Super-sized ‘Rudolph’ sticks to the script

At the Denver Center, the Christmas classic blasts through town

There’s only three more performances to catch this one, but for those with any nostalgia for the 1964 NBC stop-motion classic, it’s almost a must-see. This touring production of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer deviates not a whit from the original script, so it will likely appeal to Rudolph purists (if there is such a thing) not fazed by the somewhat unpleasant social interactions the little reindeer confronts.

The original score by Johnny Marks is pretty great, with the title song joined by Holly Jolly Christmas, Silver and Gold, There’s Always Tomorrow and more. There are just a couple of additions to the script and the music, but otherwise it’s faithful to the original.

The production benefits from the fact that the original had super-simple backgrounds and characters, making the live version look pretty much identical to the TV special. The most complex character is the snow monster Bumble, who’s handled as a gigantic puppet.

Talia Gloster is adorable as Rudolf, playing the “non-conformist” ungulate with peppy perseverance even in the face of having almost his entire community shun him for having a red nose. His lady deerfriend Clarice is also nicely played by Monica Danae Ricketts, who hits every note of the sweet “There’s Always Tomorrow” song where she tries to cheer up Rudolph.

Rudolph (Talia Gloster) and Clarice (Monica Danae Ricketts) in ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ now playing at the Denver Center.

My favorite character, Yukon Cornelius, is brought to life by Ceron Jones, who also plays the jerk reindeer coach Comet. Yukon today might be the kind of freethinking libertarian active on the darker side of social media, but in Rudolph’s time, he’s a free-wheeling miner with a taste for silver and gold who’s not afraid to confront the monster.

My two granddaughters (8 and 10) loved the show, and it was well received by the opening night crowd of kids, parent and grandparents. While I was hoping the script had been tweaked a bit to be more in keeping with how we’d like to think we’d treat those different from us today, the story itself still holds up despite that aspect. In truth, the world is full of stories where the outsider is mistreated until they can prove themselves useful in some way, and Rudolph may just be one of the more well-known examples.

All that likely flies over the kids’ heads as they enjoyed the fun and recognizable songs writ large on the big stage with nicely choreographed dance numbers and larger-than-life characters.