BHS Musical Wins Four TAMY Awards

The Bedford High School Performing Arts spring musical production of “The Addams Family” was recently honored with eleven TAMY awards nominations and four TAMY awards. Image: /bedfordhsperformingarts/

*The competitive TAMY awards recognize exemplary achievements in high school theaters within a 50-mile radius of Mount Wachusett Community College. Image: /bedfordhsperformingarts/*

Bedford High School’s musical, “The Addams Family,” recently received four awards at the 2024 TAMY Awards Gala at Mount Wachusett Community College. The four winners were:

Technical Excellence in Sound (Large School Division)
Best Costumes, Hair, and Makeup (Large School Division)
Best House Experience (Large School Division)
Not-Your-Average Chorus Member—Liam Green

“The Addams Family” tells the hilarious love story between Wednesday Addams, a teenager rooted in macabre tradition, and Lucas Beineke, an innocent young man with a “normal” background; when their very different families meet for the first time, the resulting dinner is full of sabotage, secrets, and emotions — to the tune of some very catchy dance numbers.

About 80 cast, crew, and pit orchestra students participated in Bedford High School’s production, which opened in March. The show received the following 11 TAMY nominations:

Best Overall Production (Large School Division)
Best Performance in a Leading Role—Jacob Choi
Best Performance in a Supporting Role—Violet Gould
Best Performance in a Featured Role—Healy Weisman
Best Student Orchestra
Best Production Number (Large School Division)
Best Stage Crew (Large School Division)
Technical Excellence in Sound (Large School Division)
Best Costumes, Hair, and Makeup (Large School Division)
Best House Experience (Large School Division)
Not-Your-Average Chorus Member—Liam Green

Presented by Mount Wachusett Community College, the Theater at the Mount (TAMY) Awards recognize exemplary achievements in high school theaters within a 50-mile radius. During the year, judges travel to schools, evaluate performances, and make nominations for awards. Then in June, the nominees are invited to a “red-carpet” ceremony, imitating the Tony Awards.

*Bedford’s “The Addams Family” was one of 27 musicals in the running for awards this year. Image: /bedfordhsperformingarts/*

This year was the program’s 17^th anniversary. Competition was stiff with 25 participating high schools, 27 musicals, and 16 award categories. More than 500 students, teachers, and parents packed into Mount Wachusett Community College, anxious to hear their school’s results.

In her opening remarks, TAMY Director Gail Steele said that the ceremony “recognizes the extraordinary amount of work, creativity, and devotion [by] faculty and students… we celebrate the entire art of musical theater—casts and crews, directors and designers.”

The ceremony featured actor Marcus Provost as its guest speaker. He encouraged students to be confident in themselves, not take opportunities for granted, be ready to listen, and try new things. Quoting David Bowie, he concluded, “go a little further into the water… and when you don’t feel that your feet are touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place.”

Finally, it was time for the presentation of awards. For each award, Steele briefly explained the criteria that were used to determine the winner. The full list of winners can be found here.

For Technical Excellence in Sound, did crews balance microphones well, effectively use sound effects, and maintain a good overall mix?
For Best Costumes, Hair, and Makeup, did cast members have appropriate looks for the show, considering its style, plot, and time period?
For Best House Experience, did the school have friendly ushers, interesting playbills, and creative lobby displays that enhanced the show?
For Not-Your-Average Chorus Member, who is a hard-working, dependable, and talented team player, out of the entire cast? Each school’s director chooses one person.

Several solo performances were interspersed into the award ceremony. BHS Senior Jacob Choi, who played Gomez Addams, sang an emotional performance of “Happy/Sad.”

Asked for her reaction, Theater Director Katrina Faulstich said that “the students and adults work hard each year, honing their crafts and striving to improve our program. The TAMY nominations and awards are a small part of proof that our hard work is paying off,” but she stressed that “we will always be proud of our shows and students, whether we win accolades or not.”

Next year’s shows in Bedford will be “The Play That Goes Wrong” and “Mean Girls.”