'Beetlejuice' musical returns to Philadelphia featuring 2 local cast members

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- He earned his stripes on Broadway and now the ghost-with-the-most is returning to Philly. It looks like you said his name three times, because "Beetlejuice" is back by popular demand.

In this touring Broadway production, two local stars are returning home to the place where their musical theater journeys began.

"It's amazing to perform at the Academy of Music," said Michael Biren from Cherry Hill, New Jersey. "It's a place where I grew up going to see shows and it's amazing to have a chance to perform there. The first time I ever saw 'Beetlejuice' was maybe 10 miles away across the bridge in Cherry Hill!"

Biren has been with this touring Broadway production from day one.

"The show's count is at like 960 shows at this point, and I've been in almost every single one of them," he says. "It's been an incredible, crazy ride!"

Bensalem, Pennsylvania native Marc Ginsburg is an understudy for six roles in the show, including Beetlejuice.

"As Beetlejuice says, he can be a little nasty, which is fun for us," Ginsburg says. "It's fun for the crowds."

This musical adaption of Tim Burton's dearly beloved 1988 film follows Lydia Deetz, who employs a recently deceased couple and Beetlejuice on a revenge mission following the loss of her mother.

"People really latch onto the show for different reasons," Ginsburg says. "We have so many people who feel invisible or unseen or strange and unusual, as we say in the show, in their everyday lives.

People really find something in the show that they relate to, and that's what keeps people coming back and enjoying the show in a way that I truly was not expecting."

But, heads up: there's some language and a little irreverence in this production.

"But you know, for a Philly crowd, that's just business as usual," Ginsburg laughs. "That's what we love about it. But yeah, it's got naughtiness here and there."

"Beetlejuice" opens Tuesday, July 29th at the Academy of Music and runs through Sunday, August 3rd.

For tickets and more information, visit EnsembleArtsPhilly.org.