Five Questions With: Lauren Jones

LAUREN JONES is playing Wednesday in the current UK tour of The Addams Family.

After training at Arts Educational School in London, Lauren gained theatre credits as Kim/Cover Edward Scissorhands in Scissorhandz (Southwark Playhouse Elephant); Trish/Alternate Bonnie in Bonnie & Clyde (UK and Ireland tour); Ich in Rebecca (Charing Cross Theatre) – Offie-nominated for Best Lead Performance; Trish/Alternate Bonnie in Bonnie & Clyde (Garrick Theatre); Trish/Cover Bonnie/Cover Blanche in Bonnie & Clyde (Arts Theatre); Lisette/Cover Adele in The Magician’s Elephant (RSC, Royal Shakespeare Theatre) and Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Curve Theatre).

Musical comedy The Addams Family continues to tour Salford, Canterbury and Blackpool.

Here Lauren continues Musical Theatre Review’s interview series: Five Questions With…

Congratulations on being cast as Wednesday Addams. How did rehearsals go? It looks like a fantastic group of performers and creatives to be part of.

Thank you so much. Rehearsals flew by. We kicked things off in Birmingham and then moved to Leicester, where we stayed until 10 August before heading back out on tour. We had our press night in Leicester too.

You’re absolutely right, it’s an incredible team. From cast and creatives to stage management, lighting, sound and design, it really does feel like one big family. Every single person is vital to this show, and I feel so lucky to be performing with such a wonderfully kooky bunch every night. I honestly wish I could name every person individually and explain why I love them, but we’d be here all day.

That said, I have to give a special mention to our amazing producers (Aria Entertainment and John Stalker Productions), our assistant producer Ylan Assefy-Waterdrinker, casting director Jane Deitch, director Matthew White, assistant director Alexandra McQuillen-Wright, musical director Andrew Hilton, musical supervisor Richard Beadle, choreographer Alistair David, assistant choreographer Matthew Ives and designer Diego Pitarch. These are often the unsung heroes who help shape the show and guide us towards the best version of ourselves on stage.

What drew you to the role, and how have you approached putting your own stamp on such an iconic character that manages to balance dark wit and emotional depth?

Wednesday is a role I’ve wanted for years, genuinely, I’m not exaggerating. I remember seeing the show when it first toured to the Royal & Derngate in Northampton with my mum. We both left the theatre absolutely loving every aspect of it. It was one of those shows where everyone on stage felt essential to the story. I totally fell in love with it from the opening number ‘When You’re an Addams’, which just perfectly sets the tone.

So to now be in it, playing Wednesday, I’m honestly still pinching myself every time the curtain goes up on that first number (written by the brilliant Andrew Lippa). It’s surreal going from watching it as a fan to living it every night.

Wednesday is a complex character. She’s incredibly technical to play. I’ve done a huge amount of research, from the original comics, black and white TV series and films, to fan-made playlists. I felt it was essential to understand every version of her before I could bring my own interpretation to life. This is the first time we see Wednesday at 18, which is reflected in her look too. We’ve moved away from the iconic plaits and collared dress. She’s cut her hair, is finding her own rebellious style and, shockingly, is in love for the first time.

She goes through huge changes in this story. She questions who she is, how she feels, and nearly loses herself in the process. Because this is a musical, I’ve had to find the right balance between the Wednesday people expect and this new version that sings and dances. I play with the monotone quality of her voice and contrast it with the soaring vocals needed for numbers like ‘Pulled’ and ‘One Normal Night’. That balance is tricky and can be vocally demanding; stamina is everything.

Physically, I’ve also tried to show her development. At the beginning of the show, her movements are quite sharp and linear, like a chessboard. By the end, there’s more fluidity and curve in the way she moves. These little details are things I’ve thought a lot about. I could honestly write an essay on the research I’ve done and the choices I’ve made to make sure she feels like the Wednesday we know, while still letting her evolve into something new.

You’ve appeared in a variety of musical theatre productions before this. Have any of your previous roles been particularly helpful in preparing for this one?

Probably Scissorhandz. I played Kim, one of the leads, and also covered Edward Scissorhands, which I never imagined I’d get to do, and I’m so grateful for it. It shares that same Tim Burton-style darkness as The Addams Family, but more than that, it taught me how to approach a role through deep research. I studied the film and also Frankenstein, which it’s inspired by. I paid close attention to physicality and created a kind of vocabulary of mannerisms that I could pull from depending on how I thought the character was feeling in a given moment.

That kind of detail and foundation is so important to me. Once I get into rehearsals, I leave the research at the door and let it inform the performance naturally. Voice, movement, even stillness, everything needs to work together so that the audience believes in the character, sometimes without knowing why. It could be the smallest detail that makes them go: “That just feels right.”

Plus, the make-up was a huge part of that process. I love SFX make-up, and getting to help create a character visually is something I really enjoy. Creating an iconic character like Edward definitely helped prepare me for Wednesday, who’s iconic in a completely different way. Especially now, with the recent TV series, audiences are more familiar than ever with who she is, so I’ve got this amazing pool of inspiration to draw from.

Lauren Jones as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family UK tour. Picture: Pamela Raith

Is touring the show something you are particularly looking forward to? Bringing a production you have helped create to lots of different audiences?

Absolutely. I love touring. I love exploring the culture of each place we go to, visiting museums and galleries, and just making memories with my friends. I always make a scrapbook at the end of a show to keep all those memories together.

It’s also just so exciting that audiences all over the country get to see the show. I genuinely think it’s brilliant, I know I’m biased, but it really does have the perfect mix of comedy, heart and darkness. The score is incredible. I honestly think it deserves a West End transfer or, at the very least, a cast album.

What’s great is that audiences can usually relate to at least one of the characters, whether it’s one of the Addams or the more “normal” Beinekes. And the performances, the voices, the energy everyone brings to it, it’s just electric. I was watching the infamous tango between Gomez, Morticia and the ensemble the other night (oh yes, we have a tango) and I was completely mesmerised. You can tell everyone is giving everything, maybe even their souls. Spooky, right?

Looking back on your career so far, is there a particular role or production that has been especially meaningful to you?

That’s such a hard question because I’ve been lucky to have such a wild and varied career. Every show I’ve done has taught me something different. Rebecca was my first lead, and I was singing 18 out of 22 songs in this massive score that felt like The Phantom of the Opera. Scissorhandz was my first jukebox musical. Bonnie & Clyde was my first West End job, with a rock score, and I alternated as Bonnie while also covering the other female lead, Blanche. Plus, it was my first cast album. The Magician’s Elephant at the RSC was my first job out of drama school, with a really creepy Sondheim-esque score.

They’ve all been so different. But if I had to pick one that means the most, it would probably be Ragtime. I did it while I was still in training, and it really started everything for me. I got to play Mother during the Covid year, which was incredibly tough, but that role and that score were just beautiful. I’d love to play her again when I’m the right age. It was the purest version of my singing voice, very legit, which is my natural style, and the message of the show really stayed with me. I’m also so grateful to ArtsEd for helping build my work ethic. It gave me the foundation I needed for everything that followed.