The stage of the elegant Valentine Theatre becomes a Brooklyn disco when Saturday Night Fever arrives Feb. 16, and a great dancer in a jazzy white suit take audiences back to the 1977.

Saturday Night Fever The Musical, a new production that is part of the Valentine’s Broadway Series, will be presented complete with the Bee Gees songs sung by the cast with live music, including, of course, “Stayin’ Alive, “Night Fever,” “Jive Talking,” “How Deep is Your Love,” and “You Should be Dancing.” Maybe you should be.

Saturday Night Fever, the movie, opened in 1977 and made John Travolta, whose biggest role until then was in the TV sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter, a real movie star — he was nominated for an Academy Award for best actor for his performance.

Set in Brooklyn and Manhattan in 1977, the storyline of this new stage musical centers on Tony Manero, a guy with ambition who is stuck in a paint shop with a job that is taking him nowhere. He has problems at home with his parents, there are racial tensions where he lives, and his friends don’t avoid trouble.

But when he’s in a disco, he’s on top of his world. There’s a girl there, Annette, who has a crush on him, and he sometimes dances with her. But when a dance competition comes up, he turns to the attractive and talented Stephanie instead, and he begins to fall in love.

The Bee Gees’ music made pop culture history when their soundtrack became one of the best-selling in history.

“I think the music is the bedrock of the whole musical, really,” said Matthew Baker, who plays Tony Manero in the touring show. “It’s stood the test of time.”

Plus, he added, the choreography in this musical has those iconic dance moves.

“Tony was the main man on the dance floor, so I have a solo that showcases my dancing quite a lot. But we definitely kept some of the main dance styles from the ’70s, [such as the hustle] with a little updated flavor,” said Baker, who is from Kent, England, but is now a New Yorker. He graduated from Bird College of Performing Arts in London with a national diploma in Musical Theatre; his London credits include Sweeney Todd, Ripper the Musical, and Hair.

His favorite number? “I must say it is when I wear the white suit and we do the competition dance” with Stephanie, Baker said. “Tony is at his pinnacle; he finds this girl he can really connect with because of his dancing, and she understands where he is coming from, from that dance world.

“Now he has someone he can share his life and his passion with. So that’s such a wonderful number, and it ends with a kiss — there’s a lot of romance in that number as well as dancing, so there’s a lot going on. Tony is at his most vulnerable at that point; he breaks down his walls and lets Stephanie in; this is the first time we see the two fall for each other.”

This production also has comedy elements, the actor said. “I think it really does appeal to young people because it’s funny ... and I genuinely believe there’s so much for every type of person.”

Audiences have included theater fans and people who want to go out for an evening to listen to some good music, he added.

Theater-goers might notice that the set has what Baker describes as “hidden messages” echoing the 1977 film, including the famous Farrah Fawcett poster in Tony’s bedroom, an Al Pacino poster on a wall, and one of Sylvester Stallone in Rocky in a corner.

As for that white three-piece suit: when Baker puts it on, does he become Tony?

“Absolutely, anything I wear is Tony ... so when it came to the white suit, it had to be so right. You put it on, you get that buzz of ‘wow, this is that moment, this is the picture that everyone sees on the poster,’ so it definitely makes you feel like you’re some kind of superhero.”

Portraying Tony appealed to him because in some ways it is roughly parallel to his life.

“I was born in the U.K. and recently moved to Manhattan from there, and Tony Manero is getting out of the place he’s in. He knows there’s something better out there, a big wide world is waiting for him. So in that sense I’m kind of like Tony, although I didn’t come from a broken neighborhood” or have family issues.

When he got the role, Baker did some homework. “I did myself actually go to Bay Ridge [Brooklyn], where [the movie] was all set. I went to the house [where Tony and his family lived], the house is still there, from the movie. The disco, unfortunately, is not there anymore, but the dance studios they used, and the pizza place, are,” he said. “Walking around there, it was really nice just to see what people would have been doing in everyday life on a Saturday night.”

Saturday Night Fever The Musical also stars Danielle Marie Gonzalez as Stephanie and features Anna Baker as Annette. It is based on the Paramount/​RSO film and the story by Nik Cohn, adapted for the stage by Robert Stigwood in collaboration with Bill Oakes. It is choreographed by Denis Jones and directed by Jeffrey B. Moss.

“Saturday Night Fever” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 16 at the Valentine Theatre, 400 N. Superior St. Tickets, $48, $58, $68 and $78, are from 419-242-2787, valentinetheatre.com, or at the box office, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Contact Sue Brickey at sbrickey@theblade.com.

First Published February 7, 2016, 5:00 a.m.