Review: ELF THE MUSICAL at The Pocket Community Theatre

The Pocket Community Theatre, 170 Ravine St, in Hot Springs, knows how to throw a party, and Broadway World had the best time celebrating with them. Not only did they have sold-out shows for ELF, but they also raised some well-needed funds with their season reveal party.  

Before I get into how great The Pocket did with ELF, I want to talk about their party they threw back in November. With the theme “Lives Impacting Lives,” they talked about the 30-year history of the theatrical group before and after they remodeled their current location in the Ramble Street Elementary School auditorium. Then, one of my favorite actors Steve Mitchell, President of the Board of Directors and is credited as the founder and director of the Pocket Readers Theatre and the Pocket Singers, addressed the crowd.  

“This is a dream we've had for a long time to bring you to a gathering where we can celebrate the Pocket Theater, because each and every one of us have a deep love for this theater. We give our time, our efforts and our talents to Wonderful Productions and wonderful operations of our theater, and I couldn't be happier to have found a home in the Pocket Theater when I moved up here back in 2015, so, I do want to thank a lot of people.” 

First, Mitchell thanked the Board of Directors.  

"This last year we have worked diligently in trying to make sure that we keep the lights on, and yet we keep improving what's going on at the theater for our patrons. So, I would like to introduce you to our Board Members. Our first one is my right hand man, and that is Kevin Day. Kevin Day serves as our president-elect. Kevin will be serving as the president going into next year. He's been working alongside of me this year to learn the ropes, so to speak. But he also, as many of us do, have to wear a lot of different hats when we're in the theater, right, Kevin? And so he's not only just on the board. Kevin is a fantastic actor. You've seen him just most recently in A Death Trap. You've seen him direct many of our plays. He's one of our greatest assets and we're so happy to have him with us. Thank you, Kevin.” 

“I also want to introduce Dan Breshears.... Dan serves as our Vice President. Dan is also responsible for the production committee of which handles setting up the shows that we offer every season. He has been working very hard as always to make sure that we are presenting the shows that will attract our patrons and get people to come to The Pocket to see the best shows. Like Kevin Day says, ‘if it's at the pocket, it's gonna be good.’ And we appreciate you, Dan, so much.” 

“Next, I'd like to introduce David Fleming. You know him in so many different roles, but on the board, he is our secretary. But, if you've been to The Pocket, you know he's more than just the secretary. He is our box office manager. He takes care of you when you call in to find out about your tickets and getting reservations messed up, but he's always got that smile on his face and telling you how he can help you, and we couldn’t have a better man to do that job for us. You saw him in The Music Man and you're going to see him in Elf coming up in December, and we just can't do without him. We love you, David. Thank you. 

“Next is the person I couldn't live without on the board, and that's Jodi Tooke, our treasurer. And, let me tell you folks, we are so fortunate to have someone as organized as Jodi is and as someone who knows how to get things done, and she participates in every aspect of the theater that she can. She's been on stage acting. She's in my readers theater. She is totally up there with us on everything we do, and we love you so much, Jody, and thank you for being there.”  

“This year, we added on a new position to the board, and that was our marketing. We decided that we needed someone who could take the programs and the shows that we're doing at the Pocket and promote them to the public to make sure that we're getting the word out that we have a theater up here that does fantastic work. So, we found the talents of Mr. Charlie Devine. We asked him to please come and be our marketing manager and he is doing an incredible job. The radio interviews you see, the marquees that are up with our shows showing what we're doing-- That's him. He does that for us. And also, if you need any candy, he's down at Rocket Fizz. We are so glad to have Charlie. He is filling a void that we have needed filled for a long time. Thank you so much. His talents keep our website up, and we can't it do without him.” 

Before giving up the mic, Mitchell went on to thank everyone else who have given their talents and time in helping keep the Pocket Theatre running. Then they went on to perform a few pieces from Forever Plaid and Elf before they went into the season reveal.  

To wrap up the party, they had speakers talk about how The Pocket impacted their lives, and then told about how fund are needed to continue with upgrading their theatre. After passing out envelopes, the party concluded, while new friendships were being made. I especially enjoyed meeting Karen Lauck, Kathy Farrar, and Jason Moore. They kept me laughing the whole night and made us feel like part of The Pocket family.  

So, after the party, we returned back to Hot Springs to catch a production of ELF, and boy was it good. Buddy (Levi Wilson) was a stow-away in Santa’s (Will Williams) bag and was raised by the elves. When he grew up, they broke the news to him and told him to go look for his father Walter (David Fleming), who runs a children’s book company in New York City. Buddy then tells Walter in his office that he is his son, and Walter throws him out. Buddy winds up at Macy’s and meets Jovie (Lilie Lim), who he asks out on a date. She accepts. The next morning a department store Santa arrives. Buddy accuses him of being a fake and they fight. The police are called and take Buddy to his father's apartment. At the apartment, Buddy bonds with his now stepmom Emily (Bonnie Maisen) and brother Michael (Eli Matthews). In ACT II, Santa gets stranded in New York because there isn’t enough magic. Does Buddy save the day? I guess you’ll have to watch the movie since the production at The Pocket has already concluded. 

With Music by Matthew Sklar, Lyrics by Chad Beguelin, Book by Bob Martin & Thomas Meehan, Directed by Tami Kendall, and based on the 2003 film of the same, this was a definite hit in the community and with Broadway World. It was so funny, and you couldn’t help but root for Buddy. Wilson was absolutely perfect as Buddy. He had the charm and giddy excitement that was infectious. His interaction with his castmates was precious, and he sang and danced with a twinkle in his steps. I loved it! Fleming was all business with Walter and commanded control with his scenes. I loved watching his transformation from serious business guy to loving family guy. Lim’s Jovie was brooding, yet hopeful, and Maisen’s Emily and Mathews’ Michael were a great mother/son duo. The whole cast brought the excitement of the movie to the stage, and we all adored it. 

Before the show, the theatre was selling raffles for a couple of free tickets to an upcoming show. Proceeds from that raffle went to the Jackson House toy drive. The Jackson House, 705 Malvern Avenue, in Hot Springs, is a community crises intervention service that gives food, clothing and other essentials to families in need.  

To find out more about what The Pocket Community Theatre is offering, visit their website at https://www.pockettheatre.com.  

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