Jordan Gelber, Leslie Kritzer & Mitchell Sink to Star in ELF on Broadway! Full Cast Announced!

[Rob]

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

Click Here to Read Breaking News: Jordan Gelber, Leslie Kritzer & Mitchell Sink to Star in ELF on Broadway! Full Cast Announced!

[ljay889]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:14pm

Whoa, Gelber is quite a change from Sebastian Arcelus.




Updated On: 10/4/12 at 12:14 PM

[E.Davis]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:16pm

Very Very Very interesting and fun casting!

[KirbyCat]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:24pm

I'm actually surprisingly in love with this casting!

[MichaelDendy]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:25pm

I'm a bit worried about his casting (Gelber). He is not the typical buddy and a far cry from Sebastian Arcles. Buddy has a specific look and that is not it.

[darquegk]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:34pm

It's actually more of a callback to one of the film's biggest jokes, which Sebastian's casting kind of glossed over. Instead of an elfin, boyish fellow, we get instead a slightly older, more decidedly non-elfin MAN, who has an elfish, childlike demeanor despite his body not matching that at all.

It loses some of the "cuteness appeal," sure, but it creates a very different kind of character.

[E.Davis]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:35pm

Are you talking "Cute Appeal" or do you really mean "Sex Appeal".....

[darquegk]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:38pm

Both, to be honest. Sebastian was equal parts Twink and Keet. Clearly, the fact that he was "the hot guy" was somewhat played up. And yet, his Buddy just made you want to go "d'awwww" most of the time. What made Will Ferrell work was the juxtaposition of the cuteness of the Buddy character with the absolute strangeness of seeing the large, awkward man at the same time.

The effect is supposed to simulate what Buddy's father must feel- there's an endearing aspect, but it's rather in the Uncanny Valley. However, the more time you spend with Buddy, the better you come to like him, until by the end, he doesn't really seem strange at all.

[dreaming]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 12:43pm

I love Jordan Gelber. I think he'll be an interesting choice. And, his casting and Beth Leavel's return ensures I'll be there!!!

We need a little Christmas!!!! (Xmas Story + Elf!)

[Vespertine1228]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 1:36pm

Am I the only one who doesn't think this casting is surprising? I understand he's different from Sebastian, but he's very much in the Will Ferrell mold. Plus he has proven musical comedy chops.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 1:45pm

I must be out of the loop.

What;s a "keet"?

Updated On: 10/4/12 at 01:45 PM

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 3:17pm

I'm down with it. I think it's a great idea. I thought Sebastian was such a "safe" choice, and he didn't really wow me or anything. Maybe this time Gelber will actually make it a role that stands-out. And Kritzer has the right sort of deadpan to make the part work.

[newintown]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 3:22pm

I found Arcelus to be utterly unfunny in the role, giving a vulgar children's theatre performance. And his awful wig made him look 60. Not that I'd ever see this s second time, but someone who can do funny would be a good idea in the role.

[darquegk]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 3:36pm

A tweet- you mean twink and keet?

Twink is best described by Jack Doneghy as "[Television with] Individuals... naive, kinky, shaved."

Keet, on the other hand, is a less sexualized term for the trope of an energetic, perpetually childlike male. More than a man-child, the keet is a boyish manchild perpetually on the best day of his life. Depending on the keet in question, this can be endearing (think Buddy the Elf), eccentric (think Kenneth on 30 Rock), or unsettling (think Pee-Wee Herman)

[shrekster224]

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

They definitely seem to be taking the lead in a different direction, but who knows, maybe it'll be great! Saw Leslie Kritzer in First You Dream this summer and she was better that I expected, so I'm sure she'll be fine in this. If this is how they are picturing Buddy , though, is Josh Lamon is covering the role? Also good to see Jonathan Schwartz is back on Broadway after being cut from Spiderman....he was good in the Geek Chorus.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 4:56pm

Thanks darquegk, I knew about twinks, quite a bit.
but keet is new to me, though I know a few of those also.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 5:00pm

very happy for this cast. hopefully I'll get to see it this year.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 10/4/12 at 6:18pm

In addition to being closer to the Will Ferrell mold, casting Buddy with a bona fide character actor instead of a Sebastian Arcelus-esque leading man is also more in line with how the show was developed previously, considering the quirky Christian Borle, Christian Anderson, and Noah Weisberg all played the part in various readings and workshops.

I foresee Jordan Gelber being a very, very good fit for the material, and Leslie Kritzer is inspired casting as Jovie. Should be a fun time.