I had modest expectations for “Back to the ’80s.”
I knew Staples Players’ summer show would be fun. I figured I’d spend last night entertained and amused, by a typically high-quality Players production.
But the ’80s were 3o-plus years ago. That’s more than a decade before the high school performers were born. How much could they really “get” the music, the memories, the pop culture references?
They did more than get it. They blew the audience away.
The “Get Out Of My Dreams (Get Into My Car)” ensemble. (Photo/Kerry Long)
“Back to the ’80s” is one of the best shows you’ve never heard of.
It’s laugh-out-loud hilarious.
The reinterpretations of songs — from “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and “Love Shack” to “Total Eclipse of the Heart” and (especially) “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” — is eye-opening.
Colin Konstanty, Jasper Burke, Nick Rossi and Sam Mandelbaum cut loose. (Photo/Kerry Long)
And the little touches (embarrassingly short shorts on guys, bad hair on girls) bring you right back to the days of Pac-Man and David Hasselhof.
There are plenty of things to do today and tomorrow. Many of them can wait.
Make time — if you can — for “Back to the ’80s.” Bring the kids, even if they were born in the 2000s.
Only 3 performances remain: Today (Saturday, July 13, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.), and tomorrow (Sunday, July 14, 3 p.m.). Tickets are available by clicking here, or at the Staples High School auditorium.
Trust me (and Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes): You’ll have the time of your life.
Mia Kobylinkski and Charlie Zuckerman (Photo/Kerry Long)
Staples Players director David Roth does a star turn as the show’s 2019 narrator. (Photo/Kerry Long)