Now that it's been a year and a day since good old Senior Follies, I thought that it would be fun to revisit the parody song I wrote for the show "When You're a SLUH Boy." Ever since I saw The Addams Family at The Muny in the summer of 2014, the idea of incorporating one of its songs in Follies was always in the back of my mind. It wasn't until seeing the show again in the spring at Notre Dame High School did I finally commit to it. "When You're an Addams" was my default pick to adapt as it was my favorite song from the show. (If I had to pick a second, it would be "Full Disclosure".)
When writing, my key focus was always the key line "When You're an Addams." I knew that if I could find a suitable SLUH replacement, I could write the rest easily. My early attempts focused around the English department. The story would be that a new teacher was joining the department and everyone was explaining what it meant to be a SLUH English teacher. Ultimately I could never find a satisfying hook. I did most of this brainstorming while bringing in carts at Dierbergs, typically at night when the lot was empty and I didn't have to focus on cars driving around as much.
Only after settling on "When You're a SLUH Boy" did I sit down and actually start writing. Most of the lyrics were cranked out in one afternoon. I submitted the song on the last possible day and found out that it was in the show for sure the next day.
Seeing the whole thing come together was an absolute blast. Choral and dance practices were a joy. I was especially happy that I was able to perform in the number myself. It was a thrill from beginning to end and I'm so thankful for everyone who helped bring it together!
Below is the extended version of the lyrics which features an additional section that was cut from the show due to time. I hope you enjoy!
