Elf: Sebastian Arcelus and Amy Spanger complete cast

The new Broadway musical Elf will star Sebastian Arcelus ('Jersey Boys', 'Wicked') as 'Buddy' the Elf and Amy Spanger ('Rock of Ages', 'Wedding Singer', 'Kiss Me Kate') as 'Jovie.'

Arcelus and Spanger will join the previously announced Tony Award-winner Beth Leavel (Emily), Tony Award-nominee Mark Jacoby (Walter), Matthew Gumley (Michael), Valerie Wright (Deb), Michael McCormick (Mr. Greenway), Michael Mandell (Store Manager) and six-time Emmy Award winner George Wendt (Santa).

The company will also include Timothy J. Alex, Callie Carter, Cara Cooper, Lisa Gadja, Asmeret Ghebremichael, Blake Hammond, Emily Hsu, Jenny Hill, Nancy Johnston, Marc Kessler, Matt Loehr, Lee Wilkins and Kirsten Wyatt.

The new family musical Elf, will arrive on Broadway for the winter holidays, will now open at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre on 14 Nov 2010, and not the 10 Nov as originally announced. The show will still begin previews from 2 Nov and end its limited engagement on 2 Jan 2011 as first scheduled.

Tickets for Elf go on sale to the general public on 25 Sep 2010.

Based on the 2003 New Line Cinema movie which starred Will Ferrell in the title role, Elf will feature music by Tony Award nominees Matthew Sklar ('Music') and Chad Beguelin ('The Wedding Singer'), with a book by Tony Award winners Thomas Meehan ('The Producers,' 'Hairspray') and Bob Martin ('The Drowsy Chaperone'). Elf will be directed and choreographed by Tony nominee Casey Nicholaw ('The Drowsy Chaperone,' 'Monty Python's Spamalot').

Elf tells the tale of 'Buddy,' a young orphan child who mistakenly crawls into Santa's bag of gifts and is transported back to the North Pole. Buddy is raised unaware that he is actually a human, until his 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 and discover his true identity.

Faced with the harsh reality that his father is on the naughty list and his step-brother doesn't even believe in Santa, Buddy is determined to win over his new family and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas. The musical is based on the 2003 New Line Cinema film 'Elf,' which starred Will Ferrell as 'Buddy.'

Both Beth Leavel and George Wendt will reprise the roles they played in a 'full production' reading of the musical in Dec 2009 that was also directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw.

Scenic design for Elf is by Tony-nominee David Rockwell (Hairspray, Legally Blonde), costume design is by Tony Award winner Gregg Barnes (The Drowsy Chaperone, Legally Blonde), lighting design is by two-time Tony Award-winner Natasha Katz (Aida, The Coast of Utopia) and sound design is by Tony nominee Peter Hylenski (Rock of Ages, Lend Me a Tenor). The show will feature orchestrations by three-time Tony Award-winner Doug Besterman (The Producers, Thoroughly Modern Millie).

The show is being produced on Broadway by Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures in association with Unique Features.

Bios:

Sebastian Arcelus (Buddy) is currently appearing as 'Bob Gaudio' in the Broadway Company of 'Jersey Boys.' He also recently starred in Lincoln Center Theater's Off-Broadway production of 'Happiness' under the direction of Susan Stroman. His other Broadway credits include 'Wicked' (Fiyero), 'Rent' (Roger) and 'Good Vibrations' (Jan).

Amy Spanger (Jovie): On Broadway, Spanger originated the roles of 'Sherrie' in 'Rock of Ages,' 'Holly' in 'The Wedding Singer, 'Bianca/Lois' in 'Kiss Me Kate' and appeared as 'Roxie Hart' in 'Chicago,' 'Hope Caldwell' in 'Urinetown' and 'Betty Schaeffer' in 'Sunset Boulevard.' Off Broadway, she originated the role of 'Susan 'in Jonathan Larson's 'tick, tick, BOOM!.' Most recently, she portrayed the role of 'Alana O'Dell' in the world premiere of 'Robin and the 7 Hoods,' directed by Casey Nicholaw at the Old Globe Theater. Her television credits include "Royal Pains," "Michael and Michael Have Issues," "Law & Order: SVU," "Six Feet Under," "Ed," "Becker" and "EGG, the arts show" on PBS. Her film credits include "Sally" in "Reefer Madness" (Showtime) and "Synecdoche, New York."