Ghost – The Musical is a musical theatre adaptation of the famous film ‘Ghost’ from 1990, starring Patrick Swayze. Fans of the film of Ghost will enjoy this musical adaptation, which is fun but also has many emotional, moving moments. Here’s my Ghost – The Musical theatre review.
Overview of Ghost – The Musical
Anyone who has seen the film Ghost will be familiar with the plot. So my Ghost – The Musical theatre review won’t give any plot spoilers if you’ve already seen the film!
Ghost – The Musical follows the story of Molly and Sam. These young lovers have recently got a flat together in New York, and they’re in the happy, honeymoon period of their relationship. They have some happy songs together, showing their love. And this includes the famous ‘Unchained Melody’ song, in the famous scene with the pottery wheel.
However, their happiness is short lived. After a night out, someone tries to mug Sam and steal his wallet – but he fights back, and ends up getting shot. However, although he seems dead to Molly – Sam is actually still there as a ghost. And as a ghost, he sees that the man who shot him was part of a wider plot that involves someone he thought of as a friend to try to steal money. And now Molly is in danger from these people as they try to finish their job. Sam realises he has become a ghost because he has unfinished business – he needs to protect Molly from these people before he can pass on.
So Sam seeks the help of a psychic so he can try to talk to Molly. He finds Oda Mae Brown, and through her he persuades Molly that he really is there as a ghost, and that she is in danger. The ghost of Sam helps Molly to overcome the danger. And when she is safe, he is free to pass onto the other side in an emotional farewell.
What I liked about Ghost – The Musical
I really enjoyed Ghost – The Musical. I thought it was a good adaptation of the film. The story was clear and easy to follow, and there were plenty of romantic moments as well as some humour. I enjoyed the love songs that Sam and Molly sang to each other before Sam was shot. It was a lovely, happy opening to the show. You could really see the love between Sam and Molly, and the songs were good too.
My absolute favourite part of the show was the second version of the song ‘Unchained Melody’ in the second half. This song features in the first half of the song, when Sam is alive, and he sings this song to Molly. I enjoyed that part of the show. But the song comes back in the second half, when Molly believes Oda Mae Brown that Sam really is there, and Sam then uses Oda Mae’s body to be able to touch Molly again. It’s such an emotional scene. I was completely in tears – and not just a bit teary, proper face-screwed-up-crying tears. It was just so emotional and moving, when Molly was able to feel Sam again for one last time. The music and the acting just really conveyed the love between Molly and Sam, and how they were able to have this one last moment together.
I also really loved the song ‘With You’. I’d heard the song before I saw the musical, and already loved the song. But it was even more beautiful seeing it live on stage. I thought Molly really conveyed the emotion through the song, and it was another beautiful moment in the show.
What I wasn’t so sure about
Although I enjoyed Ghost – The Musical, and there were some scenes that I absolutely loved, there were a few elements of this show that I wasn’t so sure about. The main thing was that I thought there was sometimes a bit too much light-hearted humour. The story of Ghost is romantic but also really sad. I thought some humour was ok, but I thought they sometimes did too much humour. One of the main parts of the show where I thought they got the humour level wrong was the jolly, happy song that happens right after Sam dies. He meets another ghost, who explains about being a ghost. At this point in the show, Sam has just died and Molly has just lost the love of her life. But the song from the older ghost is really upbeat and jolly. I felt like the jolly song didn’t fit with the emotion of what had just happened.
I also felt like Ghost – The Musical made the first rendition of the song ‘Unchained Melody’ more about the humour than the romance. In the film, this is a super romantic, sensual scene. But in the musical on stage, it felt more about humour than romance. In the musical, Sam plays the song for Molly on his guitar and sings it in a joke-y, sort-of-bad way while Molly laughs. It’s still a nice scene, but it doesn’t have the romance that the scene in the film does. I think the musical decided to do this so then the reprise of ‘Unchained Melody’ in the second half would have more impact – the second version is super moving and romantic. So I imagine the musical decided to make the first version more joke-y so it would be more of a contrast to the second version and make the second version more powerful. But I still would have liked the first version to be less joke-y and more romantic.
Would I recommend Ghost – The Musical
I really enjoyed Ghost – The Musical and would definitely recommend going to see it. If you enjoyed the film, then I think you’ll enjoy this show. It’s a good adaptation of the film, with plenty of good new songs. And an amazing version of ‘Unchained Melody’ in the second half. Just make sure you take some tissues for the show, as it’s sad at times! But it’s also fun, romantic and moving. It’s a good show.
Hope you enjoyed my Ghost – The Musical theatre review! Check out my other theatre reviews for more shows in the West End, across the UK and the world.
