Full casting announced for Australian production of Ghost The Musical

Casting has been announced for the upcoming Australian production of Ghost The Musical directed by Matthew Warchus.

Legendary Wicked star Jemma Rix will lead the cast as Molly. Rix starred as Elphaba in the Melbourne, Sydney, Singapore, South Korean, New Zealand and Filipino productions of Wicked between 2008 and 2015. 

Reprising her performance from the UK and Asian tours is Wendy Mae Brown as Oda Mae Brown. The cast also includes former Australian Idol finalist Rob Mills (Fiyero in Australian production of Wicked) as Sam and Alex Rathgeber (Rocky Horror/Anything Goes) as Carl.

Review: Ghost The Musical (UK Tour) at the Milton Keynes Theatre

Ghost (UK Tour)

Milton Keynes Theatre

Reviewed on Wednesday 18th September 2013

Adapted from the 1990 Oscar winning film, Ghost The Musical is a show which will make you cry with both sadness and joy. Following its world premiere at the Manchester Opera House in March 2011, Ghost has gone on to enjoy runs in both the West End and on Broadway. The musical has now been touring the UK for several months and earlier this week also began a tour of the US.

Interview: Wendy Mae Brown, starring as Oda Mae Brown in Ghost The Musical (UK Tour)

Wendy Mae Brown is currently starring as Oda Mae Brown in the UK Tour of Ghost The Musical. Ghost the Musical has already been seen by over 500,000 people and was nominated for five Olivier Awards and three Tony Awards. The musical is described as “a timeless fantasy about the power of love.” 

The show follows Sam who is trapped as a ghost between this world and the next trying to communicate with girlfriend Molly through Oda Mae Brown in the hope of saving her from his murderer. Ghost the Musical is a rollercoaster ride of romance and comedy with dazzling state-of-the-art staging. 

Most recently Wendy Mae Brown played Hattie in Kiss Me Kate at the Old Vic and Chichester Festival Theatre. Her other theatre credits include Rent at the Prince of Wales Theatre/Prince Edward Theatre and UK tour, To Kill a Mockingbird at Theatre Clwyd and UK tour, Cotton at West Yorkshire Playhouse and UK tour, Hey! Mr Producer at the Lyceum Theatre, Little Shop of Horrors at Oldham Coliseum and UK tour, Mamma Mia! at the Prince Edward Theatre and Porgy and Bess at the Savoy Theatre. 

Her screen credits include Last Chance Harvey, Blackbeard the Pirate, The Roundabout, Hatfields and McCoys and Flight 93. 

Last week I caught up with Wendy to find out how she’s enjoying starring in Ghost so far, her obsession with the original 1990 film of Ghost and why she prefers working in theatre to working on screen... 

You’ve just opened the Ghost Tour in Cardiff, how is it going so far? 

It is going amazingly well so far! We’ve had some great reviews and audiences really seem to love it! Ghost is a very technical show and requires all of my energy so I really have to make sure I’m looking after myself. 

What was it that attracted you to the role of Oda Mae Brown? 

Well... for starters we nearly share the same name! I also think I’ve been leading up to this role because over the years I’ve become really into psychics! I sometimes think that you are just born to play a role. I also really love the film and as a black performer you watch anything with a black person in and think “oo – I could do that!” But back then I never thought for a minute it would be turned into a musical, despite the fact that I practically knew every single line! I heard about the show when it opened in the West End but I never got the chance to see it and then suddenly the audition for the tour came up and I thought “hmmm... that would be a fun role!” – and that was it!