Review: Ghost the Musical

Musical: Ghost: The Musical
Venue: Manchester Opera House, Manchester
Date: 2nd May 2011 at 19:30
Cast: Caissie Levy (Molly), Richard Fleeshman (Sam), Andrew Langtree (Carl), Sharon D.Clarke (Oda Mae), Ivan de Freitas (Willy Lopez), Adebayo Bolaji (Subway Ghost), Mark White (Hospital Ghost), Lisa Davina Phillip (Clara) and Jenny Fitzpatrick (Louise)
Rating: ****


Review:
After obsessively listened to the samples of the songs from this musical on its official website for such a long time, I finally went to see Ghost: The Musical in its world premiere run at the Manchester Opera House and it was a really wonderful experience. I had Beau and Jibb with me on this trip and we all were very excited about the show. Beau decided she wanted to see the show after I showed her the 1990 movie, on which the show is based, about a month before the show. Since we were a bit late in getting tickets, we were seated in the stall towards the back to the right side, a bit far from the stage but nothing bad to complain about it really.

Having heard all the hypes about the show, I had my expectations up quite high and the show did meet my expectation. I love the projection that they put on at the very beginning and the opening is very movie-like with the projection of "GHOST: THE MUSICAL" and suddenly disappeared and then the show began.

The best thing about the show was probably the female cast. Caissie Levy was our Molly and she was absolutely amazing. The way she handled the role was quite different from Demi Moore but it really suited the show and her personality reall well. Her voice is simply amazing. "With You" was a favourite song for me ever since I heard it on the website and on YouTube (from her live performance at Whatsonstage.com Awards) and here she didn't disappoint at all. Tissue alert here for those sensitive ones.

Caissie Levy as Molly during "With You"

Another scene stealer of the show would definitely have to be Sharon D. Clarke as the iconic role of Oda Mae Brown, the role that brought Whoopi Goldberg her first Oscar.  What I like about her performance was that she was darn funny in every scene she's in and she didn't remind me of Whoopi Goldberg at all. She had her own way of playing the role and her solo number in the second act "I'm Outta Here" was simply hilarious and excellent. Her comedic timing was also impeccable, how could you not love the scene with her at the bank and donating the money to the (later-fainted) nuns of St. Joseph??

Sharon D. Clarke as Oda Mae Brown singing "I'm Outta Here"
after she withdrew 10 million dollars from the bank

Then we had the male leads, Richard Fleeshman and Andrew Langtree as Sam and Carl. I first saw Richard when he was in Legally Blonde and I remembered how I didn't like the way he sang. He had this poppish way of singing and vibration which annoyed me a bit. Here, his singing voice improved a lot, though that little poppish sound was there but it actually worked quite well in the reprise of Unchained Melody in the second act. His acting still needs some work a bit to make it seem more believable but overall definitely a nice improvement from his Legally Blonde days and boy, wouldn't I want to have a body like his!

Richard Fleeshman as Sam
seen here in Molly's apartment after he was murdered

Sam and Molly -- "Here Right Now"

Andrew Langtree, on the other hand, was better in acting the villainous role of Carl but his singing was a bit mediocre for me and I don't know if it's him or the key or the mike but it was quite hard to make out the lyrics of what he was singing.

"More" by Andrew Langtree as Carl and the ensemble

The music overall was a bit of a mixed bag here. Some really nice catchy tune that will definitely stick in your head. I couldn't get "Here Right Now" out of my head for days and it was sung right at the beginning of the show, talk about a catchy tune, huh? The four songs chosen to launch the show, "Here Right Now", "With You", "Let Go" (now called "Hold On") and "I'm Outta Here", was probably the best four out of the bunch. There are other nice tunes and the use of rock music works quite well with the presentation of the show. Though at times, the band drowned out the singing a bit notably during Act One closer (Suspend my Disbelief/I Had a Life) with all three main characters singing at the same time. Some songs were just plain bad that I wished it to end (hopefully will be cut, trimmed, or changed before its London opening) namely "Ball of Wax" and the "Focus" rap.  To me, they disrupted a good emotional flow of the story.

"Ball of Wax" scene with Sam and dead ghosts at the hospital
A bit of a let down for me

Sam singing 'I Had a Life' at the end of Act One
Noted how the wall projected his face at the same time

The subway ghost telling him to "Focus"

The book here sticks very closely to the movie. If you are a fan, you will definitely remember it line for line. This comes as a pro and con because I know that there are people who don't like seeing stage shows exactly copy off the movie and some that do. So it's your call then whether you will like it or not. I like how it reminds me of the good moments in the film. There were some minor adjustments, mostly because what was in the movie was impossible to be done on stage such as the penny scene. I was a bit sad that the pottery scene was not as big a part here as it was in the movie. The incorporation of "Unchained Melody" into the show was very clever and I really like that.

From rehearsal:
Sam played "Unchained Melody" on guitar for Molly
while she took his picture with a digital camera

The scene was mostly video projection on moving-and-foldable walls. I like most of the projections, it really captured the scene of the show very well but there were times when I could do without projection. The lovemaking scene was beautiful though. Then, there were the "treadmill" on the stage floor where they use it to simulate people walking together with the wall projection. They really used it well but again, I wish they could stop walking sometimes.

"More"
Noted the projection symbolising Wall Street

"Rain" scene
with the projection of rain and people walking on the street

Then we had the stage effects which is probably what most people were excited about the show and I was stunned by how they did it. SPOILER ALERT Most of the techniques they used here is not big spectacular techniques but nice and easy ones that made you smile and appreciate the show. The illusions of Sam walking through the door and not touching the can and just disappear out of thin air was fantastic and I still didn't know how they did it. Lighting and projections helped a lot with the overall story telling. Body doubles were used, though I wished it could have been more smoothly. Oda Mae's cloak came in handy many times and the use of Japanese black ninja was found quite a lot during the show.

Sam found himself dead in the arm of Molly

But my most favourite effects was the tearjerking "Unchained Melody" dance between Molly and Oda Mae which turned into Sam towards the end of the story. It was the simplest effect but done at the right moment with the right music and right lighting. Go see that for yourself.

Overall, despite its flaws here and there, this musical was still really good and I was really impressed and my girlfriend said it was worth the trip to Manchester. It really made you appreciate the one you love even more. I had quite a fulfilling feeling coming out of that theatre and so were my friends and other audience. It is now on its way to the Piccadilly Theatre in London and I wish the show the best of luck with the London audience. Are you ready to believe?

The departing kiss
I love the lighting and how Sam was constantly blue

"I love you" "Ditto!"

MUSICAL NUMBERS
ACT ONE
Here Right Now... Molly, Sam, Carl
Unchained Melody... Sam
More... Carl, Sam and Ensemble
Three Little Words... Sam and Molly
Ball of Wax... Sam, Hospital Ghost and Ensemble
Are You a Believer?... Oda Mae, Clara, Louise and Mrs. Santiago
With You... Molly
Suspend My Disbelief/I Had a Life... Molly, Carl, Sam and Ensemble


ACT TWO
Rain/Hold On... Molly, Sam and Ensemble
Life Turns on a Dime... Carl, Molly and Sam
Focus... Subway Ghost
Talkin' 'bout a Miracle... Emsemble
Nothing Stops Another Day... Molly
I'm Outta Here... Oda Mae an Ensemble
Unchained Melody (Reprise)... Sam and Molly
Three Little Words (Reprise)... Sam and Molly