In the tradition of many holiday classics, “Elf the Musical Jr.,” is mainly about keeping the spirit of childhood alive and renewing family connections.

The play aptly premiers the first three days of December at Northwestern Lehigh High School.

Adam Lebrecht stars as Buddy Hobbs, the title character.

“[Buddy’s] kind of the outrageous funny guy,” Lebrecht said. “He’s put into a society where he doesn’t really know the rules.

“When he was a baby, he crawled into Santa’s bag. He was raised in the North Pole, believing he was an elf but he was always bigger [than his fellow elves] and his voice was lower.

“One day he overheard someone talking about it. He [had always assumed] Santa was his father, but [with the news] he wants to find out what his [real] dad is like.”

Alec Marchek plays Walter Hobbs, Buddy’s half-brother.

Marcheck said that Walter is misunderstood.

“He just wants to be loved by his workaholic father who ironically publishes children’s books, but doesn’t have a relationship with his own child,” Marchek said. “The 12 year old has no knowledge of his brother. I find out [about him] when Buddy comes to my dad’s work and introduces himself.

“At that point it’s not really confirmed but a DNA test requested by Emily Hobbs, my mom in the play, confirms that Buddy and I are related.”

Skyler Hancock plays Jovie, Buddy’s love interest.

“I’m one of the Macy’s employees who assists Santa at the department store,” Hancock said. “I have an attitude because I grew up in LA [never having seen snow] and now that I’m living in New York I want it to snow but it just hasn’t happened.”

It takes a while before Jovie is able to return her feelings for Buddy, but since he has an in with Santa, he pulls some strings and by the end of the play, Jovie’s wish comes true.

“For Buddy, it’s love at first sight,” Lebrecht said. “At first [Jovie] doesn’t reciprocate because she doesn’t have Christmas spirit.”

Ben Fry plays Santa, a father figure to Buddy. “At the beginning of the play, I’m a kind Santa but tired of the Christmas music,” said Fry. “It kind of gets on his nerves.”

Hayden Bobbyn has an uncharacteristic role in this production of “Elf the Musical.”

“I’m not used to playing the mean guy and Mr. Greenway is mean,” explained Bobbyn. “Greenway is a Scrooge type guy who hasn’t seen his family in over 30 years. I have to be grumpy and demanding. I watch Elf all the time when the season rolls around. It’s a fun play. “

Cassidy Grather plays a Macy’s manager. “[My character] starts off very angry,” she said. “She’s not happy about Christmas but that changes when she meets Buddy.

“He comes into my store and gets all my workers to sing a song with him, basically spreading holiday cheer.”

Sarah Danner plays Darlene Lambert.

“When Buddy tries to convince everyone that there is a Santa Claus, he is able to tell me what I had gotten for Christmas years ago as proof. I have a duet with my friend Alex Madera, a Christmas song reprise heard earlier in the play.”

Jill Danner is one of the people in charge of the costumes, according to her daughter Sarah.

“We go to Goodwill every so often and rent costumes from Drop Me a Line. Buddy and Jovie’s costumes are rented, for example. We also borrow from the middle school. We’re reusing the vests we used for Hello Dolly for the Macy’s employees.

“My Mom made all of the elf costumes, about 16-20 costumes, out of felt and the shoe covers out of foam and ribbon.

“She went on Pinterest for ideas basically. They look really nice. They’re going to look great on stage especially with the iridescent pompom as accents on the collar. She’s working with a lot of people.”

“Elf the Musical Jr.” is based on the movie with the same name.

The cast also includes Megan McGorry, Katerina Almeida and Aaron Green.

“It’s turning out really well,” said Sarah Danner. “It’s going to be a great show. We have such a talented cast.”

The show features a large ensemble.

“For this show there’s about between 15-20 people,” said Morgan Bentley, one of the members of the ensemble. “If the show didn’t have an ensemble there wouldn’t be a story, so we’re responsible for a lot of the sound. We’re a large number so we could provide the bigger sound.”

“The ensemble consists of the elves, the New Yorkers, and the Macy’s employees and customers,” added Andi Frano. “I [also] play Sarah, secretary to Greenway and Walter. We double up on a lot of roles because we’re a small school.”

“Mainly you just have to have the ability to work well with others,” said Bentley. “You need to know your parts. We have roughly five numbers but this musical is intended for younger kids so the music and the choreography is a lot easier to learn.”

“Choreography is a big part of being an ensemble member,” said Frano. “Bill [Mutimer] is the choreographer for the show. We dance during the longer instrumental breaks. As a varsity cheerleader, the choreography is easy to pick up.”

Julia Haas is both a member of the ensemble and a TV newscaster who reports on Santa’s progress.

“Santa crashes on Christmas Eve because there’s just not enough Christmas spirit to make his sleigh fly and his sleigh run on Christmas spirit. “

“The ensemble provides the background which is really important to the story,” said Frano. “It’s almost like the story is unfolding as you’re watching it so you need the ensemble to make it seem realistic.”

Northwestern actors say working with their peers embodies the warmth and importance of family as portrayed in the play.

“I’ve gotten so many people to join drama that it’s like a family,” Hancock said. “I was a very theatrical growing up and I always wanted to act on stage.

“I don’t get stage fright. When you’re on a stage you have to project and become someone else. It takes time because you have to think like your character. I actually wrote a little journal, making an entire back story of why my character hates Christmas.”

Lebrecht admits being influenced by his older sister and mother who is a music teacher in the Southern Lehigh School District.

The same is true for Bobbyn.

“Ever since middle school, my brother would tell me to come out for the shows,” Bobbyn said. “My family said it would be a fun experience and it is a lot of fun.”

“This is really a fun play to put on,” said Fry, who has acted in six productions in the school district. “It’s a good comedy with all original songs.”

“Elf Junior is very high energy which I think is great,” Marchek said. “It’s definitely going to appeal to younger kids since it’s a junior show, but it will also appeal to families as a whole.”

“The whole point of the story is that no matter how you feel about the holidays, being willing to show your emotions unleashes the holiday spirit,” Grather said. “Buddy is very outgoing, willing to befriend even the grumpiest person.

“He proves the holidays are really a special time of the year.”

“I think it’s extremely fun. You’ll be laughing the entire time,” Lebrecht said. “It has a great message, especially for Christmas.

“You need to believe in things the same way you did as a child and keep your childhood innocence and remember all the spirit you had as a kid.”

“Elf the Musical Jr.,” will be performed 7 p.m. Dec. 1, 2 and 3 in Northwestern Lehigh High School auditorium.

Tickets will be available at the door,