Chicago BeAt…’The Addams Family,’ a new musical starring Nathan Lane

Creepy. Kooky. Mysterious. Spooky. All that’s a given with The Addams Family. But the most fitting adjectives to describe the new Broadway-bound, Nathan Lane-starring “Addams Family” musical? Try cute, imaginative,  charming – and all together ooky.

As it is now in its pre-Broadway Chicago incarnation, this isn’t the next great musical comedy, despite the presence of high-wattage stars Lane and Bebe Neuwirth and a book from the Tony Award-winning writers of “Jersey Boys.” The story line’s about as thin as Gomez’s pencil mustache, and the impact as light as a bulb burning brightly from Uncle Fester’s mouth. But under the direction of Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch,  with much thanks to a spirited cast, “The Addams Family” is snappy and fun, eccentric but accessible – a sugary, easygoing musical aimed to amuse all, with just enough artistic spice to keep it interesting and original.

Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice’s original book makes Addams girl Wednesday (Krysta Rodriguez) an 18-year-old woman in love with a boy from Ohio named Lucas Beineke (Wesley Taylor). Their families are like sitcom variations of the Capulets and Montagues – if the Capulets loved torture and tango, and the Montagues were a square Midwestern lot.

So the Beinekes, including repressed mother Alice (Carolee Carmello) and work-obsessed father Mal (Terrence Mann), have come with their son to Central Park, where the Addams’ mansion resides. There they meet the whole gang, including grunting, Frankensteinish butler Lurch (Zachary James), loony, inappropriate Grandma (Jackie Hoffman), oddball, Gonzo-like Uncle Fester (Kevin Chamberlin) and mischievous little Pugsley (Adam Riegler). Chaos and mild hilarity ensue, and conflicts begin to take shape. Wednesday and Lucas question whether they should marry. Morticia (Neuwirth) has a mid-life crisis. Pugsley feels neglected. Alice confronts Mal about their loveless marriage. But these problems are nothing some song and dance, simple lines of reassurance, or in one case, an amorous encounter with a giant squid, can’t handle. As far as themes go, “Addams Family” is best in showing there is no normal, nor should there be. The Addams, of course, aren’t normal – Gomez sighs contentedly at the sounds of gunshots and a scream, Pugsley adores being tortured, Morticia tends to a mouse-eating plant, and Fester, in a sweet subplot, professes to be in love with the moon (prompting the show’s most winning number, where Fester seemingly dances mid-air with a white, round balloon). Ma and Pa Beineke, by contrast, strive to be normal, but their nature has made their lives bland and banal. Sure it’s strange that Gomez and Morticia have nightly tango appointments, but life to them is always a passionate adventure. They may be strange, but that, of course, is what makes them so special.

Special too are the performances by Carmello, Chamberlin, Hoffman (who steals all of her scenes) and of course Lane. The thespians are blessed with the best roles in the musical, and while Alice Beineke, Uncle Fester, Grandma and Gomez aren’t fully fleshed out, they’re a colorful lot, and the foursome relish in their roles. Lane particularly has a way with line delivery – he can make any word or phrase a delight. I can’t remember more than half of the silly little jokes Lane’s Gomez utters, in his “Timon from ‘The Lion King’ meets Antonio Banderas’ Puss in Boots” accent. But I remember chuckling often and smiling throughout, primarily because of his delivery.

Andrew Lippa’s score and songs seem simple and slight, so I’m surprised that I still remember the chorus to the best songs days later – Act One razzle-dazzle closing number “Full Disclosure,” Rodriguez and Taylors’ bold, passionate duet “Crazier Than You” and recurring theme “Let’s Not Talk About Anything Else But Love.” Lane shines in his tender, bittersweet solo “Happy/Sad” – a musical ode to a father’s mixed emotions over his daughter growing up. Neuwirth sings her parts with an obnoxious, effected Ethel Merman-like warble, which doesn’t mesh at all with her slinky, cool character. But when she laments about being past her prime in “Second Banana,” she’s effective, primarily because she’s not trying too hard to be over-the-top.  And the typically speechless Lurch, it turns out, has a great, deep vibrato in “Move Toward The Darkness.”

Directors McDermott and Crouch also designed the sets, and they’re incredible, seamlessly and breathlessly transforming from the ornate, multi-level entrance of the mansion to a backyard scene with a swing on a solitary tree, bright moon shining above and the twinkling New York skyline in the distance, with several transformations in between. Basil Twist’s puppet work is playful, particularly as he handles the giant squid’s arms, which lurk in and out of every imaginable door. Sergio Trujillo’s choreography is diverting enough for much of the show, but he certainly delivers the goods in a dashing second act swordfight and tango sequence involving Lane, Neuwirth and 10 ensemble dancers.

There’s a few inconsistencies in the storyline – in describing her love for Lucas, Rodriguez’s Wednesday sings about feeling all gooey, gushy and sweet – which the typically dark, brooding teenager detests. But we find out that Lucas is as dark and morose as she is, so then Wednesday’s sunshiny disposition doesn’t make sense. Neither does the fact that a major storm forces the Beinekes to spend the night at the Addams, but in one of the next scenes, we see Wednesday and Lucas walking outside, and later Lane sits on that swing in a tranquil park setting. The show would also be snappier with a few trims and snips here and there. But even in its current form, “The Addams Family” is Broadway-worthy — these weirdos would fit in perfectly in New York.

Grade: B

“The Addams Family” is playing at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, 24 W. Randolph St., through Jan. 10. $28-$105. Schedule and tickets available here.