MUSICAL: Back to the 80's Opens Thursday

Remember the '80s? With slang words "rad" and "tubular," loud fashion palette colors such as neon, what's there to miss about it?

Well, the music––artists Madonna and Michael Jackson and movie theme songs such as Footloose.

Milpitas Rainbow Theatre's musical Back to the 80's is packed with live performances of these songs. It opens this Thursday with nine shows.

Set in a high school, it's a story about a love triangle between the cheerleader, the jock and the nerd.

"It's very cliche, but I love it," said Lauren Alvear, who plays Tiffany Houston, head cheerleader and VP of the senior class at William Ocean High School.

Instead of noticing her neighbor, nerdy Corey Palmer Jr., she's got a crush on a football player.

"Supposedly, he's the good looking guy in the cast," said Chris Bungubung, who plays the role of Michael Feldman. "On the inside, he's really cruel."

"He's extremely popular, but people haven't seen the dark side of him," said Bungubung, who graduated from Milpitas High in 2010.

Back to the 80's will give adults flashbacks, but for the performers of Rainbow Theatre, it's an exploration of a decade they missed. The entire cast was born after the '80s.

But the songs are not new to them, many of them said last Friday at the Rainbow Theatre fundraiser at Blush Yogurt.

"I grew up watching '80s movies," said Jaron Liclican, who plays the character of Corey Palmer, Jr. 

"I used to listen to '80s songs when I was a little kid," said Bungubung.

But what about the fashion styles?

"Nowadays, we have to match everything," said Cortney Hyde, referring to the colorful and wild outfits of the 80s.

But the tunes, hits from the '80s, such as Wake Me Up Before You Go Go and Girls just Want to Have Fun are what the musical is about. There are one or two songs for every scene.

"It's a lot of characters and songs ... and they basically mash them together into one story," said Hyde.

Songs are interactive and involve the audience. So prepare to sing along with the cast as they take you Back to the 80's.

Prices for performances have gone up due to budgetary constraints. General admission (ages 13 and over) is now $12. Children are still $6.

Tickets can be purchased in advance at the  , or an hour in advance of showtime if still available.

will be held most evenings of July 21 - 29.  Noon performance on the , Saturday, July 30.