Ghost The Musical at Regent Theatre Stoke on Trent Review

DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW

Reviewed by Becky B

As a teenager, growing up in the 1990’s I was a huge fan of the iconic film Ghost, so I was thrilled to be able to review Ghost the Musical at the Regent Theatre, Stoke on Trent. I knew the Oscar-winning film with its big-name cast would be a tough act to follow but I was excited to see how the film translated to a stage musical.

Ghost the Musical is based on the film written by Bruce Joel Rubin. As in the film, the musical tells the story of Sam and Molly, a young couple, hopelessly in love, building a life together in New York, when tragedy hits and Sam is murdered. Sam is shocked to learn he has died and even more shocked as he slowly unravels the circumstances of his death and he makes it his mission to protect Molly and solve his own murder, enlisting the help of psychic Oda Mae Brown.

The set is cleverly designed to depict several locations including the Manhattan skyline from Molly and Sam’s apartment, the streets where Sam and Molly are mugged and the bank where Sam and Carl (Sam’s friend and colleague) work, the subway and Oda Mae’s shop. The scene changes are swift and simple but effective with some clever lighting effects used to build the drama.

Fans of the film will recognise some iconic scenes which are included in the musical from the pottery wheel scene to the angry subway ghost who teaches Sam how to move objects and Sam perusing Oda Mae for help, with the 10,000 green bottles song. Rebekah Lowings and Josh St Clair have great chemistry as Molly and Sam, and Rebekah portrays a heartbroken Molly to perfection after Sam is murdered, drawing the whole audience into the sense of grief and despair. James Mateo-Salt also gives a great performance of the devious Carl, the villain of the story.

There are many new songs which have been written for the musical, and of course, the classic unchained melody makes a couple of appearances, with a standout moment being when Sam and Molly sing this as a duet towards the end. (I heard a few of the audience refer to how they got ‘goose bumps’ at this point as they were leaving). The main cast all had impressive vocal talents, which were showcased well throughout, if I were being a little critical, there were a couple of times when the audio balance wasn’t quite spot on and would benefit from a little adjustment. For example, there was an occasion where it was difficult to hear Sam’s lyrics because of the background music being a little loud, but this was short lived and didn’t really detract from our enjoyment.

We were thrilled to discover that Les Dennis made a couple of appearances, and although these were short roles, they stood out and added a little humour to what is quite a dark story. Another stand out and a constant source of humour was Oda Mae Brown, played by Jacqui Dubois who stole every scene she was in. I couldn’t imagine anyone other than Whoopi Goldberg in this role, but Jacqui was amazing and although she remained true to the ‘spirit’ of the original Oda Mae, she made this her own. We loved the rendition of ‘Are you a Believer?’, this was a real highlight!

Without giving too much away and spoiling the surprises, I was amazed at some of the effects that were used. Keep an eye out for each time a character dies and their soul leaves the body! There are times when the sound effects change suddenly so be prepared for a couple of jumpy moments, there was one in particular that caught almost everyone off guard. I think this builds the feeling of danger and uncertainty to reflect the atmosphere of the story.

The main cast were all fantastic and all gave flawless delivery of their roles. While the ensemble cast, and the supporting orchestra were also seamless and delivered quality performances throughout.

I was pleased that the musical was true to the film that we are all so familiar with and the musical ‘channelled’ the spirit of the film Ghost, but with the new music and a young and talented cast, this was a hit for us and seemingly the rest of the audience, gaining a standing ovation at the end. It’s a fantastic interpretation of a classic, which would appeal to fans of the original as well as new fans who have never seen the film.

Rating: 5/5

I would rate Ghost the Musical 5/5
Tickets cost from £15 plus a transaction fee of £3.95.
Ghost the Musical is at the Regent Theatre, Stoke on Trent from Tuesday 12th November to Saturday 16th of November, for more information or to book tickets visit https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/ghost-the-musical/regent-theatre/ or call the box office on 0844 871 7627.
The Regent Theatre, Piccadilly, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST1 1AP.