters and embrace the crazy. Normally dead pan, Shaden Ahadi captures the sullen nature of Wednesday while showing the new bubbling emotions felt as she lays her head into the crook of Lucas's neck, played by Benjamin Sui. Their relationship is only matched by Wednesday's parents, played by Ellena Eshraghi and Dalton Nguyen. Lithe, assertive, and bold, Morticia stunned as Eshraghi's electric vocals and swaying hips hypnotized. With the signature accent and slashing sword, Nguyen complimented her perfectly with Gomez's charming, witty, and suave personality.

Kooky Uncle Fester's awkward hobble became graceful as Corinne Alsop rolled around the stage in skates singing "The Moon and Me" as the female ancestors danced daintily around her. Their graceful movements differed greatly from the ancestors' usually halting limps or first shuffle onstage through the fog in the eerie light of the graveyard. Although a large ensemble, their detailed costumes made them easily distinguishable. Their white faces popped against the purple and green background of the Addams' house and the dead people did not appear out of place among the interior decor of ancient weapons and gothic artwork.

Crackling energy, sizzling characters, and an undeniable charm all create an enjoyable journey towards discovering what normal is. University High School takes quirkiness and adds a dash of Addams to create their delightful production of "The Addams Family."