Stars on Broadway take many forms. For years they’ve been four-legged. First came the erotically-charged Nugget in Peter Shaffer’s Equus; then Joey, the plow horse sold to the British cavalry during WW I in War Horse; any of the Veldt creatures in The Lion King; then the feral tiger Richard Parker sharing a lifeboat with Patel in Life of Pi; or Rosie the abused elephant who understands Polish in Water for Elephants.
Now there’s a new star in town, and it’s as animated as any anthropomorphic puppet – a retrofitted, time-traveling DMC DeLorean. Yes, we’re in Back to the Future-land, where both creator Doc Brown and his invention receive hearty entrance applause. The car definitely deserves it. It’s a beaut. The show, however, needs an appointment at the auto body shop.
Why, except for the fortune to be had, would a beloved movie, a fantastically successful cult classic (1985), be subjected to the Procrustean bed of Broadway? The musical is a weird hybrid of movie and theater. More movie than anything. Smothered under Alan Silvestri’s iconic score and larded with superfluous songs by Silvestri and Glen Ballard, filler dance routines, and non-stop projections, Future is a screen-to-stage adaptation that is shamelessly Xeroxed. I’m sure that’s exactly what the producers were banking on. The multitudes who love the movie (and its two subsequent sequels) and can quote dialogue verbatim turn out in droves for the nostalgia.
All the main plot points, even chunks of original dialogue are here in the flesh, live. But this adaptation by the film’s writer Bob Gale is cheapened by old-fashioned Broadway shtick. The film’s set in the ’50s, but must the show be inspired by its ancient, worn-out gimmicks? Silly blue jokes and overly broad reactions and line readings are overwhelmed by the modern technical razzle-dazzle that is loud, blinding, and, yes, impressive in scope and scale. The movie has been superimposed on the stage. Why not just show the movie?
But we’ve come to see the DeLorean. And that does not disappoint. The theater wizards (set designer Tim Hatley, illusion designer David Chase, sound designer Garth Owen, video designer Finn Ross, lighting designers Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone) kick it up to 11.
The car flies down the streets of Hill Valley, swerves at street corners, speeds along as the background blurs. Silvestri’s underscore blasts, as do the flashing marquee lights around the proscenium while psychedelic patterns swirl like something out of 2001. It’s visceral, for sure, you can feel the pulse of excitement in your chest. The sequence – what we’ve been waiting for – gets its deserved ovation.
Lukas Hallauer, as teen rocker Marty McFly, a.k.a. Michael J. Fox, has energy for days as he jumps off platforms, prances and wriggles like Jagger, and wails in a nasal head voice like the pop-star frontman of a boy band. His physical performance is infectious. David Josefsberg, as eccentric Doc Brown, a.k.a. Christopher Lloyd, plays it more like Beetlejuice than Lloyd’s endearingly crazy inventor. It’s difficult to put your own stamp on a character that has been indelibly etched in cinematic stone.
Kathryn Adeline, as Lorraine, Marty’s mother’s young avatar, is hot to trot for this new boy in town, and her sweet/sultry rendition of “Pretty Baby” is one of the musical’s highlights. She’s charming. In a double role, Cartreze Tucker exudes stage presence as Goldie, the malt shop janitor who later becomes Hill Valley’s future mayor, and a hot jazzy Marvin Berry at the prom. His energetic “Gotta Start Somewhere” stops the show.
Tony-winning director John Rando (Urinetown) knows how to move a show along, even when battling all those projected bells and whistles; and choreographer Chris Bailey knows all those ’50s classic dance steps. But Silvestri and Ballard’s songs are serviceable at best and slow down the show. Must every character sing?
With all the melodic padding, Back to the Future, The Musical runs longer than the movie. When the most memorable songs are by ’90s rocker Huey Lewis (“The Power of Love” and “Back in Time”), Jesse Belvin’s doo-wop classic “Earth Angel,” and Chuck Berry’s electrifying “Johnny B. Goode,” there’s trouble in paradise.
If you love the iconic movie, you may find that the show plods instead of soars. But when that DeLorean appears with its neon details, that mesmerizing flux capacitor, and its 1.21 gigawatts of power, all bets are off. It’s a star turn to rival anyone on stage.
Back to the Future, The Musical continues through April 5 at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Thursday and Sunday; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. TUTS at the Hobby Center, 800 Bagby. For more information, call 713-558-8887 or visit tuts.org. $57-$122.
