Courtesy Tom Chown

The Addams Family’s signature dark humor is put on full display as Morticia Addams, played by Gwenevieve Nelson, gleefully sings a lighthearted song about death being “Just Around the Corner.”

Despite not being too familiar with “The Addams Family” in any of its iterations but absolutely adoring dark and morbid humor, I was excited to get to see Santa Rosa Junior College Theatre Arts’s production of “The Addams Family, A New Musical Comedy.” The performance exceeded my expectations, proving to not only be hilarious, but also fantastically performed.

The show adapts Charles Addams’ iconic Addams Family characters, and follows the titular family as they receive a visit from the comparatively “normal” family of Mal and Alice Beinecke, played by Jim Frankie Banks and Tina Traboulsi respectively. Wednesday Adams has fallen in love with the Beineckes’ similarly “normal” son, Lucas, played by Aidan Cumming, and the two are engaged. Her attempts to ensure both families get along goes awry and her own family’s personalities, beliefs and desires are put to the test, creating a rift between themselves.

The show perfectly adapts the Addams Family’s dark yet positive sense of humor which extends through the actors and their deliveries. They were all absolutely hilarious both in spoken jokes and clever song lyrics.

All of the actors gave stellar performances, but Michael Coury Murdock, who played Gomez Addams, was by far the highlight whenever he was on stage. Murdock was a joy to watch being one of the main emotional cores of the story. He also absolutely nailed the accent both when speaking and singing, and only dropped it once purposefully as part of a joke which landed extremely well.

Gwenevieve Nelson as Morticia Addams was a very close second. Nelson perfectly maintained a sense of elegance and grace that brought her version of the character to life and provided her own angle to the humor which landed just as effectively.

Aesthetically, the show was a true spectacle. There was a fantastic use of color through the costumes, from the light gray of the ensemble contrasting against the black attire worn by the Addams, to the bright colors of the Beineckes.

The set was wonderfully gothic, from the aesthetics and again to the color. The production also introduced setpieces in a way that added to the creativity. They would either come down from above the stage or be moved around either between or even during scenes. The pieces that came down, as well as images and animations projected behind the set, were exceptionally effective at creating a variety of locales, even though it only took place in and around the Addams’ mansion.

“The Addams Family, A New Musical Comedy” was a wonderful way to close SRJC Theatre Arts’ spring productions. The entire cast brought Charles Addams’s characters and their signature dark, grim and positive humor to life through hilarious jokes both while speaking and singing. I’d highly recommend the last few shows for anyone looking for a fun time at the theater.

Showtimes are May 5 at 7:30 p.m.,May 6 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and May 7 at 2 p.m. at the Burbank Main Theatre. Tickets can be purchased online, by calling (707) 527-4307 or in-person one hour before the start of the performance.