Perhaps it is no coincidence that the North American tour of “Beetlejuice” launches in Fresno on Friday the 13th. Audiences are safe, as long as they do not repeat the not-so-friendly ghost’s name three times.

The Broadway musical based on the 1988 movie has been staged worldwide. The first of three Fresno performances begins Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Saroyan Theatre.

Catie Davis has been the longtime associate director for the Broadway production and its world tours, working on the show for 10 years. She is now directing the latest leg of the tour.

Although her title has changed, Davis said the work remains the same: “maintaining the artistic brilliance that director Alex Timbers and the rest of the team originally created, and then passing on that knowledge and teaching the show to a new company.”

A Theater Background

Davis grew up as a theater kid in Peekskill, New York.

“The first year I got involved, I was a performer, but I was really interested in directing. I was able to start doing that when I was just 16,” Davis said in an interview with GV Wire.

She founded her own production company at 17, staging “Rent,” before heading to New York University.

An internship with The Public Theater led her to Timbers, who later directed the Broadway version of “Beetlejuice.”

“The show has been a long journey, but I got involved in the early stages when it was still being written. Alex, the producers, the writers and I would get together and read through early scripts,” Davis said.

What Does a Director Do?

Because this is the first performance of a six-month tour, the cast and crew have been in Fresno since last week, setting up the production and making last-minute tweaks.

During the development of a show, Davis said, the director can be “a sounding board, an outside eye who watches the story and offers feedback.”

That feedback can include how to design and use the set. “Beetlejuice,” Davis said, “is ripe with visual ideas.”

“The design has a lot of exciting elements and incorporates more than a typical show. We have puppetry, illusions, special effects and other elements that not every musical has,” Davis said.

The director helps incorporate those elements and works with the choreographer on dance sequences.

Taking the show on the road creates additional challenges, including how to move sets in and out of trucks.

“My role is to figure out how we need to adapt and shift the design slightly to make it tour-able,” Davis said. “Everything has to pack up and move, but we want it to feel and look like the original design.”

Before arriving in Fresno, the new cast rehearsed for three weeks in New York.

“I’m the bridge between the original conversations about how these roles were intended to be played and the strengths these new actors are bringing to them,” Davis said.

Fresno Is the Tour Preview

The Fresno performances are the first in a 29-city tour running through August. The Saroyan Theatre shows are considered preview performances. Davis, along with the choreographer, lighting director and video team, will closely watch the performances.

“We’re looking at what is landing, what is not, and whether we need to draw more focus,” Davis said. “Then I give notes to the actors, we adjust things on stage, and rehearse during the day to tweak the show for the next performance.”

Davis praised the local crew for preparing for Friday’s opening.

“Everyone has been really receptive and warm, and we’re thrilled to be out of the negative temperatures of New York here in Fresno,” Davis said.

Davis said it is typical for the cast to prepare in the opening city for more than a week. After that, it is six days in Sacramento, a week in San Diego and then on to the next stop.

“It is the only time we get to sit down somewhere a little longer and take our time putting the show together,” Davis said. “For audiences here, they’re going to see it really fresh. We will have just finished, and it will be energized and new.”

As director, Davis will not be at every stop, but she said she will check in person about every two months.

“There are people who really thrive in this environment, and I have massive respect for them because I’m exhausted after just one tour stop,” Davis said.

“Beetlejuice” is the first show in the 2026 Broadway Fresno series. Other shows include “Clue” (March 14-15), “Hadestown” (April 7-8) and “Mrs. Doubtfire” (May 26-27).