“Sparkle-jolly-twinkle-jingley”

Coming to the Clarke High School stage Friday, Nov. 14 and Saturday, Nov. 15, is a musical that has never before been performed by the Clarke Drama and Music departments - “Elf the Musical.”

“We thought it would be fun, not a lot [of schools] in the area have done it,” director and Clarke drama teacher Don May said of choosing a newer musical.

Based on the 2003 movie “Elf” that starred Will Ferrell in the lead role of Buddy the Elf, the musical book was adapted from the movie by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin. It opened on Broadway in November 2010, with original music by Matthew Sklar with lyrics by Chad Beguelin.

The musical loosely follows the movie that tells the story of Buddy, a human raised by elves at the North Pole. When Buddy learns he is actually human and not a giant elf, he travels to New York City to find his biological father. Both movie and musical follow along as Buddy learns to navigate the human world and help New York rediscover what Christmas is truly all about.

While the musical doesn’t feature all of the same scenes as the movie, May said there are some that movie watchers will recognize - such as encountering a Santa in a sweatsuit - with the added bonus of a lot more musical numbers.

A favorite scene for the cast to perform starts Act Two, with out-of-work Santas lamenting the lack of Christmas spirit and caring about Santa.

“It’s almost all guys on stage singing and dancing,” May said.

Next Friday’s performance begins at 7 p.m., and Saturday has 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. showings. Cost is $10 for reserved tickets, $7 general admission. Tickets are on sale now at the high school office and will be available at the door. Hugs & Kisses to support the cast, crew and pit members will be sold before and after the show as well as during intermission. Elf ears will be available for $5 with proceeds going to fund a toy drive.

Any audio or video recording of the performances is strictly prohibited.

Cast, band and crew

With 51 cast members, this fall’s musical features a slightly larger cast than in year’s past. The cast was announced in May and some practice began over the summer before going full-steam ahead the day after Labor Day in preparation for next weekend. Many of the cast take on multiple roles, with some of the lead roles played by different actors for the Saturday afternoon performance to allow underclassmen more experience.

The lead role of Buddy will be played by Easton Brokaw for the two evening performances and Blaze Schiltz for the Saturday afternoon performance. Cayden Anderson takes on Santa Claus for the evening performances while Zeke Lundquist handles the afternoon performance. Mrs. Claus will be played by Abbie Schlichte. Charlie, the head elf, is played by Cael Wisniewski and oversees the North Pole elves who are portrayed by Lee Russo, Karolin Solis, Nolan Shields, Collins Readout, Haydon Brokaw, Clare Hicks, Olivia Grismore, Jordan Murphy, Aubrey Nissen, Josie Turpin, Conner Wilkins, Citlali Torres and Ivee Lear.

Jonathan Galvez takes the role of Water Hobbs, Buddy’s biological father, in the evening and Joey Turpin in the afternoon; the two also split the role of Manager of Macy’s. Buddy’s stepmother, Emily Hobbs, is played in the evenings by Olivia Vargas and afternoon by Scarlett Schiltz while half-brother Michael Hobbs is played by Josie Turpin in the evenings and Collins Readout in the afternoon. Jovie, Buddy’s love interest, is played by Leah Flowers in the evenings and Sophia Ashley in the afternoon.

The people Buddy encounters on his trip from the North Pole to New York City and back are: Val Medina as Tiara and a Macy’s elf, Miranda Rosales Landeros as Narwhal, Keely McLain and Solis as Flyer People, Tommy Courtney as Taxi, Jim, Policeman Vinny and a fake Santa, Luke Pontier as Business Man, Customer #2 and a fake Santa, Carson Jones as Santa Jogger and a fake Santa, Lily Cook as Teenager, a Macy’s elf and a fake Santa, Klaire Blackford as Souvlaki Vendor, Maizy Irving as Salvation Army lady, Kailee Gorsline as Camera person, Aryanna Hewlett as Charlotte Dennon, Greenway employee and a Macy’s elf, Brokaw and Blaze as David Lambert, Miah Graves as Emma VanBrocklin and a Macy’s elf, Dean Collins as Sam, Policeman Doug and a fake Santa, Macayla Hicks as Deb and a fake Santa, Kaitlyn Glenn as a Greenway employee and Mother, Scarlett as a Greenway employee and a Macy’s elf, Danika McCloney as a Greenway employee and Macy’s Fake Santa, Vargas as Greenway employee and a Macy’s elf, Schlichte as Security Guard and a Macy’s elf, Jocelyn Carrera as a Security Guard #2, Wilkins as Boy, Joseph DeVore as Greenway and a fake Santa, Angela Zaragoza Rosales as Waitress and a Macy’s elf, Elian Mercado as Chadwick and a fake Santa, Sawyer Shields as Matthews and a fake Santa, Wisniewski as a fake Santa, Dylan Struble as a fake Santa, Ahnyka Hewlett as Saleswoman and a Macy’s elf, Liliana Landeros-Rosales as Customer #1, and Russo, Lundquist, Murphy and Anderson as Macy’s elves.

The musical pit is comprised of Emma Arnold on clarinet, Walt Anderson on trombone, Emily Glenn on trumpet, Jaycee Shannon on clarinet, Abbi Nash on percussion, Ivan Greif on percussion and Jordan Pohlmann on keyboard.

A majority of the cast also serve as crew members across lighting, costumes, sound, publicity, makeup, community engagement, stage, props and stage construction, some across multiple areas. They are: Josue Carrera*, Alexis McDole*, Courtney*, Schlichte*, Anderson*, Luke Wade*, Casey Wade*, Addison Franklin*, Aryanna*, Vargas*, Neo Mora, Natalie Patino, Russo, Medina, Scarlett, Irving, Jocelyn, Esther Enamorado Perdomo, Gorsline, Briana Garcia, Naomi Medrano, Ahnyka, McCloney, Macayla, Solis, Cook, Kadence Henry, Flowers, Blackford, Mercado, Murphy, Rosales Landeros, Daniella Landeros, Liam Caldwell, Kayden Hammack, Shealyn Jones, Masan Redman, Cesar Cisneros Ambriz and the 8th Hour stagecraft class. *denotes crew head

Assisting May with directorial duties is Liliana Contreras. High school music teacher Mary Pohlmann is the show’s vocal director and high school band director Karina Kelso leads the pit. Tori White is the musical’s choreographer with Anderson, Cook, Macayla, Wisniewski and Zaragosa Rosales as dance captains.