“Elf – the Musical”

[rating=4] A funny thing happened on the way to the theater. Evidently, after almost a week of previews, the Drury Lane theatre changed  the direction and moved the understudy , Ben Dow into the lead role of Buddy in their new production of “Elf-the Musical”. I am unsure of the details, but must tell you it was a great move as he is marvelous, magnificent and any other descriptive word you might come across. This solid production directed and choreographed by Lynne Kurdzeil with a clever set designed by Kristen Martino sure beats the previous productions of this musical based on the film by David Berenbaum. The musical has a book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin with music by Matthew Sklar and lyrics by Chad Beguelin and for the most part follows the film version as close as one can.

The story is simple. Buddy was raised as an Elf at The North Pole by Santa and his elves. It is time for Santa (A.D. Weaver is right at home) to send Buddy ( an incredible performance by Ben Dow, who many of us have never seen before, but will look forward to from now on) back to New York to meet his father, Walter Hobbs ( the always reliable Sean Fortunato) and family. Can he fit in? Will he adjust to normal life? Will dad and family accept this unusual family member?

This is what the play is all about. Buddy finding himself, his love, his family and bringing this all together. Of course the story brings out the true meaning of Christmas as well and it does so with a vibrant cast of performers making it all come to life. The music led by Christopher Sargent is nothing special but vibrant and fitting to the story being told. Probably one of the highlights for me was in the second act “Nobody Cares About Santa” hit a spot with me as I have been playing Santa for over 50 years and this number with all the fake Santa’s truly says it all. Most of the songs are nothing special but the ensemble, filled with great voices, make them seem far better than they truly are and while you will not hum anything leaving the theater, you will have enjoyed the musical numbers “I Believe In You”, “Never Fall In Love” and “Happy All The Time”. The opening number with the elves is adorable and the dance routing in the special costumes is amazing. The tap dance number in the second act is pretty amazing as well.

I have always felt that a musical needs a strong ensemble to be memorable and this production is superior to previous productions in and around the area as well as the movie version on which  it is based . While Wil Farrel was wonderful, I believe that Dow is perfect. The ensemble that backs his story up truly makes this so-so play a magical production worthwhile to take the family to Oakbrook to see. In addition to Santa (Weaver) we have Juanita Anderson ( Mrs. Claus),Lorenzo Shawn Parnell, Shantel Cribbs, Gabriel Solis ( as 1/2 brother Michael/also played in some performances by Elliott Mayeda),Matthew Weidenberger, Collin Bradley, Garrett Shin, Melody A. Betts ( as Emily Hobbs),  Marya Gandy ( a stitch as Hobb’s secretary Deb), Collin Bradley, Meghan Hoyt, Jenny Couch,Lydia Burke,Brian M. Duncan, Ian Michael Pinski, Oz Shoshan, Karmann Bajuyo  Brian Selcok and Kelly Felthous. I think they are all listed- they made it all happen!

” Elf the Musical” will continue Thru – Jan 8, 2023