MADISON, Wis. — When “Back to the Future” was first released in theaters in 1985, David Josefsberg was one of the many who saw it.
Starring Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly and Christopher Lloyd as Dr. Emmett (Doc) Brown, the film follows Marty as he accidentally travels back to 1955 in his scientist friend Doc Brown’s time-traveling DeLorean automobile. When he unintentionally prevents his parents from falling in love, he’s forced to fix it to preserve his own existence and somehow get “back to the future.”
Over the years, the film has become a time-honored classic.
What Josefsberg didn’t know is that 43 years later, the story would be transformed into a musical for Broadway by the same person who created the entire franchise, Bob Gale.
David Josefsberg as “Doc” and Lucas Hallauer as “Marty.” (Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade)
So when his opportunity to star in the adaptation in New York came, he took up the chance, starting in the smaller role of Principal Strickland, Marty’s high school principal. About twice a week, he also went on as the infamous Doc Brown. Eventually, he’d take over the role in the touring production.
He jokes he “just had to wait 40 years to be Doc Brown.”
And he had big, Christopher Lloyd-sized shoes to fill.
“This role is iconic, so you have to honor what that is,” Josefsberg said.
David Josefsberg as “Doc Brown” in “Back to the Future: The Musical.” (Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade)
Part of honoring that role in the Broadway musical is the inclusion of unforgettable lines like, “Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.”
But he said he also gets to bring some of himself to the role.
“We all just bring the little bits and the little pieces of who we are based on this great roadmap that Christopher Lloyd created for us,” he said.
Given that the show is rooted in the film, there are many similarities, Josefsberg said, aside from one thing.
“You get the friendship, you get Marty seeing his parents, you get all the great things from the film, but just a little more dancing, a little more singing,” he said.
Zan Berube as “Lorraine Baines,” Mike Bindeman as “George McFly,” Lucas Hallauer as “Marty” and Company of “Back to the Future: The Musical.” (McLeod9 Creative)
Josefsberg said Doc Brown gets to be a “rock star in this one.”
“It’s a crazy ball of incredible energy. We have one of the hardest-working ensembles in show business, dancing and running around,” he said.
In all the chaos, one moment of calm stands out for Josefsberg.
“A lot of the show is high energy and you get all the great Huey Lewis songs and you get all the like ‘Earth Angel’ and ‘Johnny B. Goode’ and all these songs, but there is one moment where Doc really lets down his manic craziness,” he said.
That happens during the song “For The Dreamers.”
Lucas Hallauer as “Marty McFly” rides in the DeLorean. (McLeod9 Creative)
“And he’s like, ‘This one’s for the dreamers, whoever tried to make it, though every few ever break through, we celebrate,’ and it’s about them keeping up… failing and failing and getting back up,” Josefsberg said. “And I think that’s the part I love best because I’m sort of this positive guy. I teach breathwork and I always think life is so short, so you know, take these experiences and so I think that part of Doc, the trying and creating and the getting back up off the floor and eventually one succeeding.”
Another big part of the show is all the moving parts. From hoverboards to skateboards to the DeLorean, they all help bring the show to life.
Screens, though, play an integral role in showing the full town and building illusion for the audience.
“It really is pretty incredible, and it really looks like the car is driving,” Josefsberg said, referencing the time-traveling automobile used throughout the show.
Video sequences are crucial in the iconic clock tower scene, another favorite of Josefsberg’s. In that moment, Doc is trying to get the electricity together so that when the lightning bolt strikes, it hits the time-traveling DeLorean to send it back to 1985.
David Josefsberg as “Doc Brown.” (Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade)
“So it goes back and forth between that, Marty driving through the streets, me on the clock tower and you hear the music from the movie and it’s a mixture of us and video and the music, the interstitial, amazing music from the film and the first time, even many, many times I got a tear in my eye just for the nostalgia of it all,” Josefsberg said.
Aside from taking in the show’s nostalgia, he said it also provokes you to think about family and how your parents are people too.
“I really do think, like people ask, would you rather go into the past or the future? And I would love to go back in time to see my parents as they were in high school and when they had their hopes and dreams,” he said.
The touring company of “Back to the Future: The Musical.” (Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade)
Reflecting on his role as Doc, he said he hopes audiences also take away another major message.
“If you fail, fail hard and keep failing, and the only way that you can fully fail is if you stop trying, so keep going for it and keep trying,” Josefsberg said.
“Back to the Future: The Musical” will make its Wisconsin debut at the Overture Center for the Arts from March 10-15, 2026. You can purchase tickets, here.
