Bat Out Of Hell musical arrives for world premiere

The long-awaited Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical is set to take to stage in Manchester for its world premiere this weekend, almost 50 years since the show was created.

Grammy Award winning record producer Jim Steinman is the man behind Meat Loaf’s ‘Bat Out Of Hell’ and ‘Bat Out Of Hell II: Back Into Hell’ best-selling albums, but it was originally written as a musical in the early 1970s. Manchester has been chosen as the city to showcase the musical, before it heads to London in the summer.

Taking to the stage at the Manchester Opera House from Friday February 17 until Saturday April 8, the musical is a romantic adventure about rebellious youth and passionate love, set against the backdrop of a post-cataclysmic city adrift from the mainland where Strat, the forever young leader of The Lost, has fallen for Raven. Raven, who has been locked away in the palace towers and Strat sets out to rescue her from her evil father’s clutches in a full throttle tale of teenage love and living the rock and roll dream.

The team behind the musical features some of the most impressive names in the music industry, including Canada’s answer to Andrew Lloyd Webber, Michael Cohl. Michael, the former chairman of Live Nation, has produced the tours of over 150 artists, including Michael Jackson and The Rolling Stones.

The producer, who has also been the man behind Broadway and West End musicals including Rock of Ages and Hairspray, was first approached by Jim Steinman over eight years ago. He said: “When I heard the story, I had promoted Jim and Meat Loaf as performers for years in Canada, and I thought it was a fantastic idea.

“I think the audience will love the show. The songs are classic, the story is a perfect mix of Peter Pan, West Side Story and Romeo and Juliet.

“I think the show will appeal to all sorts of people. It is in the same category as Jersey Boys and Mamma Mia in my opinion; the shows have their core fans. As we all saw with Mamma Mia, it draws more and more people in and grows with people. I think at the start, it will be Meat Loaf fans coming along, but over time, it will attract younger people and a wide audience.”

The musical will also include 17 of Meat Loaf’s greatest hits including I’d Do Anything for Love, Dead Ringer For Love and Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad.

The team behind the musical chose to head to Manchester before anywhere else because of the city’s musical legacy. Michael said: “We wanted to play somewhere before we head to London in the summer. There were many places available, but Manchester made the most sense. It has the Opera House and has a terrific track record within the music and theatre industry.

“I hope like heck that people will come and that they love it and enjoy it. Although the music used has been around for years, this is a new project that Jim has created. We are treating the songs in a way that people will love, but in a way to make them different too, so it is a challenge.”

The show stars Andrew Polec, who will be making his UK debut, and Christina Bennington, who has taken on roles in performances included Sweeney Todd and Oklahoma. Michael said: “The feeling among the cast at the moment is fantastic. Meat Loaf has been helping us with the whole process of the show, offering his comment and advice and has been incredibly supportive to the team.

“I think the feeling and excitement among the cast members is the key to what makes this show so great, most of the actors and actresses are young and in their teens and 20s, people that weren’t even born when this record came out and many of whom weren’t familiar with the music before getting involved with the show.

“Watching them as the rehearsals go on, singing and dancing on and off stage, you see that the music is still as infectious as it ever was. The appeal is that they are epic pieces of music which are so unlike anything else.”

Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical will be in Manchester until April 2017.