Ogunquit Playhouse Announces Cast And Creative Of ELF

The Music Hall and the Ogunquit Playhouse announce the cast and creative team of Elf The Musical, on stage November 28 - December 16 at The Music Hall in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Based on the beloved film, Elf The Musical 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 and raised as one of Santa's elves. Eventually Buddy's enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to embark 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.

For tickets visit http://www.themusichall.org or call The Music Hall Box Office 603-436-2400.

The Ogunquit Playhouse production is helmed by Broadway director/choreographer Connor Gallagher and features an all-new set designed exclusively for the Ogunquit production at The Music Hall by acclaimed scenic designer Jason Sherwood. Leading the professional cast are New York and Broadway veterans Steven Booth as Buddy the Elf, Diana Huey as Jovie, Jen Cody as Deb, Lothair Eaton as the Macy's Manager, Annie Edgerton as Emily Hobbs, Blake Hammond as Santa, Philip Paul Kelly as Mr. Greenway, and Christopher Russo as Walter Hobbs. The role of Michael will be played by Calvin Middleton.

The ensemble of Elf The Musical includes Zach Eisenberg, Dale Elston, Majorie Failoni, Jill Gittleman, Michael John Hughes, Sarah Kawalek, Emily Larger, Lily Lewis, Katie Lombardo, Eric Jon Mahlum, Frankie Paparone, and Justin White.

Completing the cast as Santa's troupe of Elves are Ana Adams, Delaney Baldwin, Vienna Cardinali, Riley Chase, Maddie Clark, Acadia Dugas, Ginger Friedman, Stella Hemsath, Rachel Hubacz, John Henry Lenzen, Paige Martino, Bexley Parkington, Mollie Pedersen, Delaney Roache, Cameron Stanton, Lexi Stockwell, and Ben Tedcastle.

Steven Booth stars as Buddy. Mr. Booth recently starred as Charlie in the first National Tour of Kinky Boots, and as Richie in the first National Tour of Happy Days. On Broadway he has performed in School of Rock, Glory Days, and Avenue Q, and for regional theatres has performed in the Signature Theatre's production of Glory Days, Avenue Q at the Wynn Las Vegas Theatre, Capitol Repertory's Edges, North Shore Music Theatre's Three Musketeers, and Coeur d'Alene Summer Theatre's Pippin.

Diana Huey co-stars as Jovie. Ms. Huey most recently starred in the first National Tour of The Little Mermaid as Ariel. She has performed in numerous New York and Regional productions including Girlstar, Jasper in Deadland, James and the Giant Peach, Spring Awakening, Avenue Q, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog, Rent, Mame, and Signature Theatre's Miss Saigon for which she won the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actress.

Portraying Deb is Jen Cody. Ms. Cody has starred in numerous Broadway productions including A Christmas Story, Shrek, Pajama Game, Taboo, Urinetown the Musical, Seussical the Musical, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Grease, and CATS. Off-Broadway her credits include Cleopatra, The Wild Party, Judith of Bethulia, and Henry and Mudge. In film her voice can be heard in many animated films, including her Annie Award-winning role as Charlotte La Bouff in Disney's The Princess and the Frog. On television she has performed in CBS's Instinct, Bull, Unforgettable, and Blue Bloods, and provided voiceover work for Shrek Live, American Dad, Phineas and Ferb, and Mickey and the Roadster Racers among many others. Ms. Cody was last seen on the Ogunquit Playhouse stage in 2012's Damn Yankees, 2009's All Shook Up, 2006's Cinderella, and was the Choreographer for the 2016 and 2015 smash-hit Million Dollar Quartet.

Lothair Eaton joins the cast as the Macy's Manager. Off-Broadway Mr. Eaton starred in the original company of Nunsense A-Men, and in the UK Tour of 5 Guys Named Moe. In Regional theatres he has starred in Trav'lin 1930's Harlem Musical, When Pigs Fly, Sunday In The Park With George, and Show Boat. Additionally, he starred as Papa the Old Steam Train in the Germany, Las Vegas, New Zealand and UK Tour of Starlight Express.

Portraying Emily Hobbs is Annie Edgerton. Ms. Edgerton has starred as Rosie in Mamma Mia! on Broadway as well as in the first two National Tours. She has also performed on Broadway in Kinky Boots, and in numerous Regional and Off-Broadway productions including Fly Me to the Moon, Comedy of Errors, King Lear, Les Miserables, Legally Blonde, Babes in Toyland, Showboat, and Betrayal, among others.

Blake Hammond joins the cast of Elf The Musical as Santa. On Broadway he has performed in numerous productions including Sister Act, Elf The Musical, Billy Elliot, Disney's The Lion King, Hairspray, The Music Man, Kiss Me Kate, and On the Town, and Off-Broadway in When Pigs Fly, Carnival, and Do Re Mi. Mr. Hammond has also starred in the National Tours of Something Rotten, Cinderella, The Addams Family, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Mr. Hammond was most recently seen on the Ogunquit Playhouse stage as Harry in 2018's Grumpy Old Men the Musical. Additionally he has performed at the Playhouse in 2015's Sister Act and 2009's Guys and Dolls.

