Full Grown Boys

| 13 Aug 2014 | 08:00

    Child-men have invaded Broadway this season with productions of The Pee-wee Herman Show and Elf. Your enjoyment of both shows will depend heavily on one of two things: ’80s nostalgia and a deep love of holiday-themed entertainment.

    Which I watched The Pee-wee Herman Show when it originally aired in the late ’80s, I was apparently not as ardent a fan as the rest of the audience at the performance I attended. Paul Reubens’ character, with his high-water suit and helium voice, is treated with the raucous adoration of a rock star. Even the set, expanded from the television show, is greeted with a thunderous ovation when the curtain opens.

    Playing like a 90-minute special episode, the Broadway version is heavy on catering to those who fondly remember the original Saturday morning run. Beloved characters like Miss Yvonne (Lynne Marie Stewart), Cowboy Curtis (Phil LaMarr) and Jambi (John Paragon) are treated with the wild enthusiasm of long-lost relatives. Any serious Pee-wee fan will attend no matter what reviews might say; still, I must add my two-cents.

    Even at just an hour-and-a-half, this version feels padded. What little plot the script has is filler, with a resolution that can be seen from an hour away. However, Basil Twist’s puppets—including windowbox flowers, a flying Sham Wow and Chairy—are typically clever and well-executed. And Reubens appears shockingly little changed from the last 20 years. Still, unless you retain a fondness for the original show or want to introduce Pee-wee to a new generation, there’s little to recommend the antics to non-believers.

    Like being gay, Elf gets better. A shellacked, high-gloss musical version of the 2003 film, Elf is slick, focus-group-approved entertainment, and anyone wanting quirk or, god forbid, the zest of lemon should turn away. Shortly after the curtain rose, I turned to my companion and muttered, “I’m about to go into diabetic shock.” But while the exposition-heavy first act of Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin’s book leans heavily on Christmas joy and so-topical-they’re-instantly-dated jokes (Charlie Sheen gets the requisite mention), the second half is as brisk and invigorating as a snowy walk.

    Elf adapts (with splashy musical numbers) the story of Buddy the Elf, who discovers that he’s actually a human and leaves the North Pole to find his father in New York City. Surprise! His father is a Grinch-like publisher, who ignores his wife and son while trying to come up with a surefire, blockbuster holiday-themed children’s book. Can you guess how the show ends?

    With the exception of Broadway stalwart Amy Spanger and her Act Two solo “Never Fall in Love,” the score from Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin (who gave us The Wedding Singer) is entirely unmemorable. Beth Leavel, as Buddy’s stepmom, and Valerie Wright, as a secretary, contribute some fine comic performances, but Sebastian Arcelus, as Buddy, is disappointing. Stuck in a red wig that makes him look like one of Scarlett O’Hara’s Tarleton twins, Arcelus sweats his way through the role with a lack of finesse. Apart from the flat notes he’s fond of hitting, Arcelus is merely serviceable (though director-choreographer Casey Nicholaw lets him portray the most annoying aspects of a child), but the hard work he’s putting in is all too obvious. Then again, so are Nicholaw’s dances, which look like satire of Broadway musicals. And the plot points, all of which can be seen from as far away as Santa’s sleigh. If you must be jolly this holiday season at a theater, go with the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. At least that comes with history, not over-priced merchandise. However, if your heart is set on Elf, keep in mind these words from Spanger’s character: “Lower your expectations, so you don’t get disappointed.”

    [The Pee-wee Herman Show]

    Through Jan. 2, 2011, Stephen Sondheim Theatre, 124 W. 43rd St. (betw. 6th Ave. & B’way), 212-239-6200; $67–$122.

    Elf

    Through Jan. 2, 2011, Al Hirschfeld Theatre, 302 W. 45th St. (betw. 8th & 9th Aves.), 212-239-6200; $50–$152.