Little Shop of Horrors

YCT decided to mark the 40th anniversary of the film release of Sci-fi smash hit “Little Shop of Horrors” with this production having performed four previous productions including one at Edinburgh festival.

For those who may not know it tells the story of down on his luck flower shop assistant Seymour, who stumbles across an exotic plant with a sinister secret. As the plant grows, so does Seymour’s fame and fortune, but is he willing to pay the price?

The set and plants had been constructed by society members and it worked well; the inclusion of steps and a raised level was used to good effect and the set cleverly adapted for the renovation scene. The addition of signs and extra foliage as the plant grew also added to the story telling. The band of five experienced musicians under David’s direction provided first class accompaniment and the sound was clear and balanced throughout.  The lighting plot complimented each scene perfectly and the special lighting effects that grew with the plant helped bring it to life. The choreography was interesting to watch and well executed by everyone, I really enjoyed how each part of the stage was used and “The Meek Shall Inherit” was particularly clever and slick. Linda’s direction as always proves that she fully understands the text and the concept of the piece, she is an expert at nurturing her cast.

The ensemble and supporting characters did a good job keeping the pace of the show and the choreography tight, I enjoyed their little sub-plot stories. The usual three urchin characters, Ronnette, Chiffon and Crystal were supported by an additional two girls and all five worked really well together, their harmonies were tight, their choreography strong, they were confident and engaging to watch; congratulations to Jamie Donkin, Emily Miller, Charlotte Guest, Caroline Bevan and Isla Baker, The dentist, Orin Scivello DDS, is a fabulous character, has two great songs and makes a massive impact on the audience. Lawrence Chadwick relished in portraying this character, his performance was strong, he had great vocals and made you pleased that he met an early demise, As Mr Mushnick Ian Patterson gave an assured, believable performance, his delivery was natural and enjoyable to watch. Rachel Gardener is a very versatile performer and her interpretation of “Audrey” was super, she created a character that you wanted to support. Her costumes were perfect, the touch of animal print in every outfit was a great touch and emphasised Audrey trying to look nice but never quite achieving class. Rachel’s vocal performance was also strong and she had a lovely chemistry with Jake Marshal as Seymour.  Jake is another experienced, natural performer who can turn his hand to playing a multitude of characters. “Suddenly Seymour” was so sincere, the trepidation of the dentist scene palpable and the build up of stress as Audrey II’s demands grew was perfectly played. The trend now is to move away from Audrey II just in puppet form and have the plant characterised by an actor, in this production we had 3 actors. We saw Audrey II as a mischievous school child played by Beth Elvin, a rebellious teenager who could certainly dance played by Harry Richie and finally as a strong, intimidating rock-based character played by David Hardy. Harry’s dancing and energy were excellent and David had the right mix of strong vocals and presentation that made the character intimidating and it believable that he could manipulate Seymour,

Congratulations to Linda, David, Rachel and Emily for putting together a really entertaining production which had tons of energy. Thank you for your warm wlecome and I look forward to hearing about what your next venture will be.

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