The Addams Family is a musical comedy based upon The Addams Family characters created by Charles Addams in his single-panel gag comics, which depict a ghoulish American family with affinity for all things macabre. With music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, the musical is the first stage show based on the characters even though numerous film and television adaptations of the Addams’ comics exist.
The story takes place at the Addams’ Central Park mansion, where the teenage daughter, Wednesday, has invited her new boyfriend and his “normal” parents to dinner. Once the family arrives, tensions mount and the personality conflicts create mayhem among the families who learn that the young couple is engaged to be married.
After obtaining the rights from Charles Addams Foundation to create the musical adaptation for Broadway in 2007, they anticipated an opening during the 2009-2010 season. This was the first time that Charles Addams’ comic creations were licensed to serve as the basis for a stage production. The foundation reportedly retained control over the show’s content and insisted that, instead of drawing the plot from the The Addams Family television series or films, the production team devise an original musical based solely on Addams’ comics.
After a tryout in Chicago in 2009, the musical made its Broadway debut on April 8, 2010, at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. All of the cast from the Chicago tryout transferred to Broadway, which featured Nathan Lane as Gomez and Bebe Neuwirth as Morticia. The production closed on December 31, 2011, after 722 performances, and a revised national tour of North America that began the September prior. The production was originally estimated to cost around $15 million and had reportedly grossed over $62 million in revenue. The show continues to be produced domestically and internationally today.
The Addams Family won several awards during its Broadway run including a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design, an Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Set Design, and the 2010 Drama League Award for Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theatre Award (presented to Nathan Lane). The show was nominated for two Tony Awards. It also won the Broadway.Com Audience Awards for Favorite New Broadway Musical, Favorite Performance by a Featured Actor in a Broadway Musical (Kevin Chamberlain), Favorite Breakthrough Performance (Krysta Rodriguez), and Favorite Onstage Pair (Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth).
In 2022, the Addams Family brand got a boost from the Netflix show, Wednesday, based on the teenage character and starring Jenna Ortega. It is a supernatural mystery comedy with Luis Guzmán and Catherine Zeta-Jones portraying her parents. Episodes revolve around Wednesday’s attempts to solve a murder mystery at her new school.
Within three weeks of release, it became the second-most watched English-language Netflix series. It received three Golden Globe nominations: one for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy and two for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy for Ortega. It also won four Primetime Emmy Awards while receiving nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Ortega. In January 2023, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on Aug. 6, 2025; the second half was released on Sept. 3. In July 2025, the series was renewed for a third season.
This summer, the Annisquam Village Players will present their version of the musical Aug. 4-9, 2026, at the historic Annisquam Village Hall.
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