‘BACK TO THE FUTURE’: Casey Likes. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE MUSICAL
Based on the Universal Pictures/Amblin Entertainment Film
Written by Robert Zemeckis & Bob Gale
Book by Bob Gale
Music & lyrics by Alan Silvestri & Glen Ballard
Directed by John Rando
Winter Garden Theatre
1634 Broadway
https://www.backtothefuturemusical.com/new-york/

By David NouNou

Having seen Back to The Future last year in London, I have to concede that this version is far superior to the British production. Reason being that other than Roger Bart playing Doc Brown, an American actor, the rest of cast were all British, with the most abominable American accents. In addition, the actor playing Marty McFly was way too old for the role, thus making the part cringeworthy.

You all know the plot, here’s a recap: Set in a small California town in 1985, 17-year-old Marty McFly (Casey Likes), in an experiment travels through time in a modified DeLorean car created by his eccentric friend, Doc Brown (Roger Bart) where he ends up in 1955 encountering young versions of his parents, before they were married. His mother Lorraine Baines (Liana Hunt) has the hots for Marty when she first meets him and thinks his name is Calvin Klein because of the underwear he’s wearing, and his father is a nerdy highschooler George McFly (Hugh Coles) who is constantly being picked on and tormented by Biff Tannen (Nathaniel Hackmann), the town bully. Marty has to make sure that George and Lorraine fall in love and kiss at a designated time, or he and his siblings shall cease to exist. More daunting, Marty has to return to his own time and save the life of Doc Brown.

The plot is simple and the cast is minimal. It follows the premise of the movie; however, most of the charm and innocence of the piece is gone. Instead, it is loud and all over the place. Substance has been replaced with needless and uninspired dance numbers.

The book by Bob Gale is clever enough to keep it afloat. The score at best tries to stay in the mood of the 50s and 80s but is not particularly memorable. Although the musical is created and directed by Americans, it was originally presented in London. What’s amazing about British musicals is when creating material that is English in nature, from Six to & Juliet, they can be brilliant, but when they try to create American-themed musicals, they somehow miss the mark by overindulgence to play for an American audience—as if to say bigger is better.

The cast, headed by Roger Bart, as Doc Brown, has mercifully toned down his performance a lot. Doc Brown is a brilliant but eccentric scientist. In London, Mr. Bart portrayed him as a manic lunatic. His performance is much better and more genuine now. If you follow the performance, he now seems to channel Robin Williams which is a much more pleasant experience. Casey Likes—who last fall played William in the short-lived musical version of Almost Famous— now plays Marty McFly. He is age appropriate and rather likeable.

The best part of the show is the English holdover, Hugh Coles. He was great as George McFly in London; he is even better now on Broadway.

To be sure, as long as tourists keep coming to New York, Back to the Future will be their favorite staple and can keep it running well into the future.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published August 11, 2023
Reviewed at August 10, 2023 press performance.

‘BACK TO THE FUTURE’: Roger Bart & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘BACK TO THE FUTURE’ (left to right): Daryl Tofa, Nathaniel Hackmann, Will Branner, Casey Likes & Hugh Coles. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘BACK TO THE FUTURE’: Jelani Remy & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘BACK TO THE FUTURE’: Casey Likes & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘BACK TO THE FUTURE’: Casey Likes. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

The post ‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ better in NY appeared first on StageZine.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Casey Likes & Solea Pfeiffer. Photo: Matt Murphy.

ALMOST FAMOUS
Book & lyrics by Cameron Crowe
Music & lyrics by Tom Kitt
Directed by Jeremy Herrin
Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre
242 West 45^th Street
(212-239-6200), https://almostfamousthemusical.com/

By Scott Harrah

This Broadway musical stage adaptation of Almost Famous, the 2000 Cameron Crowe film, follows the movie’s narrative almost word for word. Perhaps that’s because Cameron Crowe himself wrote the book and lyrics for this stage version. As ambitious an effort as this is, adding in Tom Kitt’s songs—most of them sung like power-pop cover anthems from “American Idol” and “The Voice”—takes away the raffish charm and authenticity of the film and slows the story down instead of propelling it forward.

William Miller (Casey Likes) is 15 and dealing with tension at home. He starts writing freelance rock articles for underground newspapers in San Diego. His 18-year-old sister Anita doesn’t get along with her mother and moves away to San Francisco to become a stewardess, leaving William her collection of rock albums.

