Little Shop of Horrors

Little Shop of Horrors with book, lyrics and music by Grammy, Oscar and Tony award winning duo Ashman and Menken, was inspired by the sci-fi B movies and first premiered off-Broadway in 1982.

It tells the story of a mysterious plant that appears overnight in Mr Mushnik’s flower shop on Skid Row, and which is looked after by his hapless employee Seymour. It attracts the attention of passers-by and as business starts to look up the plant demands more from Seymour than just his time and attention!

The stage area was transformed into the interior of Mr Mushniks’s shop with maximum use being made of the entrances on stage and from the audience and the team are to be congratulated for their work designing and creating the various manifestations of Audrey II, from the tinniest to the full sized there had been a great deal of thought in their design and making. Sound by Aiden Saunders was clear and well balanced throughout the show, the band who were behind the stage never overpowered the vocals. The lighting by Gary Saunders really enhanced the dressing of the set: the reds and greens were used to great effect in the gruesome scenes and the lighting changes in time to the music didn’t go unnoticed, if your lighting technician has musicality it is a huge bonus.

The cast of 16 worked well together and the seven of those who were the ensemble (David Hirst, Sarah Steel, Andy Smith, Joy Hirst, Hayley Quinn, Molli Robson, Bethan Story), played various roles throughout to support the story telling, they all made their moment count. Amy Prince did well with the unenviable task of operating the Audrey II puppets.

In the role of Seymour, Adam Donald gave us an unassuming, sweet characterisation of a man who loved both Audreys in his life even if one of them did give him more trouble than the other! He worked hard throughout to portray Seymour’s inner battle and feeling of worthlessness. This is not an easy role to portray, and Adam did a good job. As Audrey, Katherine Donald was able to showcase her excellent vocal ability delivering the show classics such as “Somewhere that’s Green” and “Suddenly Seymour” and she had some lovely tender moments with Seymour and a tolerance of her overbearing boyfriend Orin. James Cooper gave us the larger than life, sadistic and terrifying dentist Orin Scrivello DDS. The “Dentist!” number was a show highlight with the interaction of the three urchin girls being absolutely hilarious; the dental mouth openers were a genius touch, very, very funny. As Mr Mushnik Stephen Shield gave a solid performance with good vocals, great facial expressions, and a genuine portrayal of the changes in the way Mushnik treats Seymour to try and make gains for himself. Lauren Benson gave us an alternative presentation of Audrey II, she sang well and played Seymour’s temptress and ultimate nemesis really well, less horrific, and more a spellbinding character. My personal favourites in the show were the three "urchins", Crystal (Sheralyn Cooper) Chiffon (Jess Kerridge) and Ronnette (Isla Baker), their energy was palpable, choreography slick and vocals excellent. The three of them lit up the stage every time they entered it, such a strong combo providing a clear running commentary throughout the show and engaging the audience, well done!

The choreography by Sheralyn Cooper was good throughout and suited the limited performance space, utilising all the levels available. Music was in the safe and very talented hands of Chinami Smith who’s 5-piece band sounded good and provided great live performances of the classic songs. This was Emily Smith’s directorial debut, and I am sure it will be the first of many. She had some very creative ideas, and I understand did much of the puppet making too, well done Emily! 

I am looking forward to seeing what is next for the adult section of the group and to seeing the junior member’s pantomime “The Wizard of Oz.”

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