Little Shop of Horrors

It would be easy to think this is just a crazy story about a plant that has plans to take over the world, consuming the human population as it does so. But as with many musicals, there is another layer.  It is also about damaged people and their relationships and it was interesting to see how the characters of Audrey and Seymour grew and showed more self-belief,  as Audrey Two grew. Because of this, other relationships changed.  Orin the psychopathic dentist, who had utterly controlled Audrey, met his end.  Mushnik who had kept Seymour so downtrodden also got his comeuppance.  So very interesting to watch this unfold.

The set was most attractive with the Flower Shop, understandably, taking much of the space.  A stage extension was used for the dentist and another for the area for the bins. There was a cloth to hide the shop while the action was taking place downstage.   This enabled the production to run smoothly with minimal interruption for set and scene changes.  Cleverly lighting sections of the stage also assisted this.  The Flower Shop was attractively dressed, especially once Audrey Two had brought prosperity to Mushnik and Son and many displays of flowers were added.  The quaint cash register and the old style telephones were a lovely touch. Audrey Two was realistically manipulated and her words spoken by a female voice somehow suited the manipulative behaviour of the plant.

The actors had absorbed and understood the characters they were playing, bringing them to life.  There were some wonderful contrasts.  Seymour, so apologetic and with so little self-esteem, at least initially.   Audrey, so vulnerable, so prepared to accept whatever happened to her, although she too began to believe in herself as her love for Seymour grew and she realised he also loved her.   Mushnik with little thought for his employees, using charm, persuasion, indeed anything to further his own interests.  Orin, such a bizarre character, the complete psychopath, who would want him as your dentist?  These characters were played with total conviction.

 There were some very attractive "pictures" when the ensemble was on stage.   With so little available space this must have involved some careful planning by the choreographer and the director and support from the actors.  Indeed the production as a whole indicated that there had been a good degree of teamwork.  Dancing was attractively choreographed and performed,  mainly by the three girls, Ronette, Chiffon, and Crystal.  This musical doesn't have very much involvement for the ensemble but the individuality that they brought to their characters added interest and  It was good to see that it was from there that the smaller parts were cast.

The small band of five musicians played with energy and sensitivity.  The music was a joy to listen to and really moved the story along.   Singing was good and often really lovely, with some very pleasing harmonies.  American accents were maintained well through both the musical numbers and the spoken dialogue but sometimes because of this clarity did tend to suffer.

The Costumes had been well researched and the choice of costumes for all the characters was good, they were right for the situation.  Seymour was dressed in suitably geeky clothes, just enough without overdoing it and the dentist was wearing the predictably bloodstained white coat. 

The director, musical director, and choreographer were fairly new to those roles.  This production was impressive, they had brought a freshness of ideas and enthusiasm to the production,  aided by the experienced and talented cast.  

 

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