For those of you who do not know, this past weekend I performed in Millersville University’s All-Campus Musical Organization (ACMO)’s production of The Addams Family musical. The opening song is titled “When You’re an Addams,” hence the title of this tribute article. The last time I was in a musical was my senior year of high school in 2019. I portrayed the role of Rosie in our production of Bye Bye Birdie. For me, it’s been over three years since I performed in an actual show. I was craving to be in another musical, especially since many theatres shut down over the pandemic and could not have live performances. This broke my heart because I have been doing theatre since elementary school.
Two of my biggest passions in life are music and theatre. I even auditioned at numerous colleges for their musical theatre programs to go into after graduation. I then thought about it more and switched my major to Speech Communication at Millersville when I made my final decision on where to go. Even though I did not pursue musical theatre as a career path for myself, it still holds a special place in my heart. It always will.
Onstage is where I feel most alive. It’s always been a second home for me. With any home comes a family. The cast of The Addams Family literally became my family. Auditions took place in mid-November, and we began rehearsals before winter break. We met over Zoom to read through the entire show multiple times over break. At first, I did not know everyone very well, but I would soon come to adopt everyone as family. When you are with a certain group of people almost every day for three months, you grow a close bond with one another. Throughout the entire rehearsal process, everyone lifted each other up and provided support on and off stage.
Missed a dance rehearsal? We caught up the person who missed. Had a rough day and got emotional? Someone was always there to hug you and shower you with love. Missed a meal because you had a busy day? Someone ordered food for the cast or picked you up something at Sheetz. The support goes on and on. We had each other’s backs in unspeakable ways.
I will always cherish the midnight runs to Waffle House and Sheetz, the countless laughs, hangouts at David’s, hugs, silly moments, and hard work we put into the show to make it a success.
I was so humbled and honored to be in this amazing production. I was extremely proud that the production was completely student-run. The cast obviously performed, but we also helped backstage with lighting, costumes, makeup, set design and construction, and music. It was fun to be able to learn various parts of production and what they entail. It made the payoff even more worth it in the end.
I established some of my closest friendships in this cast, and it was so fun to finally be in a show with my boyfriend. These are people I know will always be there for me, and I in return for them. They are some of the kindest, most talented individuals I know. This show will forever leave a mark on my heart because it brought back to life my love of performing. I hope everyone is able to experience having a family like this someday. These are my people.
“So let’s be happy / Forever happy / Completely happy / And a tiny bit sad.” – “Happy/Sad” from The Addams Family by Andrew Lippa