Uncle Fester’s earnest heart: Evan Lever on THE ADDAMS FAMILY
The Addams Family has endured for generations by holding two things in tension: it’s a haunted house of a story — all coffins, torture devices and a disembodied hand — and, underneath that, a genuinely warm portrait of a family who love each other without apology or self-consciousness.
Since Charles Addams first drew them for The New Yorker in the 1930s, the family has been reinvented across television, film and now musical theatre, but the core joke has stayed the same: these are the most functional, devoted people in the room, and everyone around them is the strange one. The stage musical leans into that premise with a plot as old as farce itself — Wednesday Addams has fallen for a “normal” boy and wants to bring his straight-laced family to dinner, forcing Gomez, Morticia and the rest of the household to reckon with a world that doesn’t share their sensibilities. It’s a show that runs on contrast — gothic imagery played for warmth rather than horror, sincerity smuggled in under the jokes — and nowhere is that truer than with Uncle Fester, who narrates much of the action and carries the story’s stranger, more earnest edges, including a very sincere crush on the moon.
Now playing at Hayes Theatre Co in Sydney, the production features Evan Lever in the role. His recent credits include The Normal Heart (Mickey) for Sydney Theatre Company and State Theatre Company South Australia, and At Home at the Zoo (Jerry) for Joe Theatre. Other theatre work spans Muriel’s Wedding (Benny Andersson) for Global Creatures, Merrily We Roll Along (Jerome) for Hayes Theatre Co., Anything Goes (Henry T. Dobson) for Opera Australia, La Cage aux Folles (Francis) for The Production Company, and Cat Stevens’ Moonshadow the Musical. He’s also the writer and performer of Aznavourian, which toured to the Melbourne Cabaret Festival and the New York Music Theatre Festival, and trained at VCA, SITI Company, and the British American Drama Academy.
Fester is such a beloved, larger-than-life character — what did you want to bring to him that audiences might not expect?
Evan: It is daunting to play a character who has had so many iconic interpretations! As a kid, I loved Christopher Lloyd’s Fester in the Addams Family films of the ’90s. I don’t think I approached the role necessarily trying to bring something unexpected. I tipped my hat to the brilliant actors who had played him before, brought as much of myself to the role as possible, and trusted that it would feel original because it was coming from me.
Is there a scene or song that’s been the most fun, or the most challenging, to get right?
Evan: Early on, our director Julia Robertson approached me with a completely unexpected idea for Fester’s song, “The Moon and Me.” I can’t say too much without spoiling the surprise, you’ll have to come and see it, but it gives me the chance to show Fester at his most open-hearted and vulnerable. I haven’t done anything like it before and discovering exactly how to pitch it has probably been my biggest challenge. It’s also been enormous fun.
Fester’s got that unrequited love plot with the moon. How do you play that sincerity without losing the comedy?
Evan: I think Fester’s sincerity is where the comedy lies. His love for the moon is completely real, and his earnestness is what makes it funny. The challenge is resisting the temptation to play for laughs, because I suspect the moment you do, you undermine both the comedy and the sweetness.
What would you say is your favourite moment or song in the show?
Evan: Apart from “The Moon and Me,” it has to be the Act One finale, “Full Disclosure.” Not only is it completely bonkers, but the entire company is onstage together, and they are such a fun bunch of humans to work with.
The Addams Family has been reinvented so many times, through film, animation and now this musical. What do you think this stage version captures that other versions haven’t?
Evan: From the very beginning, Julia Robertson encouraged the company to bring their own personal brand of weirdness to The Addams Family. That spirit runs through Shannon Burns’s choreography, the musical world shaped by Zara Stanton and Zander Gaal, and Dann Barber’s jaw-dropping design. I think our version stays true to what people love about The Addams Family, while still feeling surprising and original. Cram all that into the intimacy of the Hayes Theatre and there is nowhere for the family, or the audience, to hide!
What do you think keeps The Addams Family so enduringly popular with new audiences?
Evan: Their dark humour reminds us not to take life so seriously, and they never apologise for who they are or try to fit in! I think we all feel a little weird sometimes, so there is something comforting about a family who love each other so deeply and celebrate each other’s weirdness so completely.
You’ve moved between intense drama like The Normal Heart and At Home at the Zoo, and big theatrical comedy like La Cage aux Folles and now The Addams Family. Does one kind of work feed the other for you?
Evan: Comedy or drama, I approach it in much the same way. It is all about commitment, honesty and imagination. The real pleasure is collaborating with different teams to bring stories and characters to life, then sharing them with a live audience. There is nothing like live theatre.
What do you hope audiences take away from the show, beyond just a fun night out?
Evan: I hope they are struck by how much talent there is throughout this production, and by the work and care, both onstage and off, that has gone into bringing this version of The Addams Family to life. More than anything, I hope people leave inspired to support more live theatre. Shout-out to our producer, Joshua Robson of JRP Australia, who also happens to be a hugely talented performer, currently playing Gleb in Anastasia! He takes risks, champions both emerging and established talent, and genuinely cares about live theatre and community.
The Addams Family is playing now at Hayes Theatre, Sydney.
For tickets and more information, visit the Hayes Theatre website.
Header photo by James Reiser
