Don’t Be A Grinch, Get To Denver’s Buell Theatre!

Dear Miss Cindy Lou Who,

I would never believe you were just 8 years old! Who’d believe it? Two years away from being a decade old and already with so much on Denver’s Biggest Stage. What’s behind this sweet little treasure? Her name is Raleigh Shuch. She’ s a Kentucky girl and now lives in New York City as she starts what is sure to be an insanely bright acting career. She has also performed in other Broadway shows and was in an HBO pilot called The Money. It certainly takes one special girl to talk the big, bad, hairy Grinch into seeing the X-MAS Spirit and returning hundreds of stolen presents from Whoville.

She starts alongside several other awesome actors including Stefan Karl who plays the Grinch. He is an Icelandic actor and after my recent trip to this country, I felt a special connection. Karl has performed at both the National Theatre of Iceland and and the Reykjavik City Theatre in shows like Little Shop of Horrors, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Lazy Town, as well as several films. And then there’s David Thorton, who plays Grandpa. He can’t be more than 20 some years old so absolutely shocked the audience post show sans wrinkles and grays when he stayed stayed after the show to chat with audience members during a Q&A. He hails from Alabama and says his success is due to his mastery of 200 plus voices.

The show of course is perfect for the Christmas Season for all ages. What better way to see a destroyer of Christmas who crawls down chimneys and  barks at children evolve from no heart to a massive one? With that it’s no wonder the show has broke box office records for two consecutive years on Broadway and is 100 times better than the bedtime story. Especially with songs, “You’re A Mean One Mr. Grinch” and “Welcome Christmas” from the original animated series. Max the Dog narrates as the mean and scheming Grinch, whose heart is “two sizes too small,” decides to steal Christmas away from the Holiday loving Whos. Magnificent sets  and costumes inspired by Dr. Seuss’ original illustrations help transport audiences to the whimsical world of Whoville,