Ghostly goings on at Torquay's Princess Theatre

Jacqui Dubois is back on the road playing iconic character Oda Mae Brown, a phony medium who finally realises she has the gift to talk to the dead, in the hit show Ghost- The Musical, which comes to Torquay this month.

The stage show takes inspiration from the hit 90s film Ghost, which starred the late Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg. It was the highest grossing film of 1990 and won an Oscar for screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin who has adapted his screenplay for this musical.
The haunting love story is centred around the character Sam who is murdered when he and his girlfriend Molly are walking home one night. With the help of Oda Mae, Sam, who is trapped between worlds, gets to communicate with Molly and he goes on a mission to find out who murdered him.
Jacqui enjoys playing Oda Mae and has played the role before on tour.
"It's a well written part. It’s a challenge to my acting skills as my character can’t see the ghost," she said.
“I get to use all my skills including dancing, singing and acting, which is great.
"When I was first auditioning for the part of Oda Mae, I was in People, Places & Things and Demi Moore had come in to see Denise Gough who I was in the show with. She has gone on to meteoric work now.
"I met Demi briefly and said to her that it's really funny meeting her at that time and said it's a really good omen, and here I am now for the third time.
"I love playing Oda Mae. I feel each time I play her I feel I learn something new about stagecraft.’’
Jacqui, who has an extensive CV as a singer and performer having appeared in the likes of The Lion King, Bed Knobs and Broomsticks, and Rent has also worked with the likes of Kate Bush, has had no problem living up to playing Oda Mae, the character Whoopi Goldburg made famous.
"I don't feel pressure, I'm not that type of person," she said confidently.
"I just do me. We both had the same scripts from the film and musical, lucky for me the first time we went out, we had the writer Bruce Ruben talk about the character which was incredible.
"I have great respect for Whoopi. I played Shenzi, which originated in The Lion King which Whoopi played too."
Jacqui said she is in the tour until May 2025 and the reactions each night from the audiences always leave a lasting mark on her.
"People laugh and cry, you can hear a lot of sniffling and giggling and can feel the emotion in the venues," she said.
"The audience goes on a real rollercoaster of emotions. It's a good family show and you can share it with the younger generations, who may not have heard of the film. It’s also cathartic if you've lost someone. It can be sad but good for the soul.
"It's unique how the real world and not real world collides on stage rather than film magic, people are left thinking how did they do that?"
Jacqui was brought up by her grandparents and enjoyed nothing more than watching films on a Sunday with them starring the likes of Gene Kelly and then copying them.
Her passion for performing was unleashed when she was ten and she started ballet classes in a local   church hall and loved the freedom and independence of going to dance sessions.
After starting an office job working as a sales rep for Teledata, she met an old ballet friend who had gone on to dance professionally. It spurred her on to follow her heart and start auditioning.
"I really feel this profession chose me, rather than me choosing it," she said.
“Office work wasn’t for me.”
She's looking forward to returning to Torquay, having been here in 2017 in the same show then.
"I'm familiar with Torquay and its hills," she joked.
"The main memory I have was driving along the seafront and having to take a sharp left to get to my digs and stalling my car and I couldn't get up the hill," she said giggling.
"I parked my car and didn't use it again the whole week in Torquay.
"My best friend's partner's family lives there too so I hope to see them and here’s a big shout out to them as it's always nice to have familiar faces at a venue."
See Ghost-The Musical at the Princess Theatre, Torquay, from October 15-19.