Ben Forster to reprise lead role in
Elf: The Musical for its Christmas 2017 season
At The Lowry Fri 24 November 2017 – Sun 14 January 2018
Casting has been announced for the upcoming production of Elf: The Musical which will run for a strictly limited season this Christmas.
TV and West End ‘Superstar’ Ben Forster will reprise the key role of Buddy the Elf, a role which he originated in the UK première in 2014 in Plymouth and continued to perform throughout the record-breaking 2015 Christmas run in the West End.
The West Ends leading man is currently performing the prestigious role of the Phantom of the Opera in London’s West End.
Ben was the first actor to take on the role of Buddy the Elf outside of the USA. A role which he garnered considerable critical acclaim for his portrayal of, receiving a nomination for Best Actor in a Musical at the What’s on Stage Awards.
Ben Forster won the 2012 ITV1 show Superstar, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s TV talent search for the rock musical Jesus Christ Superstar, and went on to play the title role in the UK arena tour. Other recent theatre roles include starring as Brad Majors in the reinvented 40th anniversary production of Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show and Magaldi in Evita at the Dominion Theatre.
Other confirmed cast members include Joe McGann as Walter and Jessica Martin as Emily Hobbs, roles they both performed during the London run.
Elf: The Musical returns to Theatre Royal Plymouth for one week only, from Sat 11 – Sat 18 November before heading to The Lowry, Salford. The Salford venue will host the show’s first Christmas season outside of London from Fri 24 November 2017 until Sun 14 January 2018.
Based on the beloved 2003 New Line Cinema hit starring Will Ferrell, 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. Unaware that he is actually human, Buddy’s 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, discover his true identity, and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas.
Michael Rose in association with the Bord Gais Energy Theatre, Dublin present the Theatre Royal Plymouth production of Elf at The Lowry.
Elf: The Musical features a book by Tony Award winners Thomas Meehan(Annie, The Producers, Hairspray) and Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone), with songs by Tony Award nominees Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin (The Wedding Singer).
The production will feature direction and choreography by Morgan Young (Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), set design and costumes by Olivier Award winner Tim Goodchild, lighting design by Olivier Award winner Tim Lutkin, orchestrations by Doug Besterman, video design by Ian William Galloway and sound design by Avgoustos Psillas & Terry Jardine for Autograph. Musical supervision will be by Stuart Morley.