ELF Thoughts???- Page 2

[Marianne2]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 3:12pm

I'm really hoping to see this. And, didn't this play somewhere regionally last year? And that would be the reason there was interest in bringing it to Broadway, or did I make that up?

[RippedMan]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 7:12pm

It's opening cold.

And, Anakela, my bad, I didn't mean for it to come off that way. He's not an elf, he's just a human. But he lived with elves, is besties with Santa, etc. No one seems to sort of come to the realization like "oh, ****, all that stuff is real." Maybe I'm too big of a skeptic for that, ha. I don't know.

And Whizzer, no worries. If you enjoyed it, then good for you! I just thought it was boring. I think Buddy the Elf works for 90mins in a movie, but for 2+ hours in a musical, he gets annoying quickly!

Oh, I did like the costumes though! They sort of ripped-off Shrek for the elves, but it was funny.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 7:33pm

For those still interested in seeing it, just fyi...it's on TDF for Friday and Saturday night right now...

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 1:51am

If it helps, I was at the show tonight, which supposedly was shortened by about 15 minutes from yesterday. (I was sitting near most of the creative staff in the house.)

The show is full of good things, but a lot of it is just lost amidst a show that doesn't really feel like it knows what to be.

It is the second night of previews, so I'm hoping for a Christmas miracle by time most of you see the show.

Is it trying to be edgy? Is it supposed to be holiday pablum? Don't know if anyone could tell you. There' tremendous talent on stage, but stuck in some weird limbo of how to play their roles, long stretches of the show seem heavy and muddled, just praying to let loose.

I hate to say it, but Amy Spanger does not fare well at all in this show. I'm sure the fault is with her complete lack of character arc, a lack of chemistry with Sebastian, and a really screechy and unflattering act two ballad. Not until the very end do we ever really feel like she's having fun. We all know she is capable of more, but I don't know if they'll have the time to figure out what to do with that character.

Sebastian Arcelus fares somewhat better, even though most of his songs are just generic and boring. Is he Will Ferrell? I don't know, I can't remember the movie to compare. But in the book scenes, he really comes alive, even if the material fails him more often than not. You see the sweat, but when you catch brief glimpses of Sebastian truly engaged and playful with the part, you can't help but love Buddy. I'm more hopeful that he'll be great once the show is frozen.

Songs are pretty generic, none really stick out. But they were fun to listen to, I suppose. My problem is with the choreography: there was too much of it and not a lot of it was worth the effort to squeeze into the show.

There's potential there, but will the deficits be fixed by opening night? It's hard to say. But I say walk, do not run, to this show. Perhaps by the time you get there, you'll see a show that is really worth your time and money.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 10:18am

Sounds like Elf is the new Shrek.

[notabb]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 12:19pm

Sebastian Arcelus was the best thing in the show for me. Even with a discount and good 4th row center orch seats it really wasn't worth the money.Tacky sets,lame book except when it's taken from the movie,horrible dances but a decent score,Not great but decent some pretty good numbers a long the way.If you do go ,sit farther back than row D.Both parents and kids around me were complaining at intermission they couldn't see the skating rink. Act 2 opener with the Santas was fun and one of the better dances.P.S. a lot of product placement too.

[Eris0303]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 12:44pm

I hadn't seen the movie (not a big Will Ferrell fan), and was apprehensive going into the theater, but couldn't have walked out with a bigger smile on my face.

I avoided the movie for a long time for the same reason. But I finally buckled down to watch it and loved it.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 2:13pm

I tend to either love or hate Will Ferrell's work. I loved him on SNL, but hated his movie work, aside from Elf.

He was truly magnificent in the Elf film- an iconic performance in one of my favorite Christmas movies.

[Josh Freilich]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 2:56pm

Do you happen to have the orchestra members?

Posted: 11/4/10 at 3:32pm

WHO CARES ABOUT ANY OF THAT! WHAT DOES THE CURTAIN LOOK LIKE!!!!!!!

[KirbyCat]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 3:55pm

Seeing the show on Saturday night via TDF!
Can't wait!!

And yeah, from what I've heard, the curtain just a scrim with the logo and snowy projections on it.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 7:01pm

The curtain sums up the show. It's tacky and uninspired. Just the ELF logo with some weird snowflake projections. Boring.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 7:07pm

Any gunshots or nudity??????

