Elf the Musical

Following on from their production of ‘Beautiful the Musical’ earlier this year, The Zodiac brought Christmas early with their production of ‘Elf the Musical’. Louise Steggals was back in the director’s chair for this production. The set was made up of a video wall that dominated the stage. Animations were used to set each scene, and they worked well. Other pieces of furniture were brought on to further help with the staging, such as Santa’s chair and the Macy’s toy shop. There were some lovely directorial moments throughout this production. Buddy going through the revolving door was cleverly staged, the change to decorated store during ‘Sparklejollytwinklejingley’ was imaginatively done, and the snow falling on the cast and the audience was magical. The costumes were very good, helping to establish characters. The elves costumes were great – nice and colourful, with capes long enough to hide the legs of the performers.

The musical director for ‘Elf the Musical’ was Craig Price. Craig led the band well throughout, being sympathetic to the performers. The songs were generally performed well by the cast.

Jessica Martin provided choreography for ‘Elf the Musical’. The choreography was good throughout, with a variety of styles. ‘Happy all the Time’ was choreographed and performed well, with the ensemble performing on their knees. The performers handled the roller skates well in ‘A Christmas Song’, simulating ice skating. It would have been nice to have some smoke during this scene to create the ice rink. The routine for ‘Nobody Cares about Santa’ was very fun to watch. The space hopper Santa sacks were a great idea, and incorporated into the choreography.

Technical elements were good throughout this production. The video wall allowed for quick scene changes and transitions. There was a slight mishap with the animations as Santa’s sleigh was cued at the wrong time during ‘There is a Santa Claus’. The sound balance between cast and band was good. There were some microphones that were turned on late.

Taking on the iconic role of Buddy the Elf was Tayler Spruce. Tayler was very animated in this role, constantly performing at one hundred percent. There were opportunities for quieter moments, which Tayler found in his scenes with Chloe as Jovie. Tayler’s vocals were generally good; however there were a few moments where you could hear the strain in his voice. Overall, it was a pleasing performance.

How exciting to get Santa to play himself! This was a strong supporting performance, as Santa handled his interactions with the audience very well. There was great comedy throughout, especially the physical comedy with the sleigh. The ad-libs and references to the local area were very funny. Thank you to Neil Silcock, Santa’s personal assistant, for getting Santa ready for the stage!

Ben Greenall played Walter Hobbs. Ben was able to get across Walter’s confusion and frustrations over Buddy. His character arc was good, as he finally got into the Christmas spirit. Ben’s vocals were pleasing, especially in ‘The Story of Buddy the Elf’.

Jovie was played by Chloe Pennington. Chloe was able to get across Jovie’s character well, giving the complete opposite to Buddy. She was able to show the softness to the character as her feelings towards Buddy grew.

Kat Jae provided great support as Emily Hobbs. Kat’s vocals were very strong, and she worked well with Ben and Reuben. She was able to portray her annoyance with Walter over him putting his work above family at Christmas.

Reuben Walker played Michael Hobbs. This was a confident performance from this young performer. Reuben created believable relationships with his on-stage family, especially with Tayler’s Buddy. Reuben’s vocal was good.

Stepping into the role at the last minute, Pete Brennan provided lots of humour as the Manager (as well as a funny cameo as the narwhal at the start of Buddy’s journey to New York). Pete’s vocals were very strong throughout, helping in the ensemble numbers.

Bev Ross was great in the cameo role of Deb. Bev gave some great comedy moments and delivered some great vocals. There was a good bond created with Buddy.

The ensemble played a number of parts throughout from Santa’s elves to Fake Santas, as well as many other cameo roles. They were all fully committed to whatever character they were playing, from the happy all the time elves to the down on their luck Fake Santas.

Overall, this was a good production. Visually appealing, some good characterisations, and some very good ensemble numbers. It really did get the audience into the Christmas spirit.

Thank you to The Zodiac for their kind invitation. All the best for your next production.

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