During the lazy days of summer, who wants to see a depressing show that reminds you of all your troubles? Nobody. Instead, you just want to sit back and be entertained, right? And the national tour of Back to the Future is just the ticket. If you’ve run out of things for your kids to do this summer, this would be an excellent end-of-summer treat. The multi-million-dollar production has sass, spectacular special effects, fantastic dancers, sets galore, funny villains and all the ingredients of a show that the whole family will love. Broadway in Chicago brings the tour to the Cadillac Palace Theatre this week; it continues through the next three weeks.
The musical version is a stunning follow-up to the hit 1985 film starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd. While the current musical can’t erase one’s memories of Fox and Lloyd, it is destined to impress. The tour just debuted in June, so it still seems freshly minted. That fact became apparent on press night, when a five-minute pause was needed to iron out one of the technical glitches in the middle of an act.
The Robert Zemeckis-Bob Gale film casts such an indelible stamp on prospective audiences that the musical wisely follows the same plot. Songs have been added by the team of Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard, but most of them drift by without making much of an impression. The new songs can’t hold a candle to the mega-hit pop tune, Huey Lewis' “Power of Love,” which proves that it’s still an oldie but a goodie. Speaking of which, there’s also a funny sequence in which teenager Marty McFly grabs a guitar at a 1955 school dance and whips local teens into a dancing frenzy with his rendition of “Johnny B. Goode.”
Teen rebellion is a key theme throughout Back to the Future. High schooler Marty McFly (played in the tour by Caden Brauch, a talented, Michael J. Fox lookalike) wants to focus all his energies on creating music, much to the chagrin of his wimpy dad, George (Burke Swanson) and distracted mother, Lorraine (Zan Berube). Marty is further embarrassed by his goofy siblings (Fisher Lane Stewart and Laura Sky Herman). The only good thing in Marty’s life (he thinks) is his lovely and supportive girlfriend, Jennifer (a powerfully voiced Kiara Fee). Marty often escapes his family drama by spending time at the science lab owned by town misfit Doc Brown (Don Stephenson).
The musical really speeds into high gear with the appearance of Doc’s time machine, which appears as a souped-up DeLorean. Now the car sports neon trim, rows of flashing lights in the back seat and—most importantly—a plutonium-fueled “flux capacitor.” According to Doc, a cylinder of plutonium allows the car to crash through the space/time continuum when the speedometer reaches 88 mph.
One of the musical's delights is its spoof of 1950s and 1980s culture. This is especially true when Marty finds himself time-traveling to his same town 30 years earlier. As Marty gets his footing in 1955, a clever opening tune espouses the great things about this era, such as cigarettes (even a doctor smokes), DDT, asbestos and super-leaded gasoline. Marty looks on, horrified, as the ensemble cheerily delivers this upbeat production number with nary a wink.
Marty eventually finds his way to Doc’s laboratory (which looks about the same in 1955 as it does in 1985). Although Doc offers his help to assist Marty in getting "back" to 1985, all does not go smoothly. Marty has a number of unfortunate (albeit hilarious) interactions with the town bully, Biff (a splendid Ethan Rogers).
Other cast standouts include Cantreze Tucker as the industrious and aspirational Goldie Wilson. As one of the town’s few Black residents, Wilson starts out sweeping floors but ends up as the town’s mayor. Among the school administrators, Luke Antony Neville is appealing (and appalling) as the imperious Principal Strickland. However, their contributions pale in comparison to those of Burke Swanson (George). While George may lack a spine, as Marty believes, he’s not the total loser that everyone thinks he is. The loose-limbed Swanson gives his character more depth than one would expect.
The main characters are supported by a talented ensemble of singers/dancers who must constantly change outfits to meet each scene’s requirements. John Rando’s direction keeps the myriad subplots from imploding on each other. Even audiences who never saw the film will be able to easily follow the various plot twists.
The tour doesn’t quite match the Broadway version in terms of technical wizardry, but the special effects were good enough on press night to dazzle the audience. Matt Doebler’s musical direction delivers a full, rich sound, accentuated by the work of sound designer Gareth Owen. Lighting designers (Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone) work seamlessly with the efforts of video designer Finn Ross and illusion designer Chris Fischer to take special effects to a new level.
Even before the first school bell rings in Chicago, there are many lessons to be learned when watching Back to the Future. Also, those who want to relive highlights of the popular film—now an enormously entertaining musical—will want to catch this show while it’s around.
Back to the Future plays through September 1 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St. Tickets are available at www.broadwayinchicago.com. The show runs 2 hours and 40 minutes, with one intermission.
For more information on this and other plays, see theatreinchicago.com.
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