HLOC (Humboldt Light Opera Company) will present its annual summer production, “Elf The Musical” at the John Van Duzer Theatre on the campus of Cal Poly Humboldt in Arcata, under the direction of its artistic producing director Carol Ryder.

Musical co-directors are Fiona Ryder Gadd and Katri Pitts. Rory Pitts is conducting the live orchestra. Choreography is designed by Katri Pitts, Fiona Ryder Gadd and Teyha Tuttle. The musical features book by Thomas Meehan, music by Matthew Sklar and lyrics by Chad Beguelin and Bob Martin.

“Elf The Musical” brings to the stage “Christmas in summer.” An HLOC press release explains: “The show opens with Santa preparing for another Christmas season. In the spirit thereof, he decides to share with the audience the story of a little village at the North Pole called Christmas Town, a town unique for two reasons: one, there’s no Starbucks and two, everyone who lives there is an elf. The story and this show feature one particular ‘elf.’ Buddy is his name; although Buddy is the happiest — and tallest — of the elves, he is, in fact, not an elf.

“By overhearing a discussion between Tiara and Charlie, two elves in the know, Buddy finds out that he is a human. He is devastated. Even though his enormous size and poor toy-making abilities should have been clues, this new knowledge and realization has turned his world upside down. Santa steps in to give Buddy the details of when and how he had come to be raised at the North Pole after having been embraced as one of their own by Santa’s helpers, the elves.

“One Christmas eve many years earlier, Buddy had crawled into Santa’s toy bag. He had been living in an orphanage after his mother, Susan Welles, passed away shortly after Buddy was born. Santa goes on to explain that Buddy’s birth father, Walter Hobbs, a successful executive in book publishing in New York City never has known that Buddy existed. Santa tells Buddy that he is like a big hairy bird, that it is time he ‘left the nest,’ and encourages Buddy to travel to New York to try to find his ‘dad,’ Walter.

“When Buddy arrives in New York, he is overwhelmed by the city’s chaos. He had been shocked to have found out that his own father is on the ‘naughty list’ and that his half-sister Mikayla doesn’t believe in Santa Claus. Buddy takes it upon himself, in his own innocent and charming way, to bring the true meaning of this holiday season back to his newfound family which includes Mikayla’s mother and Walter’s wife, Emily. His innocence and charm gradually begin to thaw the cold hearts around him.

“The musical brings to us lessons that, although based on a fictional story, are very real and applicable to our lives.”

HLOC’s “Elf” cast of 55 performers includes Tristan Roberts as Buddy, Bill Ryder as Santa, Tehya Tuttle as Jovie, Kate O’Faolain as Emily, Elin Strombeck as Mikayla, Carl McGahan as Walter, Leilani Harling as Deb, Mathew Lewis as Macy manager, Craig Benson as Mr. Greenway, Liz Souza as Chadwick and Savannah Rivers as Matthews.

“Elf The Musical” plays at Van Duzer Theater at Cal Poly Humboldt on Fridays at 7 p.m. July 25, Aug. 1 and 8; on Saturdays at 7 p.m., July 26, Aug. 2 and 9, and on Sundays at 2 p.m., July 27, Aug. 3 and 10. For more information about the show and to purchase tickets, visit www.hloc.org. Ticket prices range from $12 to $22.50 in the mezzanine and from $18.50 to $22.50 on the main floor.