Paul Downham is the man who knows everything there is to know about Ghost The Musical, and writes his piece below on the 2 final shows in London last weekend. There’s also a fans video of Matthew Warchuss speech that Paul refers to at the end of the feature.
BELIEVE!
Having been present at the 1st ever performance of Ghost the Musical in Manchester on the 28th March 2011 and following the show religiously from that day forward it was with a very heavy heart that I walked into the Piccadilly Theatre on Saturday for what I knew were going to be the final 2 performances in the West End.
A tradition at final matinee performances in the UK of a shows run is the ‘muck up matinee’ where cast and crew play practical jokes on each other during the performance without greatly affecting the show as a whole. The cast and crew of Ghost did not disappoint on Saturday with many jokes being played that were designed to appeal to the regular audience members. Without going into detail all I’ll say is that we had Australian Police officers, topless male dancers and a flasher all done in the best possible taste of course.
The audiences at both performances were possibly two of the best I have been a part of during the last 19 months and were very very loud, with Sharon D Clarke’s ‘Outta Here’ getting by far the biggest ovation of the day barring of course the ‘Believe’ bows! The theatre however, fell silent for the final scene, Sam’s Assent, with Mark, Siobhan and Sharon not needing to use their extensive acting talents to portray the grief of the moment, I can safely say that the tears shed during the scene at both performances were very real as the realisation sank in that this would be the last time they played out the scene.
Following a deafening curtain call at the evening performance the shows director, Matthew Warchus took to the stage and thanked everyone who has been involved in the show from its conception to the present day. Matthew also confirmed the news every member in the audience wanted to hear, that Ghost the Musical will return on a UK tour next year.
Following a lengthy session at stage door signing hundreds of autographs the entire cast and crew moved up the road to the local public house to engage in some much needed refreshments and to say their goodbyes to each other before going their separate ways. Some of the cast have been with Ghost since parts of the show were previewed at Abbey Road Studios back in 2010; so to say goodbye was especially hard for them.
It has been a pleasure following this show since it opened in Manchester, albeit emotional at times. I have made some very good lifelong friends as a result of Ghost and if you think I’m leaving the show there, you are very much mistaken. The UK tour is scheduled to begin in Cardiff during April 2013 and you can guarantee I will be there on opening night believing all over again. For fellow believers wanting the latest news on the tour you can visit www.facebook.com/ghostontour , follow us on @ghostontour and of course we will be providing updates on euythmics.me.uk when they become available.
So for the next six months Ghost the Musical will be out of our lives but never far from the thoughts of its fans. It’s not that long until April, is it? In the meantime we will all continue to BELIEVE!
Paul Downham
@ghostmusicalfan