At long last, ‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ will hit the stage at the Manchester Opera House in Manchester, England, for a 12-week-only engagement beginning on Feb. 20, 2020. After that, it will head to London’s West End. Robert Zemeckis and co-screenwriter Bob Gale have had this project in the works since 2012. Gale is credited with writing the book. The film’s score writer, Alan Silvestri collaborated on the music for the show with Grammy winner Glen Ballard (‘Jagged Little Pill’).
Although the film version of ‘Back to the Future’ isn’t a musical, it does include a lot of music, and much of that will be translated to the stage production, including numbers like ‘The Power of Love,’ ‘Johnny B Goode,’ ‘Earth Angel,’ and ‘Back in Time’. According to the production, ‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ “will send you on an electrifying ride through time with an all-new score alongside the movie’s iconic hits.”
Olly Dobson, who starred in the West End productions of ‘Matilda’ and ‘Bat Out of Hell’, steps into the role of Marty McFly, who was, of course, played in the film by Michael J. Fox. The rest of the cast has not been announced.
Addressing the long delay in getting this musical off the ground, Gale told Playbill:
“Bob Zemeckis and I have been trying to get this project off the ground for years, but good things take time and finally, the time is right. Our cast is outstanding, the songs are fantastic, and director John Rando is doing an amazing job ensuring the show truly captures the magic of the movie. We’re thrilled that we can retell our story on stage in a brand-new way, and we’re certain that Back to the Future fans all over the world will share our enthusiasm. In the words of Marty McFly, ‘your kids are gonna love it’ — and so will you and your parents.”
‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ features choreography by Chris Bailey, sets and costumes by Tim Hatley, lighting design by Hugh Vanstone, sound design by Gareth Owen, video design by Finn Ross, illusions by Paul Kieve, orchestrations by Ethan Popp, and musical supervision by Nick Finlow.
There don’t appear to be plans to bring the show to the US just yet, but should it perform well in London, it should only be a matter of… er, time.