The show opens with teenage William speaking to legendary rock critic Lester Bangs (Rob Colletti). Lester Bangs gives William an assignment to review a Black Sabbath concert but the band won’t let him in backstage, but he manages to get in by making flattering comments to the opening band, Stillwater. He meets Stillwater’s lead guitarist Russell Hammond (Chris Wood) and groupie Penny Lane (Solea Pfeiffer). Penny tells William she and her friends aren’t groupies but are instead “band aids,” female fans who are purportedly hanging out with the group because they really like the music.

William gets an unbelievably lucky break into rock journalism when Ben Fong-Torres (Matthew C. Yee), the editor of Rolling Stone magazine, calls up and hires the teen to write an article about Stillwater and follow them around on tour.  This doesn’t sit well with his mother Elaine (Anika Larsen), who wants him to stay home and graduate from high school before going on the college to study pre-law and one day become an attorney. William goes on the road with the band and is able to interview everyone in the group except Russell Hammond. The band starts derisively calling William “the enemy” as he tries to follow rock journalist Lester Bangs’ advice and not become too friendly with band members because he must remain objective if he wants to write an honest profile of Stillwater. This is no easy task as William becomes seduced by the glamour of the rock world, the band members, the groupies and proverbial sex, drugs and rock and roll. He finds it impossible to meet his deadline as he becomes just another fan and hanger-on instead of a professional journalist on assignment.

Comparisons to the 2000 Cameron Crowe film starring Patrick Fugit as William, Kate Hudson as Penny Lane, Billy Crudup as Russell Hammond and Frances McDormand as concerned mom Elaine Miller are inevitable because this stage adaptation follows the film almost verbatim.  The film was supposedly semi-autobiographical, based on Mr. Crowe’s experiences, and the narrative on screen made much more sense because it focused on the turmoil of the characters, and used real 1970s rock music as the backdrop. The movie’s performances were also more in sync and solid. Unfortunately, this Broadway adaptation lacks the thread of authenticity that made the movie so powerful.  Yes, there are original new songs by Cameron Crowe and Tom Kitt, but they add little to the story. When Solea Pfeiffer, as Penny Lane, belts out the ballad “Morocco,” there’s no doubt she’s a gifted vocalist with a pleasant voice and good range, but the song just doesn’t fit in the era in which the show is set. The only song that isn’t original is a cover of Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer,” sung by everyone just as it was in the movie.

Supporting characters are the true standouts here. Anika Larsen is luminous and gives a heartbreaking performance as Elaine Miller, a mother who knows she’s lost control of both her children and feels helpless. A scene showing Elaine speaking on the phone with Russell Hammond is a show stopper. One really gets the sense of a protective mother, angry that a rock band has “kidnapped” her teenage son.

Rob Colletti is outstanding as Lester Bangs, the real-life “gonzo” rock journalist and critic who inspired a whole generation of music writers with his intellectual working-class hero persona and his almost academic yet hip dissections of 1970s rock artists. His take on Lester Bangs is as an avuncular figure and mentor to the teenage wannabe rock journalist.

Casey Likes as William and Solea Pfeiffer as Penny are serviceable but not as convincing for anyone who has seen the movie and the iconic, Oscar-nominated performance of a young Kate Hudson playing the messed-up groupie.

What’s supposed to be a retro look at the world of 1973 rock comes across as awkward, and Jeremy Herrin’s uneven direction doesn’t help matters. That’s a shame because there’s still a great story here of innocence lost, the decadence of the early 1970s rock scene, “gonzo” rock journalism, and many interesting characters. Almost Famous was a great movie about 1970s rock music and the people who made up that world, but it simply falls flat as a Broadway musical, with songs that make the story drag instead of enhancing it and setting things in motion.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published November 3, 2022
Reviewed at October 28, 2022 press preview performance.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Casey Likes & cast. Photo: Matt Murphy.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Casey Likes & Rob Colletti. Photo: Matt Murphy.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Anika Larsen. Photo: Matt Murphy.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Drew Gehling & Chris Wood. Photo: Matt Murphy.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Emily Schultheis, Anika Larsen, Casey Likes. Photo: Matt Murphy.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Matt Bittner, Drew Gehling, Chris Wood, Brandon Contreras. Photo: Matt Murphy.

‘ALMOST FAMOUS’: Solea Pfeiffer & Chris Wood. Photo: Matt Murphy.

The post ‘Almost Famous’: Ambitious stage adaptation appeared first on StageZine.