ELF Begins Performances at Broadway's Al Hirschfeld Theater Today, November 9

By: Nov. 09, 2012
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Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures in association with Unique Features and Jujamcyn Theaters present Jordan Gelber (Avenue Q, All My Sons) as Broadway's favorite elf, 'Buddy' in the hit holiday musical ELF. He will be joined by Leslie Kritzer (Sondheim on Sondheim, A Catered Affair) as 'Jovie' and Mitchell Sink as 'Michael' in his Broadway debut.

ELF also features "Seinfeld" star Wayne Knight (Santa), Tony Award winner Beth Leavel (Emily), Tony Award nominee Mark Jacoby (Walter), Valerie Wright (Deb), Adam Heller (Mr. Greenway) and Michael Mandell (Store Manager). Leavel, Jacoby, Wright and Mandell are reprising the roles they originated in the 2010 production of ELF.

The company also includes Rory Donovan, Jason Eric Testa, Timothy J. Alex, Catherine Brunell, Callie Carter, Andrea Chamberlain, Jay Douglas, David Hibbard, Jenny Hill, Stacey Todd Holt, Emily Hsu, Nancy Johnston, Josh Lamon, Ariel Reid, Jonathan Schwartz, Eric Lajuan Summers, Jen Taylor and Lee Wilkins.

ELF returns to Broadway this holiday season at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street). Performances will begin tonight, Friday, November 9, 2012. The production will play a limited engagement of 9 weeks for the holiday season through Sunday, January 6, 2013.

Ticket prices for ELF range from $49 to $160 (including a $2 facility fee) and are available online at www.Telecharge.com, by phone at 212-239-6200, and in person at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre Box Office (302 West 45th Street). For more information and performance schedule, visit www.ElfMusical.com.

Based on the beloved 2003 New Line Cinema hit which starred Will Ferrell in the title role, ELF features a score by Tony Award nominees Matthew Sklar (Music) and Chad Beguelin (Lyrics)with a book by Tony Award winners Thomas Meehan (The Producers, Hairspray) and Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone). ELF is directed and choreographed by Tony Award winnerCasey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon, Monty Python's Spamalot).

Scenic design for ELF is by Tony nominee David Rockwell (Hairspray, Catch Me if You Can), Costume Design is by Tony Award winner Gregg Barnes (Follies, The Drowsy Chaperone), lighting design is by three-time Tony Award-winner Natasha Katz (Once, The Coast of Utopia) and sound design is by Tony nominee Peter Hylenski (Rock of Ages, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever). ELF features orchestrations by three-time Tony Award-winner Doug Besterman (The Producers, Thoroughly Modern Millie). Hair and wig design is by Josh Marquette (The Book of Mormon, Gore Vidal's The Best Man) and projection design is by Zachary Borovay (Evita, Rock of Ages).

ELF played a successful holiday engagement in 2010, breaking the Al Hirschfeld Theatre's box office record three times during its run. ELF is the hilarious tale of Buddy, a young orphan child who mistakenly crawls into Santa's bag of gifts and is transported back to the North Pole. Buddy is raised unaware that he is actually a human, until his enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to face the truth. With Santa's permission, Buddy embarks on a journey to New York City to find his birth father and discover his true identity. Faced with the harsh reality that his father is on the naughty list and his step-brother doesn't even believe in Santa, Buddy is determined to win over his new family and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas. This modern day Christmas classic is sure to make everyone embrace their inner ELF.

Jordan Gelber (Buddy) makes his return to Broadway after last appearing alongside John Lithgow and Diane Wiest in Simon McBurney's revival of All My Sons. Jordan is perhaps best known as originating the role of Brian in the Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q, for which he received a special Outer Critics Circle Award. He is also no stranger to the Off-Broadway stage, having performed with The New Group in the U.S. premiere of Mike Leigh's 2,000 Years, at the Atlantic Theater in Tina Howe's Birth and After Birth, at the Vineyard (Avenue Q), and in the EST Marathon, to name a few. Regionally, he has also worked at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Institute, The Sundance Theater Institute, The Berkshire Theater Festival, and Yale Rep. A graduate of Stanford University and New York University's graduate program for acting, Jordan has also worked extensively in television and film. He recently starred as the title character in Todd Solondz's Dark Horse opposite Christopher Walken, Mia Farrow, Selma Blair, Justin Bartha, and Donna Murphy. Dark Horsereceived international acclaim, as did Jordan, and was part of numerous prestigious film festivals, including the Venice International Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival. Other film credits include Before The Devil Knows You're Dead, The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3, Changing Lanes, Riding In Cars With Boys, and the HBO film Everyday People, a 2004 Sundance entry for which Jordan was nominated for an IFP/Gotham Award for Breakthrough Acting. Notable television credits include guest appearances on the first season of HBO's award-winning series "Boardwalk Empire," under the direction of Martin Scorsese and Tim Van Patten, "The Sopranos," "Nurse Jackie," "Rescue Me," "Ugly Betty," "Damages," "The Good Wife," "Law & Order," "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," "Royal Pains," "100 Centre Street," and a recurring role on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit."

Leslie Kritzer (Jovie) most recently has been starring off-Broadway in Rick Crom's NEWSical opposite Perez Hilton. Broadway credits include Sondheim on Sondheim, A Catered Affair (Drama Desk Nomination), Legally Blonde (Clerence Derwent Award for Most Promising Performer) andHairspray. She received critical acclaim and a Time Out New York award for her sold-out Joe's Pub run of Leslie Kritzer Is Patti LuPone at Les Mouches (a performance she repeated at The Plush Room in San Francisco). Off-Broadway and regional credits include Every Tongue Confess (Arena Stage),Rooms, On The Town (Encores!), The Great American Trailer Park Musical (Drama Desk Nomination), Bat Boy, Godspell, Pop!, Broadway: Three Generations (Kennedy Center), Cabaret, Born Yesterday, the world premiere of Vanities, Urinetown (National Tour), Evita and an acclaimed "Fanny Brice" in Funny Girl. She has performed at London's Royal Albert Hall as a guest soloist honoring Tim Rice and Alan Menken and can be heard on several cast recordings.

Mitchell Sink (Michael) is thrilled to be making his Broadway debut in Elf The Musical. He is from Brenham, Texas. His theatre credits include Seussical (JoJo), The Miracle Worker (Jimmie),The Secret Garden (Colin Craven), Parenthesis (Timothy), and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever(Charlie Bradley).



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