Back to the Future & Peter and the Starcatcher

Guest Review by Ernest Edwards

The Twin Cities’ 2024/2025 theater season is off to a good start. This theatergoer was able to see two new shows on our stages last week.

The first production is Back to the Future The Musical. Yes, that Back to the Future, based on the 1985 movie of the same name. I had the pleasure of seeing this musical at the Winter Garden Theatre in NYC in December 2023. It was also my first time seeing Manhattan in December, which I highly recommend. From time to time, when Broadway shows go on tour, there is some trimming here and there to make the show tour-able. Never fear– there is still a DeLorean on stage. Spoiler! The car does fly over the stage at the end of the musical.  

I really liked the fun they had with the display screen before the show opened. “Turn off your cell phone. They didn’t exist in 1985.” “Use of the cell phone could disrupt the space/time continuum.” Lots of themed fun before the musical even begins. 

Does Back to the Future reinvent the stage musical? No. But it is a lot of fun! It has everything from the movie, with a few tweaks here and there, and the addition of song and dance. I was there for “Fan Night.” They had the parking lot next to the Orpheum Theatre filled with DeLoreans. I was not only able to take photos of the cars, but have my photo taken with a DeLorean too. Guess I went on the right night. 

Photo by Ernest Edwards

Most of the creators behind the movie also have their hand in the stage musical. Bob Gale, who cowrote the movie with Robert Zemeckis, wrote the book for the musical.  Alan Silvestri, who wrote music for the movie, also wrote music and lyrics with Glen Ballard for the stage musical. 

For this production Marty McFly is played by Caden Baruch, and Doc Brown is played by Don Stephenson. Both had big shoes to fill with these characters. Both excel in this production. Caden Baruch is on stage almost the entire production, and has the same energy level at the end of the musical that he has at the beginning.  

Back to the Future The Musical not only contains new songs for the stage, it does include the Huey Lewis and the News songs from the movie, The Power of Love and Back In Time.  

Great Scott! Get out and see this musical! The musical is playing at The Orpheum Theatre for two weeks. Final performance is Sunday September 22, 2024.

Next up, I went to Peter and The Starcatcher at Lyric Arts in Anoka, running through September 29. It’s a play by Rick Elice, based on the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. What is Peter and the Starcatcher? Simply, it’s an origin story of Peter Pan. The play is way more than that. 

I have seen other productions of this play, and I always find it to be pure theater magic. Great storytelling, a very talented cast, and minimal scenery make for a wonderful night at the theater. Lyric Arts has a magical production on their stage. 

I’ll try to tell the story without any spoilers. A cast of 16 artfully tells the tale of a mission for Queen Victoria, which also has pirates, orphans, mermaids, islanders, and a volcano. In the process, a nameless orphan boy not only becomes Peter, but he becomes Peter Pan.  

Noah Hynick’s outstanding performance as the Black Stache needs to be recognized. He had so much charisma and flamboyance as the pirate who would evolve into Captain Hook. His mustache was almost its own character, which evolved every time Hynick appeared on the stage. An excellent cast of new and familiar faces to the Lyric Arts stage rounds out the cast for Peter and the Starcatcher. Find out how Neverland came to be. And set your sights for adventure.