Review: BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE MUSICAL at TPAC'S Jackson Hall

No matter how much time passes, there seems to be no end to the trend of turning movies into musicals. I’m honestly getting a little sick of it, but a few gems have managed to peek through the cracks. Granted, not all musical adaptations can shine like the ones based on movies like Legally Blonde, Waitress, and Heathers. It takes more than just nostalgia and popularity to make a musical adaptation work; it also takes ambition. Adding to the long line of the cinema to stage trend is a little movie about time travel from the eighties that totally didn’t lead to a trilogy and spark a fanbase. Plenty of musicals based on movies turn to dead air, but Back to the Future: The Musical might have a chance of standing the test of time. 

I often say that there is no such thing as a bad idea for a musical; it’s all about execution. If you’re planning to adapt a classic sci-fi movie like Back to the Future to the stage, then you better deliver a spectacle. Thankfully, the visuals are undoubtedly the show’s biggest strengths. While I might not recommend this show to many of my fellow neurodivergents or those sensitive to flashing lights, the overall design is certainly something to experience. Carefully designed by Tim Hately, the sets transition seamlessly from one location to another, creating an effect akin to viewing a big musical number in one of those Old Hollywood musical movies. Hately also designed the costumes, perfectly replicating some iconic movie outfits from Marty’s red vest outfit to Lorraine’s pink dress. Adding more oohs and ahhs to the spectacle are the incredible lighting designs by Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone, as well as the video designs by Finn Ross and illusions by Chris Fisher. I occasionally felt like I was watching an old school video game come to life on stage. Gareth Owens’s sound design adds enough beeps and zaps to fit the sci-fi feeling. And of course, it’s such a blast seeing the iconic DeLorean move around (and eventually fly) onstage. 

Why do we go to see a musical? For the music, of course! The lineup includes classics from the original movie such as “Earth Angel”, “The Power of Love”, “Johnny B. Goode”, and “Back In Time”. The score even incorporates the movie’s iconic theme. Like any musical based on a movie, the songs in this musical have titles ripped straight from the movie’s dialogue. From “Hello, Is Anybody Home?” to “It Works” to “Future Boy”, Glen Ballard certainly paid close attention to the dialogue while writing the lyrics. Honestly, I feel like there is this classic musical blueprint that too many people follow when adapting movies to the stage. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s important to have ‌some stellar songs to help stand out from the rest. If there is one song from the show that stuck with me long after I had left the theatre, it’s Doc Brown’s song “For The Dreamers”. I’m a sucker for inspirational songs from musicals, and this one is no exception. 

Once you’ve got the vision for a show, you need the right cast to bring it to life. Leading the way on this timeless journey is Lucas Hallauer as the legendary Marty McFly. He is so convincing in both acting and appearance that I nearly believed that Michael J. Fox traveled in a time machine from 1985 to reprise his role. And where would Marty be without Doc Brown? Well, he’d disappear in 1955. Thankfully, Doc Brown is here, and he’s played by David Josefsberg. Not only is he truly hilarious in the role, but he nearly made me cry with “For The Dreamers”. They are joined by a stellar cast that includes Mike Bindeman as the coward-turned-hero George McFly, Kathryn Adeline as the love struck Lorraine Baines, Luke Anthony Neville as Principal Strickland and a bunch of other characters, and Nathaniel Hackmann as Biff Tannen. Since Hackmann wasn’t performing on Opening Night, I’d like to give a shout out to Zachary Bigelow for handing his 3D glasses over to swing Ross Thompson and filling in the shoes of cinema’s most iconic bully. Everyone from the principle characters to the ensemble truly shone in the spotlight. However, I must project a special spotlight on Cartreze Tucker, who truly stole every scene he was in. Whether he was Goldie Wilson or Marvin Berry, he had my undivided attention. And my, those vocals! Honestly, I think the only thing in the show that could distract me from him was the iconic kiss in the school dance scene. After all, there are plenty of iconic scenes that I wished to see ‌reenacted onstage, and I wasn’t going to miss one of my favorite movie kisses of all time get the stage treatment. Bravo to everyone!