Ad disclosure: We were provided with press tickets for the purpose of this post.
Yesterday evening James & I went to The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham city centre to attend the press night for Ghost the Musical, which just has a couple more stops on the 2024 – 2025 UK tour. It has been years since I last saw the original film, but this musical version definitely lived up to my memories of it, with some great music, phenomenal singing, and an engaging story.
Rebekah Lowings and Josh St. Clair were both brilliant in their roles as Molly and Sam, and Jacqui Dubois absolutely stole the show as Oda Mae Brown. All three managed to fill the shoes of the original film cast, Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze, and Whoopi Goldberg, without resorting to charicature.
If you’re not already familiar with the story, here’s a brief overview: Sam and Molly are in love and building a happy life together. However, Sam is tragically killed in what appears to be a mugging. Realising that it was actually a murder, Sam’s ghost discovers that Molly is now in danger. Determined to save his love, Sam seeks the help of the psychic Oda Mae, who assists him in communicating with his love and ultimately rescuing Molly from harm.
The story is peppered with some very enjoyable original songs, though the infamous Unchained Melody from the original film is woven into the show (not always seamlessly!) several times. A few songs particularly stood out to me; Rebekah’s moving performance of With You was absolutely phenomenal, and Josh blew the audience away with Teach Me How. The score has changed quite significantly since the original cast album was recorded and I for one would love them to release an updated one with the songs included in this production.
Ghost the Musical definitely has the nostalgic factor – there are plenty of moments that I had completely forgotten about but made me think fondly of the original film. Not just the iconic ‘love pottery’ scene, but also Ode Mae’s grand entrance, the whole scene at the bank with ‘Rita’, and quite a few more.
Rebekah and Josh had fantastic on-stage chemistry as Molly and Sam, and I believe Sam and Ode Mae made a great comedic duo at times. While the storyline may be a bit dark, dealing with murder and grief, there were also plenty of laughs. Jacquis Dubois’s portrayal of Ode Mae was particularly noteworthy, as she brought such great expression to the character that she kept the audience chuckling regularly.
Jules Brown delivered an exceptional performance as Willie Lopez, while Jamie Pritchard’s portrayal of Carl (in his cover role), the ambitious best friend, was equally impressive. Garry Lee’s performance as the somewhat unhinged Subway Ghost was particularly noteworthy. He effectively conveyed a sense of craziness and disturbance.
One thing that truly amazed me was the on-stage illusions. Props appeared to levitate, and dead bodies seemingly materialised out of thin air as their ghosts emerged from them. For instance, a ghost rose from a hospital bed, and seconds later, nurses draped a sheet over the bed, revealing a ‘body’ beneath it. I have theories about how some of the illusions were accomplished, but they were executed exceptionally well, leaving the audience in a state of shock at times.
The clever use of a semi-transparent subway train set piece was particularly noteworthy. Lighting tricks were used to reveal what happened within the train, but at other moments, it functioned as a solid backdrop to what was happening on the platform. The lighting throughout the show was excellent and really enhanced the ghostly aspects, particularly in the final scenes.
If I had to critique the show, I’d say the audio levels were slightly off during Ode Mae’s first song, making her words indistinct unless she was belting. Additionally, the timeline was a bit unclear at times, creating a disjointed feeling. For instance, one moment Molly is overwhelmed by grief and uncertain about what to believe, and the next, she comes across as a little too hopeful and over it in Nothing Stops Another Day.
However, the ending was absolutely beautiful, and there were definitely some tears in my eyes. Ghost remains a timeless love story in musical form, just as it was in the original movie – and I loved rediscovering the story on stage. It’s been ages since I last saw the film, so many moments and twists had slipped my mind until I saw this adaptation. I highly recommend this musical to anyone who enjoys a good musical, especially if you enjoyed the original film.
Ghost the Musical is on at the Alex until Saturday 5th April, with great availability at these performances in particular: Wed 2 Apr, 2.30pm & 7.30pm and Thu 3 Apr 7.30pm. The running time is around 2 hours 15 mins, including the interval.
You can find out more & book tickets on the ATG website.
If you want a little taste of Josh & Rehbekahs amazing voices check out this medley:
