Theater Review: ‘Elf-the Musical’

Theater Review: ‘Elf-the Musical’
Ben Dow (Buddy) and the cast of “Elf-the Musical.” Brett Beiner
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Transforming movies onto the stage seems like a sure-fire way of guaranteeing the success of a theatrical production. That’s why it seemed the most natural thing to adapt the 2003 film comedy “Elf,” starring Will Ferrell, into a Broadway show in 2010.

The plot of the feel-good film about Buddy, a human who has been raised by elves and goes on a journey to find his original parents, is reprised in the musical. Buddy still notices that he’s taller than the other elves and discovers that he was accidentally picked up as a baby from an orphanage and taken to the North Pole. When he finds out that he’s really a human, he travels to New York City to find his birth father. Of course, searching for home, family, and the spirit of Christmas is a perfect show for the holiday season, which is why “Elf-the Musical” is now being revived at the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace.

Betty Mohr
Betty Mohr
Author
As an arts writer and movie/theater/opera critic, Betty Mohr has been published in the Chicago Sun-Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Australian, The Dramatist, the SouthtownStar, the Post Tribune, The Herald News, The Globe and Mail in Toronto, and other publications.
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