Back to the Future the musical will premiere in Manchester – how to get tickets

Great news for fans of 80s time travel blockbuster Back to the Future. A new musical based on the film will premiere right here in Manchester.

The creators of the original movie Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale have teamed up with award-winning producer Colin Ingram to create Back to the Future The Musical which will open at Manchester Opera House on February 20th, 2020, for a 12-week run before transferring to the West End.

Based on the Universal Pictures/Amblin Entertainment film, the new musical will have a book by Bob Gale and new music and lyrics by Emmy and Grammy Award-winning Alan Silvestri and six-time Grammy Award-winning Glen Ballard, with additional iconic songs from the film including The Power of Love and Johnny B. Goode.

The role of Marty McFly, famously played by Michael J Fox in the movie, will be played by Olly Dobson, whose previous West End credits include the original cast of Bat Out Of Hell The Musical and Matilda. Further casting is to be announced.

Back to the Future the movie was released in 1985, starring Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly and Christopher Lloyd as Dr Emmett Brown, who invents the DeLorean time machine which sends them back to 1955. The film grossed $360.6 million (£279 million) at the box office worldwide and the total box office for all three films in the Back to the Future franchise was $936.6 million (over $1.8 billion in today’s money).

The original cast have given their blessing to the new production. And the the great news for fans of the film is that actor Christopher Lloyd has already said he will attend the Manchester premiere.

He said: “Ever since Bob Gale told me about this, I’ve been eagerly anticipating it and, in particular, wondering what it will be like to hear Doc Brown sing. So I’m really looking forward to attending the opening in Manchester to experience our wonderful movie as a musical. I’m only sorry I don’t have a real time machine so that I could see it tomorrow!”

The new musical will be directed by Tony Award-winning director John Rando (Urinetown, On The Town), alongside the multi Tony and Olivier Award-winning design team of Tim Hatley (set and costume design), Hugh Vanstone (lighting), Gareth Owen (sound) and Finn Ross (video), with choreography by Chris Bailey, illusions by Paul Kieve and musical supervision and vocal arrangements by Nick Finlow. Orchestrations will be by Ethan Popp, with dance arrangements by David Chase.

GREAT SCOTT! #BackToTheFuture The Musical is gonna change musical history at the Manchester Opera House for 12 weeks only from 20 Feb 2020

On-Sale @ 10:00am Fri 24th May

Sign-Up for a Priority Ticket Pre-Sale @ 12:00pm on Thurs 23rd HERE: https://t.co/ddkGgBxBZJ pic.twitter.com/8gQ1Fg6odr

— Back to the Future (@BTTFmusical) May 17, 2019

Bob Gale, who wrote the film with Robert Zemeckis and who is writing the book for the musical said: “Bob Zemeckis and I have been trying to get this project off the ground for years, but good things take time and finally, the time is right. Our cast is outstanding, the songs are fantastic, and director John Rando is doing an amazing job ensuring the show truly captures the magic of the movie.  We’re thrilled that we can retell our story on stage in a brand-new way, and we’re certain that Back to the Future fans all over the world will share our enthusiasm.”

Producer Colin Ingram said: “This show has been six years in the making and we are delighted to be showing it to the people of Manchester first before the rest of the world gets to see it.  As I did with Ghost – The Musical, Manchester gets it first, so synchronize your watches because, when this musical hits 88 mph, you’re going to see some serious…entertainment!”

Tickets priced from £19.95 go on sale on Friday, May 24th, from the Opera House box office on 0844 871 3018