Updated On: 11/4/10 at 07:07 PM

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 7:08pm

Just ordered my TDF tickets for tomorrow night, really excited!

[WestwardHoHo]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 7:37pm

What about black folk?

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 9:26pm

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 9:45pm

Is that snow flake Christmas tre arch thing part of the proscenium or does it go up with the curtain?

[RippedMan]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 11:11pm

It is just a projection. It leaves with the curtain. But when they're in the North Pole there is a similar design.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 12:06am

I must admit... that is one ugly curtain.

[Luv2goToShows]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 9:27am

Anyone go to this in the past couple of days, is the run time still about 2 hours and 10 minutes? Thanks (going tomorrow and need to figure out transport home, bus or train)

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 9:47am

Last night is was 2 hours and 25 minutes. It was not a very good production. I think it could have been much stronger if it were an open run. The sets were dreadful in every which way. The projections were ugly. And it was just a soppy show in general.

[notabb]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 1:51pm

Does Santa still have the huge bag of Dorritos next to him during his storytelling scenes? I can't remember the last time I was so aware of product placement in a show

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 2:54pm

What exactly are the sets like? Are the pieces tracked on? Usually David Rockwell does a great job.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 5:57pm

They seemed like left-over forced prospective from Legally Blonde and Hairspray. There are a few tracked pieces (Sofa, tables, etc), and a lot of stuff flown in. And the office desks are on rollers and just awful set pieces. The whole design is just rather uninspired. It seems like he let his intern design this one.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 11:44pm

Just got back from tonight's performance. I saw in the back of the Mezz and it was a terrific seat, but of course it would have been nicer to sit closer.

I loved it.

And I hated it.

How is that for bi-polar? (HAH! Get it?)

(OK, it should probably be stated up front that I had a few glasses of wine before seeing the show. Hence the horrible bi-polar joke.)

ANYWAY -- Act I was MUCH stronger than Act II. The score is fun but is not utilized to the show's advantage.

The set worked wonderfully. Lots of hard edges, as if it were a pop-up book (as in the book that Santa is reading to you. a la the movie.). I understand the "skimpy" remarks others have made, but everything you needed was there so anything additional would not have been necessary.

The structure of the story was HIDEOUS. (***Spoilers*** from this point on...). They set it up great with Santa introducing the story. It was fun and cute. Introducing Buddy to us worked. So did throwing him into New York. So did introducing his dad. So did throwing him in Macys. Where it began to go wrong was the family. They were already "used" to the father being away, so the characters' disappointment that the father works so much and is never home to spend time with them doesn't hit home with the audience like it should. The stakes should have been raised. There should have been a moment where we see the boy get real upset, and the mother trying to comfort him. Later in Act II the father supposedly learns that family is more important than his job. But WHERE did that come from? That was a very weak part of the script. It came across as the father simply changing his mind, rather that becoming a changed man.

And this is where the show misses the mark. There is no lesson learned, as there is with so many Christmas tales.

Buddy should have inspired the family. Inspired the office. Inspired the Macys department. Inspired the city. Instead, he just looks like a lunatic on the News and rambles on.

ELF has a lot of holiday fun but it lacks Christmas spirit -- the very point of the show!! Most of it is charming, but ultimately it is an opportunity missed. I really hope they fix it because it has SO much potential to be one of the most exciting new pieces of musical theatre we have seen in a while.

If they're not going to get the Christmas spirit added into it, then the LEAST they could do is rewrite the ending. YUCK! It still has a bad taste in my mouth. Santa is just suddenly lifted into the air? And Buddy is suddenly a father? And suddenly the entire cast is an elf and everybody does the same Casey Nicholaw tap dance that they did with the license plates in CRY-BABY?

They can also cut the Act II opening number. Very fun, but it's a new setting and a new character that can easily be removed from the story and there is no damage. It just makes the evening longer.

A lot of the show is fun but it all becomes pointless because Act II doesn't amount to anything.

Lastly, Sebastian Arcelus is GREAT! A real stand-out performance. He's hilarious! He definitely carries this show BIG time.