“Elf the Musical, Jr.” brings holiday spirit to Scottsdale

Elf the Musical Jr, Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre, holiday events, Arizona
“Elf the Musical, Jr.” runs weekends Nov. 11–Dec. 18 at Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre. Photo courtesy of Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre.

If you love the 2003 film it’s based on, seeing “Elf the Musical, Jr.” at Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre is a must-do this holiday season.

The show runs weekends starting Friday, Nov. 11 through Sunday, Dec. 18. Based on the film starring Will Ferrell and written by David Berenbaum, “Elf the Musical, Jr.” has music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin and book by Tony Award winners Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin.

Rather than having an adult choreograph the show, director Lisa Barton Figueroa recruited two talented teenagers: Peyton Woolf and Kendra Richards. Peyton is a 16-year-old junior at North Phoenix Preparatory Academy who has acted in nine Desert Stages productions. Kendra is 15 and in the ninth grade at Horizon High School in Scottsdale. She has acted in six shows at Desert Stages and also plays the role of Jovie (late cast) in “Elf.” This is Peyton’s second time choreographing and Kendra’s first.

The story follows a young orphan named Buddy, who mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts and finds himself at the North Pole being raised as an elf.

Eventually realizing he isn’t an elf after all, and wanting to discover his true identity, he gets Santa’s permission to go to New York City in search of his birth father. There, Buddy is determined to win over his father and newfound family and help New York enter into the Christmas spirit.

As in past productions at Desert Stages, the show uses an “early” cast and a “late” cast. In this case, the early cast performs at Friday and Saturday matinees, and the late cast performs on Saturday evenings and at Sunday matinees.

Cast members often have two or more parts, including leads, where they will play one character “opening” and one character “closing.”

“This not only gives actors more opportunity to play different parts but also allows stronger, larger roles to be played by different actors,” according to Virginia Olivieri, promotions coordinator. “We want to give everyone … a chance to shine in the spotlight and hone their skills,” she adds.

Scottsdale Desert Stages – Elf - image1
Based on the film starring Will Ferrell, “Elf the Musical, Jr.” runs weekends Nov. 11-Dec. 18 at Scottsdale Desert States Theatre.

The part of Buddy is played by several talented young performers. In the early cast are Raymond Cusick and Bennett Curran. Raymond is a 13-year-old who currently attends the Arizona School for the Arts in Phoenix. Bennett, also 13, is an eighth-grader at Copper Ridge Middle School in Scottsdale. Both are first-timers at Desert Stages.

In the late cast, a couple of Desert Stages veterans take the role. Jack Yampolsky, a 12-year- old seventh-grader at Cheyenne Traditional School in Scottsdale, has been in 19 Desert Stages shows, counting “Elf.” And 16-year- old Austin Butler, a junior at McClintock High School in Tempe, has literally grown up performing at Desert Stages, taking such roles during the past 10 years as Lord Farquaad in “Shrek Jr.” and Genie in “Aladdin Jr.”

Barton Figueroa admits to being inspired by the film behind the musical.

“‘Elf’ is one of my favorite movies,” she says, “and I laugh out loud every time I watch it. It has been so fun to work with these boys in creating a character for such an iconic role. Everyone knows who Buddy the elf is, and we have had a great time bringing him to life on stage.”

Bring the whole family to this modern-day classic. Come ready to embrace your inner elf and join in the Christmas spirit.

If you go: Nov. 11-Dec. 18; 7:30 p.m. Fridays; 1, 3 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays; 1 and 3 p.m. Sundays. Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre, 4720 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. $15. 480-483- 1664 or desertstages.org.