We're gonna pay a call on the 'Addams family: Leila Alvares

It was a road trip that inspired the 1991 film, The Addams Family. As the story goes, the director, Barry Sonnenfeld, was taking a roadtrip with some friends and his son, who burst into a sudden rendition of the Addams Family theme song. The others joined in, recalling every word, every harmony. That's when Sonnenfeld knew it was time to make a movie.

 To Bengaluru, Leila Alvares is the equivalent of masala chai on a rainy afternoon: total comfort. Her shows, which take place at Chowdiah Memorial Hall, always run to packed houses, with people crowding together in the aisles to catch the show. There's a live band and a versatile caste, some of whom we have grown accustomed to over the years. Prem Koshy, for instance, never fails to draw an ovation.

Charles Addams' bizarre, slightly creepy family has won hearts across the world for generations. Now, Alvares, who heralds Bengaluru's annual return to the majesty of Broadway, is bringing the much-loved cartoon to the stage. And yes, audiences will find opportunity for a sing-along: "The theme song doesn't actually figure in the plot but yes, we're including it anyway," laughs Alvares as she heads to the evening rehearsal.

The start of the monsoon season each year brings Leila Alvares out of her Coorg estate and back to the city for the annual production. Every Bengalurean with a soft corner for music and theatre knows her name and understands that an Alavres production will never let you down. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (her first), My Fair Lady, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Fiddler on the Roof, GHOST the Musical – the list is long. For 20 years, she hasn’t missed a beat.

They're always musicals too, with live music, choreography, costumes that leave no stone unturned and handpainted sets. They're old-fashioned methods, in the age of LED screens enhancing narratives and minimalist props. "I manage to avoid these things every year, although my own cast suggests them sometimes," says Alvares. “Live music is very rare on stage. I don’t think anyone else has done it to this extent. It’s the first time The Addams Family is being performed in the country too.”

In the musical, Wednesay Adams has grown up and fallen in love with a man from a 'respectable' family. Their troubles begin when a nervous Wednesday confides in her father, Gomez and begs him not to tell her mother, Morticia. There's lots of excitement in store, of course, for the dinner the Addams Family will host for Wednesday’s 'normal' boyfriend!

Working with non professional actors is a challenge, Alvares says. The active work life of the average Bengalurean is hardly conducive to the rigour of putting together a musical. “People end up coming late to rehearsal and I don’t like to keep them too long as well because they have work the next morning.” Actors audition for their roles; apart from the few familiar faces, Alvares does try to put together a new caste each year. “Funding is a problem also but that has always been the case. Another difficult thing for us is finding a good pianist! We want someone who can read sheet music and play by ear too, for this kind of accompaniment does not come with the precision of being part of a choir. The musicians have to work with dialogue, to watch for their cues.”

Alvares isn’t one to give up, though and Bengaluru certainly thanks her for it! The proceeds from the production will go towards her CAUSE Foundation and this year, will be re-routed to help the flood-affected in Kodagu. “We will work with both people and animals, since the latter is part of what we do at the foundation,” she says.

She's also planning a soft launch of her book - Once Upon a Lifetime. "The book will be sold at the venue and proceeds will go to Kodagu," she explains. The book will be sold at a discount and Leila will, on her return to Coorg, let donors know how their money is being put to use. 

What: The Addams Family
When: September 1 and 2, Chowdiah Memorial  Hall, September 5 at MLR Convention Centre, Whitefield