Elf: The Musical

If you’re looking to beat the ba humbug blues, a trip to Elf: The Musical is just the ticket. Any movie-to-stage transition can be tricky, but this show manages to keep all the fun and magic of the popular Will Ferrell film. Some of this success is due to clever writing, but even more is due to the fantastic performance by Mark Uhre as Buddy, the human who’s been raised as an elf. Uhre captures Buddy’s child-like innocence and manic energy perfectly, and he has a fantastic singing voice to boot. Blair Irwin is terrific as Buddy’s prickly love interest Jovi, as is Marty Burt as the over-worked, distant dad. The musical numbers are big, bold and jazzy, the costumes delight with Christmas glitz and the sets have a charming storybook quality. In the holiday show ratings system, Elf rates one million gumdrops. —Kate Watson