Imagine it . . . Bill and Ted: The Musical.

Think it couldn't happen?

Well, it already did!

Yes, it's true . . . there has been a stage musical based on Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure!

Well, sort of . . . .

Let us explain . . . .

It was in 1992 that Dean Collinson, a singer, songwriter and actor, first saw the Bill and Ted movies and set about to write a musical version of our favorite movies with his writing partners Mick Walsh and Gene Jacobs.  In October 1998, Dean Collinson would win the Vivien Ellis Award for Best New Musical Composer for the music to Bill & Ted's Excellent Musical Adventure.

Photos from www.deancollinson.com

The musical seems to have been staged at least a couple of times, once as a three week run during the Edinburgh Festival at the venue The Pleasance in Scotland.  The other was a condensed version on May 4, 2000 as part of a program called "Musical Futures" at the Greenwich Theatre in London.  At the Greenwich Theatre the original cast was comprised of Mark Powell (as Bill, see photo above), Norman Bowman (as Ted, see photo above), John Wilder, Katie Night Adams, Lewis Griffis, Gerard Bentall, Jo Gatt, Jeff Crosland and Gene Jacobs.  This presentation was choreographed by Vicki Coote and directed by Suzanne Rigden.  At the Edinburgh Festival the part of The Grim Reaper was played by Philip Clayton Smith.  Another internet source states that Genghis Khan was played by Tobin Saunders, possibly at Edinburgh.  Both shows were performed to enthusiastic sold out audiences!

A soundtrack CD was recorded by Glenn Carter and Dean Collinson and features the creative 80's style music which is featured in the show.  Highlights from the musical book include Don't Surrender (a hauntingly beautiful song about friendship which Dean would also use in another musical he wrote called Tomorrow Never Knows) and A Little Bit of You, a love song in which Bill and Ted profess their love to the Princess Babes.  Other songs like Relax! and A Soldier's Heart capture the style and feel of the 80's perfectly and help set the show in that time frame.

At this time there are no solid plans to stage the musical again (licensing rights have not been worked out) but it's intriguing to know this musical version of the films does exist and has been performed!

Click here to read the script for the show!
Courtesy of the Glenn Carter Fan Club - clicking the above line will prompt you to open or save a .doc file