Elf Brings Christmas to the Dominion!

Review Questions by Sam (aged seven)

What show did you see and who did you see it with? I saw Elf the Musical with my Auntie Nicci.

What was your favorite part of the show? The Santas' wiggling their bottoms and singing "Nobody cares about Santa"! I also loved the snow!

What did you think of it - was it good, great, or horrible? It was really great and I laughed a lot. Elf was really fun all the time, like every five seconds, hmm maybe every minute!

If you were starring in the show, which character would you be? I would be the little boy in the show, I think it would be fun to have a brother like Elf. I'd like to have spaghetti and syrup with Elf for breakfast.

Would you want to see it again and, if so, who would you take this time? I'd like to see it again with Daddy; he'd really like the jokes. I don't think my little sisters would like it, they wouldn't understand all the jokes and there are a few rude words.

Reviewed by Nicola Harding, Saturday 24th October 2015

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas at the Dominion Theatre. Ushers whisper, "Are you excited?" into little ears in the enthusiastically decorated lobby of the Dominion Theatre. Excited we were!

The musical adaption of the much-loved film starring Will Ferrell opens on the 5th of November starring Ben Forster as Buddy, Kimberley Walsh as Jovie and Joe McGann as Walter Hobbs.

There were plenty of little and large elves in striped tights and pointy ears in the audience, suitably sugared up on sweet treats for this loud, very funny musical extravaganza. Director and choreographer Morgan Young has staged Elf with lots and lots of candy-coated energy that will leave children bouncing with delight.

Ben Forster is charming and loveable as Buddy and will leave you smiling from ear to ear and Kimberley Walsh's performance was top notch. At our show Ewan Rutherford played Michael, Buddy's step brother, his duets with his mum, Jessica Martin were impressive, their vocals are fantastic.

The music was catchy and upbeat and if you have a chance at intermission, it is worth giving your children a peek into the pit under the stage to see where the musicians and their instruments create the amazing sounds of the show.

Tim Goodchild's sets are big, bright, shiny and seasonal. They take you from the North Pole, up the Empire State Building, to Central Park, and the ice skating rink at Rockefeller Center. However, the musical tends to sway between delighting little ones, and humouring those on Santa's naughty list, and I felt some of the adult humour and innuendos could have been avoided entirely. As such, I wouldn't recommend Elf for children under six years old.

Whilst our tickets were not prime seats, we were in the left stalls in row L. Whilst fine for adults they did not offer good views of the stage for smaller theatregoers. What's more after at least 10 minutes in the booster cushion queue they had run out. My little companion spent most of the first half of the production straining his neck trying desperately to catch the action. I would recommend taking your own cushion if you are going to a matinee.

Sadly, there was a two-row strip of empty seats across the entire auditorium. At over 160 for a prime seat in rows J or K, not many families can afford to discover their inner elf! It's a big pity as Elf is real Christmas treat and is the perfect way for families with slightly older kids to get into the Sparklejollytwinklejingly Christmas spirit.

View our show pages for more information about Elf: The Musical, Dominion Theatre.