Catherine Burford — Theater Critic

I was blown away by the show. It was one thing for me to admire the set pieces and choreography, but the acting and dramatic moments got audible reactions out of me. I was gasping and going “ooooooooh”. Water For Elephants is a dazzling and emotional spectacle.

Normally, I would just mention the choreography in the same paragraph as the other technical aspects of the show, but I just can’t. There’s a good reason why this show won the Tony Award for Best Choreography. Since this is such a dance-heavy show, it should come as no surprise that the choreographer is also the director. Casey Nicholaw didn’t just choreograph the dancing in Some Like It Hot; he carefully choreographed every single thing in such great detail.

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”.