Greggory Moore, Curtain Call Columnist
You’re probably a Will Ferrell fan, so you’ve seen Elf, the story of Buddy the baby human who crawls his way into Santa’s sack one Christmas Eve and is raised at the North Pole as an elf, before finding out the truth at age 30 and leaving for the Big Apple to find the dad who never knew he existed.
Well, I’m not and I hadn’t, which means that when I say Elf: The Musical is a bit wanting in the plot department, I’m not comparing it to the film. By the same token, it’s not a predisposed affection for the film that leads me to say Elf is a charming tale whose failing will likely be fully forgiven by anyone who would buy a ticket in the first place.
The tone of Elf: The Musical is aptly set by its droll opening number, which establishes just how much Buddy (Matt Owen) loves life at the North Pole:
“Life is just so Christmas-y, it’s hard to grow up callous / Who could look at gingerbread and frown? / Because I love St. Nick and the aurora borealis [Love that rhyme!] / It’s clear that I belong in Christmastown.”
As he will do throughout the entire show, Owen imbues Buddy with the requisite enthusiasm and silliness; and the entire company creates an atmosphere that effectively launches us into the Elf universe.
That universe gets a bit barren when Buddy ventures south. Musical Theatre West relies on video projections ― fairly basic ones, at that ― for most of the show’s scenery, and occasionally this makes it hard to stay invested in the action or the performances, even during company dance numbers. More complex choreography might help, but as often as not what Peggy Hickey and Bill Burns have devised isn’t diverting enough to make us forget we’re looking at an otherwise empty stage.
A bigger shortcoming is the subplot concerning Buddy’s love interest, Jovie (Ashley Moniz). Both her character and their romance are underdeveloped ― even allowing for Elf’s lightweight nature ― leaving the feeling that one or two scenes were cut for length.
The entire cast is solid, although generally they don’t act or dance with the abandon that would really help the material take flight. The singing, though, is consistently on point. Moniz is a standout, plausibly reticent and faltering when required, then confident and full-voiced when the time comes. And Kim Huber and a very young Travis Burnett absolutely kill it with “I’ll Believe in You,” the affecting duet that has mother and son reclaiming their Christmas spirit as sing a letter to Santa. It’s the best song in Act One.
It’s the opening of Act Two, however, that takes Elf to a higher level. It’s Christmas Eve, and Buddy is in a Chinese restaurant with a group of self-pitying department-store Santas drowning their sorrows. The mise en scène alone is a treat, with gold elbowing its way into show’s red/green color scheme to great effect. Paul Black is responsible for scenic and lighting design, and he shines brightly here.
Then comes “Nobody Cares About Santa,” a song that jumps out of this show the way “Luck Be a Lady” jumps out of Guys and Dolls. If there’s a problem with the music in Elf, it’s too much similarity from song to song, but “Nobody Cares About Santa” is a definitive break, swaggering with tuneful craft that seems transported directly from musical theatre’s Golden Age.
Fittingly, this is the production’s finest sequence on all counts. Hickey and Burns have choreographed an elaborate arc for this number, moving their besotted Santas from sitting at their tables as they begin their lament that perhaps “old St. Nick’s gone out of style” to a cascade of leaps and spins as Buddy hears the hard truth. “What kind of world is this / Where nobody cares about weary, fed-up, ready-to-hang-the-sled-up Santa Claus?” It’s the best possible way to come out of intermission, and this scene alone is worth the price of admission.
Although Elf: The Musical is not all it could be, it is serviceable even in its weakest moments, and at its best it fully harnesses the potential magic of the artform.
Elf: The Musical at Musical Theatre West
Times: Wed and Fri 7 p.m., Thurs and Sat 2 p.m. + 7 p.m., Sun 1 p.m. + 6 p.m.
The show runs through Dec. 9
Cost: $20-$92
Details: (562) 856-1999 ext. 4, musical.org
Venue: Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts, 6200 E. Atherton St., Long Beach