Elf the Musical – Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton

Book: Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin

Music: Matthew Sklar

Lyrics: Chad Beguelin

Director: Jon Conway

This year’s panto isn’t on for another couple of weeks, but you could be forgiven for thinking you’d stumbled into it early at Wolverhampton Grand. Before the show even starts, we find two cast members on stage getting the audience to join in a sing-along to see which side can sing the loudest. Not that many in the audience seem to be complaining – they’re well and truly up for it, and continue to participate enthusiastically through the whole show, as they’re encouraged to shout “ho ho ho” at Santa and engage in a snowball fight with the cast.

This is Elf the Musical. It’s based on the popular 2003 movie, though it’s worth noting that, as usual, it’s not the film and there have been a number of changes to create the stage production – not least the score. It’s the story of Buddy, the baby who, left in an orphanage, crawls into Santa’s sack one Christmas and is brought up at the North Pole by Santa and the Elves. When he realises he’s actually human, he wants to return to New York to meet his father, who’s on Santa’s naughty list because he’s lacking Christmas spirit. Can Buddy get back with his family, can he start a family of his own, and will there be enough Christmas spirit for Santa’s sleigh to fly? Will they all live happily ever after? With a show like this, you don’t need a crystal ball to work out the answers. It’s a plotline that’s thinner than tissue paper, but the young – and not so young – members of the audience love it.

Jordan Conway is superb as Buddy. He’s irrepressibly bouncy, exuberantly happy and skips everywhere with joyful abandon. He draws the eye wherever he appears, with a youthful innocence and optimism that refuses to crumble when it hits the harsh reality of life as an adult. Conway has played this role on a number of occasions, and no wonder – it seems to have been made for him. Constantly smiling (Santa likes it when they all smile), he sets the tone for the entire show. He’s in good voice too – a nice mix of joy and vulnerability, with a sense of hope in World’s Greatest Dad.

Kelly Banlaki is also in good form as Jovie, the quirky girl who everyone thinks is weird but who maybe just wants to be loved. Her date scenes with Conway’s Buddy come across nicely, her cynical world-weariness contrasting with his upbeat optimism and sweet innocence. Banlaki has a great voice too, though she feels rather underused in the production, and it would be nice to hear some more from her.

Barry Bloxham is a suitably grumpy Walter, obsessed with work (his daughter Michaela’s only wish for Christmas is to spend a day with her father) and unimpressed to find he has a full-grown son that he knew nothing about, and especially one like Buddy whose views are as far removed from Walter’s as it’s possible to get. Nikita Coulon (Emily) and Karis Lomax (Michaela) create a good pairing as Walter’s wife and daughter, and actually, though we don’t get to hear them much, have some of the best voices on the stage and sound beautiful together. Backing it all, we have an incredibly hard-working ensemble who fill in minor roles and give us some big song and dance routines.

It’s designed to be big and larger than life, with a constant backdrop of projections running throughout which are often appropriate but at times create a distraction from what’s happening in front, including some random elves and flying sleigh images that have nothing to do with the scene in progress but seem to be there because, well, it’s Christmas, it’s Elf so we’d better have some elves.

The show is written in the style of a Christmas musical, with some classic musical theatre moments in the score – big production numbers and ballads. But the way it’s been interpreted here, it’s like it’s a panto with audience interaction and no fourth wall. It’s a fine line to tread trying to balance between the two, and it largely gets away with it. This is the first performance of the tour, a fact we’re constantly reminded about as things don’t always go to plan on stage and Conway’s quick wit covers for most of them, making a joke out of the problem and moving on, in true panto-style.

A buoyant and larger-than-life production, full of heart and irrepressible fun, it’s sure to be a success, particularly as the tour gets closer to Christmas. If you like a panto-like experience, but fancy something a bit different this year, treat yours-Elf to a ticket.

Runs until 16 November 2025 and on tour