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
Sarah Elizabeth Forbush Downs Sarah Elizabeth Forbush Downs Sarah Elizabeth Forbush Downs (1843–1926) was a "dime novelist" from the United States. She wrote novels under her own name, as "Mrs. Georgie Sheldon", and as "Mrs. George Sheldon Downs". Downs was born June 5, 1843, in Wrentham, Massachusetts. Her parents were Edwin A. Forbush and Malvina F. (Ware) Forbush. She received her education at the Ladies' Collegiate Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts. In 1868, she married George Sheldon Downs. She used a form of his name as a pseudonym in much of her writing. Her career began with newspaper contributions in 1869. She was signed by