That Grinch can be scary. Created by Dr. Seuss in 1957, this Christmas hater makes Ebenezer Scrooge seem a pleasant fellow. While Seuss’s book, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” and its 1966 animated adaptation allow you to keep this villain at a lighthearted distance, it’s quite something else to meet him in the flesh — or in the fur, as it were.

You do so early in Children’s Theatre Company’s 11th staging of its musical take on the tale. It’s a work the Minneapolis company first commissioned and premiered in 1994, becoming the first theatrical version of a Seuss book his estate had ever approved.

When Reed Sigmund’s Grinch took the stage at the opening weekend performance I caught in 2022, snarling, grumbling and giving off a threatening air, several wailing children had to be evacuated to the crying room at the theater’s rear. But Sigmund and director Peter Brosius seem to have toned things down a bit this year.

For CTC’s 2023 edition of “Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas” is more warm, comedic and full of heart than any previous incarnation I’ve encountered. Sigmund’s signature role has never been delivered with such a deft combination of clownishness and vulnerability. Brosius’ staging lands in a tender place, offering many an opportunity to engender compassion for this mean, green guy.

Reed Sigmund and Matthew Woody in “Dr. Seuss’s How The Grinch Stole Christmas!” at Children’s Theatre Co. (Glenn Stubbe)

And its production values are beyond reproach, from David Kay Mickelsen’s knock-your-eye-out costuming — admire the detail accorded each individual Who in Whoville — to Tom Butsch’s Seussian set to Linda Talcott Lee’s old-school choreography, reminiscent of an early-’30s Hollywood musical.

The entire cast and Victor Zupanc’s six-piece orchestra throws itself enthusiastically into the music, but you’re unlikely to leave the theater with a single tune stuck in your head save the two that were written for that 1966 TV cartoon, “Welcome Christmas” and “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.” While Cindy-Lou Who’s tear-tugging ballad, “Santa for a Day,” is an exception, Mel Marvin’s score just isn’t very catchy, and there’s a rhythm and musicality to Seuss’s original verse that’s missing from Timothy Mason’s lyrics and dialogue.

Yet the fun, flamboyant performances more than make up for it. Where others might go low in voice to evoke menace, Sigmund goes high, spicing his bullying banter with piercing falsetto mockery. And his floppy physicality not only helps him command the stage, but part of the seating area, too. (Be prepared, ye in the first 10 rows.)

He’s aided immeasurably by two dogs. Dean Holt is wonderful as an older version of the Grinch’s pet pup, Max, who narrates this reminiscence, and on opening night, Audrey Mojica unleashed her inner hound delightfully as our grouchy protagonist’s lone cave-mate, a role she splits with Matthew Woody. Similarly, there are two Cindy-Lou Whos. On Saturday, Elsa Dungan-Hawks brought a becoming naturalism and lovely voice to the sweet kid who finally softens the Grinch.

And soften he does. Every revival is framed by its times, and perhaps Brosius — with his final “Grinch” before leaving at season’s end the company he’s led since 1997 — took a look at our era of conflict and division and decided to emphasize understanding and reconciliation. It proves a beautiful choice, for I don’t recall ever being so moved by a “Grinch.”

‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’

When: Through Jan. 7
Where: Children’s Theatre Company, 2400 Third Ave. S., Minneapolis
Tickets: $102-$15, available at 612-874-0400 or childrenstheatre.org
Capsule: Funny and flamboyant but an ultimately touching slice of Seuss.

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