Back to the Future: The Musical Headed to London, Then Maybe Broadway

A staged, musical adaptation of Back to the Future is headed for London's West End, BTTF.com reports. The show, which will feature Alan Silvestri's score, songs from Huey Lewis and the News as well as new music, apparently made its way forward in time when Marty traveled to the future in Back to the Future Part II, as it will debut in 2015, thirty years after Marty first encountered those crazed Libyan terrorists and ended up stranded in 1955. According to the fan site, Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale are currently working with Universal Stage Productions, London-based producer Colin Ingram and Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment to develop the show. It will be produced with Donovan Mannato and CJ E&M. The new musical will have a book by Robert Zemeckis, Bob Gale and Jamie Lloyd, and new music and lyrics by Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard, with additional music from the film by Huey Lewis & The News, Chuck Berry, Pat Ballard and Curtis Williams, including 'The Power of Love' and 'Johnny B. Goode'. The production will be directed by Jamie Lloyd, with set and costume design by Soutra Gilmour, illusions by Paul Kieve, lighting design by Jon Clark, and musical supervision by Alan Williams. Andrew Willis will be skateboard consultant. It was ten years ago that the fim's co-writer, Bob Gale, first mentioned the possibility of a stage show...at a gathering of DeLorean enthusiasts. You can see the video below.

"The Back to the Future Musical is a project that Bob Zemeckis and I have been exploring for almost ten years," Gale told BTTF. "We're thrilled to be at last in partnership with a creative and producing team that will create a show that is true to the spirit of the film without being a slavish remake. Director Jamie Lloyd is full of passion, energy and imaginative ideas and we are overjoyed to have the film's composer Alan Silvestri composing the music, with lyrics by Glen Ballard who has also collaborated with Zemeckis before on many projects. With all of us working together, we know the integrity of the material will be preserved in a production that will be a wonderful companion to the Trilogy. We intend to use music from the movie along with brand new songs to make a version of Back to the Future that is fresh, entertaining, and takes advantage of all the amazing things that can now be done on stage. We can't think of a better way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the film." "I was five when I saw Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale's landmark movie, Back to the Future, and I have been a huge fan ever since," Lloyd added. "I am thrilled to be directing and co-writing this exciting new musical based on their masterful film, which has become embedded in our popular culture. Rather than attempt to recreate such an iconic movie on stage, we have assembled a brilliant artistic team to discover a unique theatrical language to take audiences on a journey through time in a vibrant, unexpected way. The production will include illusions, skateboarding and many other surprises that will capture the spirit of the film but freshly interpret it for a new audience. Steven Spielberg once described the film as a musical and whilst we are incorporating some of the original, exhilarating score and songs, Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard's witty, infectious and heartfelt new songs are the perfect springboard to tell this uplifting story anew."