LondonMusicalReview

Elf the Musical – Dominion Theatre, London

Reviewer: Scott Matthewman

Book: Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin, based upon the film by David Berenbaum

Music: Matthew Sklar

Lyrics: Chad Beguelin

Director: Philip William McKinley

For good reason, the 2003 film Elf has come to be regarded as a Christmas classic. The story of Will Ferrell’s childlike Buddy, a human who grew up at the North Pole in a community of elves and who returns to New York in search of his human family, celebrates the magic of the season and asks us why so many adults turn away from such things in later life.

One of the reasons we do so is that as we grow up; we come to see the corporatist trappings behind the magic. Like the movie that it is based upon, Elf the Musical pushes back against commercial exploitation of the season – but it is harder to accept that message from a vehicle that is so much a part of the commercial world it is attempting to satirise.

Still, this revival has a tremendous amount of good spirit helped especially by Simon Lipkin’s performance as Buddy. Like Ferrell, Lipkin possesses a simultaneous air of childlike glee and a wicked glint in his eye, as if he could go off script at any moment. He won’t, of course – this is a production which runs with, if not quite polish, a well-timed slickness. But that sense of being on the cusp of something dangerous brings Buddy and, as a result, the whole show, to life in a way that few other actors in the role could manage.

The musical itself harks back to an older age of large ensemble productions. Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin’s songs are slick and catchy, complemented by some zippy, well-executed choreography by Liam Steel. Modernity catches up with the production with an over-reliance on an animated video backdrop. While this is complemented by elements of physical set, the effect is to make the whole piece seem a little cheaper, a little less magical than it should be.

So instead, the magic must come from the performers. And beside Lipkin, both Kim Ismay and Rebecca Lock excel in roles that rarely tap the potential both women can give. Tom Chambers has a harder job as the cold-hearted father Buddy has come to New York to find, and who must undergo a Scrooge-like rehabilitation before the closing number.

What holds Chambers back is in his casting: in a stage production which relies more than most on our suspension of disbelief, Chambers is simply too young to believably be Lipkin’s biological parent. But he is effervescent anyway, and the family dynamic between him, Lock and Buddy’s half-brother Michael (a superb Logan Clark, who shares the role with three other young actors) creates a believable heart at the core of this modern fairytale.

Throughout the musical, several characters start out as cynics of the season, who end up warmed by Buddy’s relentless love and hugs. That’s a pretty good metaphor for the musical as a whole – Lipkin’s performance surrounds you in a warm embrace, ensuring that even this most corporate of Yuletide entertainments can revive the Christmas spirit in the most humbug-filled heart.

Continues until 7 January 2023

The Reviews Hub Score

Full of Christmas spirit

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The Reviews Hub London is under the acting editorship of Richard Maguire. The Reviews Hub was set up in 2007. Our mission is to provide the most in-depth, nationwide arts coverage online.

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