Back to the Future the Musical - Opera House MCR / Adelphi

This would have been my least favourite moment - why do people feel the need to ruin theatrical moments like that?

Saw this yesterday and really enjoyed it, but it has the same problem as Mary Poppins in that the new songs are overshadowed by the ones from the film. I think it's a really strong cast. I liked that Roger Bart plays it a bit less "mad scientist" than Christopher Lloyd and makes the role his own (gets most of the best gags too.) Hugh Coles stood out too, and despite this being his stage debut managed to get the audience on his side from the moment he appears. I thought the three hours flew by, but if they do have to cut anything the act 2 opener is the first thing I'd get rid of, despite it being such a big number it doesn't really add anything. Still, I wouldn't mind going again later in the run and that's pretty rare for me to see something twice.

There's some £19.55 Stalls seats for tonight if you're quick!

Less than £14. Gallery. Row B. Fantastic view.

I've seen quite a few shows from that row. It's usually a pretty good view for a cheap price

Does anyone know all the understudies in this show or can post a picture of the understudy list in the programme ?

Looks very cool! Where is this going in London? The Dominion?

Cast list for you cheesy116 - postimg.cc/jWkfrw6h

Im selling a single ticket for Thursday night for £25 if anyone is interested. Full details on the noticeboard.

Made the trip to Manchester to see this last night. It’s very much a loving send-up of a well-loved film, which will do very well.

The theatre was very busy. The cast board is hidden behind the queue to pick up tickets, so almost impossible to see. No other notices up about cast, triggers, run times etc. I did manage to move (bemused) people and photograph the cast board and all the leads were on. Quite a few loud bangs that I could have done without, but these are bearable.

You can tell this was a crowd that doesn’t go to the theatre much, so it’s a show that’s drawing them in. It is overacted throughout, think Rocky Horror, with pauses for the audience to compete the lines, then pauses for applause after the lines and big moments. Character heckling. Applause and cheers for scene changes. The famous characters get entrance applause. I would like to say it’s just this Friday night audience, but I think the show is designed that way.

Only one show stop, about 20 minutes in. There was about a 30 second pause with the curtains closed later in the show, but looks like they solved that without needing an announcement. This is a long show at nearly three hours (including the 5 minute show stop) and could be trimmed (does every minor character really need a song about their motivation in the first half?)

Lots of neat touches. When you arrive, the curtain shows 2020 and lots of social apps popular in Manchester (Snapchat, Facebook, Grindr etc). Then when time reverses to start the show and return to a simpler time, you watch all the apps disappear. Lots of product placements, so you see old style Diet Pepsi etc all around.

The leads for this are strong and know how to ham it up. The on-stage guitar playing isn’t very convincing. But the real strength of this one is nostalgia and the special effects, which all look the part.

It is incredibly cheesy. Singing and the stage suddenly filled with guys in top hats and tails or beautiful girls. Just that style of musical. No tap scene though, so an opportunity missed.

My front row ticket was a bargain at under £20. The stage is high, so you can’t see some of the floor activity (skateboards etc), but otherwise you’re up close and get lots of legroom. This is a very loud show from the front row. One thing to watch is the seats aren’t all that well secured, so if you have a large person next to you (as I did), you’ll feel every foot tap vibrate along the row.

Everyone was on their feet for the standing ovation at the end before the curtain opened, so I guess that says it all.

I don’t know if this is a show a normal person would see twice, but I would go back to see how it’s developed if it ends up in London. As I said, it’s not sophisticated in any way, but it’s a musical with mass appeal and it will do well.

Central stalls row R for just under 20 quid on the 18th March. Best to keep checking for price changes like this since on other nights that seat is worth almost £70!

I haven’t been yet 😑