{"id":309392,"date":"2026-10-18T16:40:24","date_gmt":"2026-10-18T16:40:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/309392\/"},"modified":"2026-10-18T16:40:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-18T16:40:24","slug":"the-addams-family-at-walnut-street-theatre-puts-abbie-parker-in-spotlight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/309392\/","title":{"rendered":"‘The Addams Family’ at Walnut Street Theatre puts Abbie Parker in spotlight"},"content":{"rendered":"

\ud83d\udc8c Love Philly? So do we. Let\u2019s be friends. Sign up for the Billy Penn newsletter today.<\/p>\n

On Netflix\u2019s \u201cWednesday,\u201d<\/a> there\u2019s no mystery Wednesday Addams can\u2019t solve, no murder too dire.<\/p>\n

But on stage, as in life, young love turns out to be a most tricky mystery \u2013 one not as readily resolved by Wednesday \u2013 unless shooting an apple off your boyfriend\u2019s head with a bow and arrow while blindfolded counts as a test of true love.<\/p>\n

Maybe the rest of us would prefer roses and chocolate.<\/p>\n

But nothing is normal in \u201cThe Addams Family: The Musical\u201d<\/a> playing at the Walnut Street Theatre<\/a> through Nov. 1.<\/p>\n

\"\"Don Daniels, Christina Stroup, Aren Duffy, Galen Graham, Kelly Briggs and ensemble in The Addams Family: The Musical. (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n

They hold family reunions in the cemetery. There\u2019s a moon-struck uncle named Fester and a butler, who lurches, perhaps because his name is Lurch. Wednesday\u2019s brother worries that she\u2019ll stop torturing him. What? Totally backwards. But what do you expect when the family matriarch is named Morticia and is assisted by a \u201chandy\u201d faithful servant, known as Thing?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really a family franchise,\u201d said Abbie Parker, 17, who plays Wednesday in her debut performance at the Walnut. \u201cAs weird and interesting as their family is, there\u2019s still a lot of love.\u201d<\/p>\n

And love is at the heart of the plot. Wednesday and Lucas, from a \u201cnormal\u201d family, fall in love and want their parents to meet. The Addams crew vows to act as normally as possible when Lucas\u2019 parents come for dinner. But then, it all depends on what defines normal. One pro tip: When the future in-laws come over, definitely show off your collection of torture devices. Sure to impress.<\/p>\n

\"\"Don Daniels, Aren Duffy and Mary Martello in The Addams Family: The Musical. (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n

Parker became acquainted with Addams Family through \u201cWednesday,\u201d the Netflix series, and also, as a Halloween movie, \u201cThe Addams Family,\u201d<\/a> but this isn\u2019t her first time in the Addams Family milieu on stage.<\/p>\n

In middle school, she was part of the ensemble in the musical presented by Salt Performing Arts,<\/a> a community theater, performing arts, and education organization in Chester Springs, where she is an on-stage regular.<\/p>\n

\u201cI liked it,\u201d she said. She knew then that she\u2019d get another chance to perform the musical. \u201cI really wanted to play Wednesday.\u201d<\/p>\n

People tell her that she\u2019s a natural for \u201cangsty\u201d characters like Wednesday, or Lydia Deetz, the 15-year-old goth girl in \u201cBeetlejuice,\u201d but Parker said she really prefers bubbly roles like when she played Elle Woods, the super-smart, super-blonde lead in \u201cLegally Blonde.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would love to do that again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"Aren Duffy, Mary Martello, Kelly Briggs, Kieran Gallagher, Abbie Parker and Damon Bonetti star in The Addams Family: The Musical. (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe it\u2019s just my face,\u201d Parker said, speculating on why people think she\u2019s so suited for odd souls like Wednesday. \u201cMy face can be very chill when resting. In the musical version, Wednesday\u2019s only her classic, solemn, emo self for the first two scenes, then she\u2019s pulled (out of it). She\u2019s smiling and excited and remains that way for the rest of the show.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parker, who landed a leading role as Tinker Bell in \u201cPeter Pan\u201d at age five, hopes audiences get a chance to relax and enjoy all the weirdness that is part of the Addams family experience.<\/p>\n

