Katherine MacAlister talks to the cast of Ghost the Musical which ends its tour in Oxford

When Ghost finally hits Oxford, it will be the end of the road for the touring musical. So the cast, who have been singing and dancing their socks off around the UK for the past year, will be throwing everything they’ve got into their last performance.

Even so, taking on the legendary parts played on screen so iconically by Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg is no mean feat, but one performed with alacrity, resulting in consistently sobbing theatres and rave reviews.

“At the end of the show all you can hear is sniffling which is always gratifying because you feel as if you have done your job,” Rebecca Trehearn says, who plays Molly.

Even so Rebecca reached emotional breaking point half way through the tour because she was so exhausted. I lost my partner every night on stage and it was quite exhausting and really took it out of me, so I had to stop, reassess and re-explore the part to be able to continue with it. I had to learn to leave it behind every night.”

As for whether Ghost The Musical is a family show, Rebecca says: “There are elements of danger in it, but there are no age restrictions and nothing to terrify people. It’s so cleverly done and the songs are really good and really get across the heightened emotions. So while it has the iconic pottery scene, it’s the technology that really shines through, the illusions are very clever.”

Fellow actor Stewart Clarke, who plays Sam, agrees: “Yes, it’s not easy for a grown man to just walk straight through things,” he interrupts. “There aren’t many parts like it.”

Wendy Mae Brown, who weirdly plays Oda Mae Brown the phoney pyschic, says: “The tour has exceeded all expectations. I don’t think it was expected to be this successful and has taken everyone by surprise.”

And yet most of us have seen the film, so is it very different? “No, it’s faithful to the original script, although my part is much larger than life. Oda wears a multi-coloured coat and sings a lot. She’s mad,” Wendy laughs.

“But Ghost needs a bit of comedy so when I arrive on stage the audience is ready for a bit of a laugh because we take them on a really emotional journey. “It’s one hell of a ride,” she promises.

Even so, the end of the road beckons all of them. “I’m just worried that in a few weeks it will feel like it never happened,” Wendy agrees. “Because this has certainly been my favourite acting experience so far, even if it has been a long tour. But to be honest at the moment I don’t really have time to worry about it,” she says, smiling as she heads back to rehearsals.

SEE IT
Ghost the Musical comes to the New Theatre Oxford from Tuesday until Saturday, March 8. Call the box office on 0844 871 3020 or atgtickets.com/oxford