Little Shop of Horrors

This was a night of two firsts for me – my first visit to the Artrix following its recent, and very much welcome, re-opening, and also my first time seeing COMIC Theatre Company, a Clent-based group who are ramping up their activity following the Covid-enforced hiatus.  So I was very keen to see what they would make of the popular, and very entertaining, musical Little Shop of Horrors.

Little Shop of Horrors tells the tale of a flesh-eating plant which literally falls from space into an unsuspecting community, where it is taken in by hapless florist’s assistant Seymour Krelborn.  Having named the plant Audrey Two, after the co-worker on whom he has a crush, Seymour hits on the idea of using it to attract customers and revive the fortunes of the struggling shop.  This succeeds beyond anyone’s wildest dreams, but it soon becomes clear that the plant requires a very specific type of food, which poor Seymour struggles to provide… 

The first thing I noticed on entering the venue was the very good set, which was properly shabby, immediately establishing the down at heel nature of Mushnik’s florist’s shop.  Little Shop of Horrors presents some staging challenges, since it requires both the interior of the shop and the Skid Row exterior to be shown simultaneously.  This was well handled by the cast, with the landscape largely being respected – very little walking straight through the wall into the shop here! 

Dan Wright gave a strong performance as Seymour Krelborn, which was matched by that of Jess Holmes as Audrey.  They both kept their performances on the right side of caricature, and had a good chemistry together.  Their performance of ‘Suddenly Seymour’ (always a highlight for me) hit the spot perfectly, delivering a real emotional charge.  Audrey’s ‘Somewhere that’s Green’ was another strong moment, touchingly performed. 

Luke Hopson provided good support as Mr Mushnik, forever berating the unfortunate Seymour before the value of his plant leads to an amusing volte-face.  Reece Bushell gave the role of the deranged Orin Scrivello both barrels, especially nailing the character’s nastiness during the dialogue sections.  The Ronettes, as always, carried the bulk of the chorus work and choreography, and Kitty Roberts (Crystal), Laura Sankey (Ronette) and Elisabeth Chisholm-Birch (Chiffon) were more than up to the task. 

The principals were supported by a six-strong ensemble, who were very well used in the group numbers, adding greatly to the sound and also delivering some nice choreography (hats off to Pippa Lacey for that.)  The finale in particular was very good, full of energy and fun, bringing the show to a suitably rousing conclusion. 

So we come to Audrey Two – the human-eating plant that dominates the Little Shop, the fashioning of which is a fundamental part of any performance of this musical.  I’m pleased to say that COMIC did a great job in this regard, with an impressive series of Audrey Twos, all constructed by members of the group.  The largest version had a head that was able to move up and down, something that I’ve not seen before and which worked very well in the final scenes, as the plant swallows its victims whole.  I also really liked the ingenious depiction of the ‘medium sized’ Audrey Two, with its seated puppeteer.  Pete Holmes provided a strong voice for the character, and puppeteer Ian Underwood delivered in terms of its movement.

The show was ably directed by Chloe Turner, keeping the action moving and bringing out the humour and madness of the show – in particular during Seymour and Orin’s encounter at the dentists.  Musical director Chris Corcoran led an accomplished four-piece band, although the volume was such that they occasionally overwhelmed the vocals.  Little Shop of Horrors is a show with some great lyrics, and it’s a shame if these can’t always be heard properly. 

The show was effectively lit by Matt Holmes, in particular during some of the quieter, character moments such as ‘Somewhere that’s Green’.  I also liked the feeling of darkness encroaching as Audrey Two began to take control.  Costumes were also good and appropriate to the 1950s period in which the play is set.

Congratulations to all at COMIC for presenting a high quality performance of this great show.  Nice programme as well, in the form of the ‘Skidrow Herald’.  Well done also for filling up the Artrix, showing that there is most certainly a demand for amateur theatre in the local area.  I look forward to seeing what you have in store for 2025! 

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