Joining the cast as Mr. Greenway is Philip Paul Kelly. Mr. Kelly most recently appeared in Legacy The Musical, which was awarded 'Best of Fest: Reading' at NYMF, and the workshop and concert of Ragtime on Ellis Island, with Brian Stokes Mitchell. He has starred in the National Tours of Titanic and Camelot, and Off-Broadway in The Portrait of Dorian Gray. At regional theatres he has performed in numerous productions including 1776, A Christmas Carol, The Full Monty, Jekyll & Hyde, Peter Pan, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, La Cage Aux Folles, West Side Story, and The Mikado.

Christopher Russo joins the cast as Walter Hobbs. On Broadway he has performed in Grapes of Wrath and Meet Me in St. Louis, and Off-Broadway in Madison Square Garden's production of Elf The Musical. Mr. Russo starred in the first National Tour of Wicked, Miss Saigon, Singin' in the Rain, and The Who's Tommy, as well as the National Tour of Elf The Musical. He has starred on television in Succession, Blue Bloods, and Quantico among others, and in the films The Manchurian Candidate, Limbo, and Acceptables.

Making his professional debut as Michael is Calvin Middleton. His past theatre credits include the Junior Productions of The Diviners as Buddy, Les Miserables as Grantaire, and The Little Mermaid as Flounder. Understudy for Michael is Dylan Prime who has participated in numerous productions including A Christmas Carol at North Shore Music Theatre, Shrek Jr, Seussical Jr, and My Son Pinocchio Jr at TTS Players, and Into the Woods at Haverhill YTC.

Helming the production of Elf The Musical is Director/Choreographer Connor Gallagher who is currently choreographing the Broadway production of the new musical Beetlejuice. He has served as Choreographer on numerous Broadway productions including The Robber Bridegroom at Roundabout, and the National Tour of Elf The Musical. In 2016 Mr. Gallagher choreographed the Ogunquit Playhouse's award-winning production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Mr. Gallagher has choreographed The Twelve, Tangled, South Pacific, Camelot, and Falsettos, among many others for Regional theatres across the U.S. In addition he has served as Director/Choreographer for the National Tour of The Magic School Bus, Disney Live Entertainment's Beauty and the Beast, Northern Stage's Peter Pan, FringeNYC's Perez Hilton Saves the Universe, and as Co-Director/Choreographer for Chicago at Northern Stage.

Music Director for Elf The Musical is Andrew Bourgoin. Mr. Bourgoin has worked on the Broadway musical Aladdin, and provided Music Direction for the National Tours of Polkadots: The Cool Kids Musical and MadLibs Live!. He has also provided Music Direction at numerous Regional theatres including Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, Hennepin Theatre Trust, Theater Latté Da, and Argyle Theatre. Mr. Bourgoin has played keyboard on the tours of Sound of Music, Something Rotten!, Matilda, and The Little Mermaid.

Scenic Designer for Elf The Musical is Jason Sherwood. Mr. Sherwood is a 2017 Drama Desk Award and Lucille Lortel Award nominee for The View Upstairs. Recently his designs include an ongoing collaboration with Oscar and Grammy Award winner Sam Smith on TV appearances as well as Mr. Smith's upcoming world tour. His designs also include a stage adaptation of FROZEN for Disney, and many theatres including the Denver Center, Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Portland Center Stage, KC Rep, and Merrimack Rep, among others.

Joining the creative team of Elf The Musical is Projection Designer Jason Lee Courson. Mr. Courson has served as Scenic Designer Off-Broadway on The 47th St. Theater's production of NEWSical: We Distort You Decide and as Scenic and Projection Designer on The Kirk's NEWSical: Full Spin Ahead and at the Museum of Jewish Heritage's production of Amerike The Golden Land. At Regional theatres he was the Projection Designer for Gotta Dance at Broadway in Chicago, and Half Time at Paper Mill Playhouse. Mr. Courson was the Production Designer for the film Big Gay Musical.

Sound Designer for Elf The Musical is Kevin Heard, who designed the Ogunquit Playhouse productions of Oklahoma!, An American in Paris, Grumpy Old Men the Musical and Jersey Boys this season, and Mamma Mia! and Ragtime in 2017. Mr. Heard recently received an IRNE (Independent Reviewers of New England) Award for his Sound Design on Ragtime. On Broadway Mr. Heard has been Associate Sound Designer for All the Way, The Cherry Orchard, The Country House, and Sylvia, as well as for Fun Home, Kinky Boots, and Matilda, internationally. Lighting design for Elf The Musical is by Ogunquit Playhouse Resident Lighting Designer, Richard Latta. Mr. Latta has created the lighting design for dozens of Ogunquit productions, including most recently, Jersey Boys, Grumpy Old Men the Musical, An American in Paris, Oklahoma!, Mamma Mia!, Bullets Over Broadway, Ragtime, Heartbreak Hotel, From Here to Eternity, Anything Goes, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame for which he received an IRNE Award nomination for Best Lighting Design. Wig and Makeup design is by Roxanne De Luna and Costume Coordinator for the production is by Jill Tarr. Casting for Ogunquit Playhouse production of Elf The Musical is by Anthony C. Daniel.

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