The audience will \u201cdefinitely like the comedy of the show and of the family,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s relatable. People can see parts of their lives in it and part of their family\u2019s lives in it and the family dynamics.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Bonnie Kelly, Abbie Parker, Kieran Gallagher, and Dominick Sannelli are featured in The Addams Family: The Musical. (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n

Her favorite moments include a chance to sing \u201cPulled,\u201d Wednesday\u2019s big solo number. \u201cThat\u2019s initially why I liked the show so much,\u201d Parker said. \u201cShe has a couple good songs and \u201cPulled\u201d is a very good vocal part. Very high. Very high and belty \u2013 a solid musical theater belt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although there\u2019s no specific age for Wednesday in the script, Parker imagines Wednesday as 18, just a year older than she is.<\/p>\n

When Parker\u2019s not performing in the \u201cAddams Family,\u201d she\u2019s finishing her senior year at Great Valley High School in Malvern. As soon as the show closes, she\u2019ll begin rounds of auditions for acceptance as a freshman majoring in musical theater at colleges and universities around the country.<\/p>\n

\"\"Lindsey Bliven and Damon Bonetti perform as Morticial and XXXX Addams in The Addams Family: The Musical. (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n

\u201cThis show is about growing up,\u201d Parker said. In the play, there are a couple of poignant moments when she\u2019s with Gomez, who is her father, and her brother, Pugsley.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s realizing that she\u2019s not a kid anymore, and at the end, she does get married,\u201d Parker said. \u201cI\u2019m growing up as well. This year, as a senior, there\u2019s a lot of lasts \u2013 last Christmas at home, last birthday at home. It\u2019s a big year for me.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Wednesday realizes she\u2019s growing up, Abbie feels she\u2019s growing up as well,\u201d Parker said. \u201cBut I\u2019m definitely not getting married.\u201d<\/p>\n

FYI<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Addams Family: The Musical\u201d<\/a> through Nov. 1 at the Walnut Street Theatre,<\/a> 825 Walnut St., Phila. 215-574-3550. Special Halloween programming includes Kids Night at the Walnut on Thursday, Oct. 29, when each adult ticketholder can bring a child for free, Two to Tango Date Night is on Friday, Oct. 30, when two tickets cost $140 and include pre-show events from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Addams After Dark follows on Saturday, Oct. 31 when all tickets are $35, drinks cost $10, and pre-show events are included in the price.<\/p>\n

\"\"It is said that the inspiration for the Addams Family mansion comes from University of Penn\u2019s College Hall. Built in 1871, it was the first Penn building and housed all the college functions. (Wikimedia Commons photo)<\/p>\n

Want more?<\/p>\n

\u00a0The Addams Family<\/a> was originally created by cartoonist Charles Addams as single standalone comic panels in the New Yorker, published from between 1938 and 1988. Addams attended the University of Pennsylvania from 1930 to 1931. It is said that the inspiration for the Addams Family mansion<\/a> comes from College Hall.<\/a>\u00a0 Built in 1871, it was the first Penn building and housed all the college functions. Now the campus also includes the Charles Addams Fine Arts Hall<\/a>, which contains studios for Penn\u2019s fine arts students. The building isn\u2019t very impressive from Walnut Street. But step onto campus at 36th Street and catch a sculptural line-up of the Addams family characters. Don\u2019t miss the building\u2019s distinctive gates with hands holding paintbrushes, a camera, and scissors. The sculptor, Mark Lueders, drew his inspiration from an Addams Family character, a disembodied hand named Thing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udc8c Love Philly? So do we. Let\u2019s be friends. Sign up for the Billy Penn newsletter today. On…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":309393,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[69,71,70,126703,7866,8233,126704],"class_list":["post-309392","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-the-addams-family-the-musical","tag-theatre","tag-walnut-street-theatre","tag-wednesday-addams"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309392","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=309392"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309392\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/309393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=309392"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=309392"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=309392"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}