Elf The Musical

STOS theatre Co once again setting the bar very high after the most difficult of times with Elf ,a production full of colour ,movement, beautifully vibrant costumes, great singing and acting lifting the spirits of the excitable and full audience . Elf The Musical isn't for everyone but you can't help but love the simplicity of the story , the colour, the songs and the feel good factor it provides for all ages.. The company must be praised having rehearsed through some of the most difficult of circumstances but wisely doubling the iconic roles of Buddy and Jovie for in the event of any of these cast members being unable to perform would certainly have caused the production to close . We were privileged to see Damien Ross in the role of Buddy along with Ellie Hudson as Jovie along with Buddys newly found brother Michael Hobbs played by Bobby Miller ,but saddened of course to not see the other team of recently married couple Richard and Katie Grainger  playing Buddy and Jovie along with Buddy's brother played by Oliver Walker ,however I am convinced that the high quality of performance and my comments to follow would have applied equally to whichever team had been performing . 

The production team of Director Mark Harris , Assisted by Jill Beckett along with Choreographer Claire Harriott clearly excelled in the intricate and detailed shaping of the many large ensemble scenes maximising the whole stage whilst keeping everyone visible giving all cast members the opportunity to express their individuality .. 

Buddy ,Damien Ross , was performed to the highest standard , a role demanding an adult to not only be able to sing and talk but to perform with the many subtleties and facial expressions that being a living Elf requires ., All these qualities were in abundance ,powerful singing, excellent expressions and body language , I even felt I noticed some Norman Wisdom mannerisms during Act 2 ..Jovie played by Ellie Hudson was beautifully performed again showing her many emotions and at times despairing of Buddy and his silliness but finding and falling for his innocence and fun , along with really well performed songs in particular Never Fall in Love ,..

The production opened with the simplicity of storytelling , Santa Claus ,a book and an armchair ,utilising only a corner of the stage but giving the effect of requiring   nothing more . Steve Mather played his part to the full, reminding us all that Santa certainly does live on . In the words of many panto dames , if you are between the age of 1 and  90 you are still a child at heart .Buddy's long lost Dad played by Andrew Hibbert along with his stage wife Louise Walker and their son Michael  played by Bobby Millar all performed to a very high standard ,and so heartening to see the absolute professionalism shown to the youngsters from their stage parents . 

Throughout the musical other excellent cameo roles were performed , Deb played by Rosie Chopppin , Mrs Greenway by Carol Wibberley who made the audience sit up with her powerful and menacing performance leaving me pleased to not be one of her employees. .  ,Matthews by James Bell, Chadwick by Helen Kempton and manager played by Andrew Stansall , all displaying their many individual talents along with others not specifically mentioned but nonetheless important .

The ensemble were a joy to watch throughout , personally being a person suffering with painful knees the Elfs number performed entirely on their knees made me smile and grimace at the same time .Great fun well done . The whole production was full of memorable scenes , I particularly enjoyed the ones in Macy's Store .The colour and vibrance of the costumes must be complemented, lifting the spirits of the enthralled and involved audience .  

I thoroughly appreciated the slickness of scene changes , subtly and often covered by front of stage scenes adding to the continuity of the production to the extent that whilst engrossed with the highest order of performance the audience were simply transmitted to another place almost unnoticeably including the wonders of the flying Santa. My compliments to all those off stage ,being invaluable in achieving the highest quality of show and often not thanked enough, so every member should make sure to thank them after every performance  . The lighting was of the highest standard and compliments to TDLX , Tom Dyson and his team . Compliments must  also go to  Tom Owen, your Musical Director and his talented band . He had clearly worked very hard to bring the  best out of all the musical numbers performed to a very high standard by the strong ensemble . 

Your interpretation of Elf the musical was really well depicted and performed and as mentioned before my compliments must go to the vision and inventiveness of the whole  production team . 

How  wonderful to see so many talented youngsters and family members involved giving that ease of performance and natural feel to the musical . To call it Amateur is somewhat an understatement of the achievement of STOS .

Overall a wonderful evening , only occasionally did I struggle to hear some of the spoken or sung words over the orchestra, but totally understand how difficult it is to achieve perfection in every corner of the theatre . 

Thank you for your hospitality during the evening and wishing you all the very best for the rest of the run . If you can still purchase a ticket you won't be disappointed .

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.