Carmen Cusack the standby, Jemma Rix, had been given the lead role. Cusack was with the company from June 10 to July 10, 2009. She left to begin rehearsals for "South Pacific". In 2009, Cusack played Nellie Forbush in the first national tour of "South Pacific". Based on the 2008 Broadway revival, performances began September 18, 2009 in San Francisco. For this role Cusack was nominated for the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Non Resident Production. In 2012, she played the role of Miss Gardner in the Off-Broadway revival of "Carrie - The Musical", which began performances at
Edward Howe Forbush Edward Howe Forbush Edward Howe Forbush (April 28, 1858 – March 7, 1929) was a noted Massachusetts ornithologist and a prolific writer, best known for his book "Birds of New England". Born in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1858, he was a precocious naturalist. His family moved to West Roxbury, when he was seven. As an older child, he conducted field studies of area wildlife and also studied taxidermy. Once again, his family moved to Worcester, where he became a member of the Worcester Natural History Society, and began to publish the results of his studies. At the age of sixteen he