Little Shop of Horrors

The story of the show involves nerdy florist assistant who finds his chance for success and romance with the help of a giant man- eating plant. For this unusual and delightful production which normally has a cast list of about ten performers, this  youth production had about twenty four which must have been a headache for the production team.

However the outcome of performance belied the difficulties and resulted in an excellent interpretation throughout. The show has a a wonderful score and lyrics and the opening number “Little Shop of Horrors”  by the triplets of Ronnettes set the scene for the quality of whole show. Seymour (Josh Heywood) and Audrey (Jessica Brett) were perfectly matched and their duet “Suddenly Seymore” was for me the musical highlight of the show.

There was no shortfall in any aspect of the show and principal performances throughout were excellent. Orin (Louis Wharton) a dentist and Audrey’s sadistic boyfriend who regularly beat-her-up was the first to be swallowed by the voracious plant as it grew alarmingly from a seedling to a man eater . Mushnik (Ella Hanks) the owner of the florist’s shop was next having discovered Orin’s blood soaked shirt and he was eaten by the plant together with his brief case).

The voice of the plant (Julian Richards) and the ensemble and small parts were all superb and the depth of young talent augers well for future productions. Choreography of these youngsters was well conceived so that the vocals and movement highlighted the quality of the whole performance. The lighting, sound and stage crew all contributed to a very fine production.

22/06/16

Society                        Kidderminster ODS Youth Section

District                        10 (Worcester West)

Production                 Little Shop of Horrors

Reviewer                    Trevor Guest

Date of Review          22/06/16

Venue                         Rose Theatre Kidderminster

Director                      Doug Forrester

Musical Director        Russel Painter

Choreographer          Kathryn Painter & Hannah Kearns

The story of the show involves nerdy florist assistant who finds his chance for success and romance with the help of a giant man- eating plant. For this unusual and delightful production which normally has a cast list of about ten performers, this  youth production had about twenty four which must have been a headache for the production team.

However the outcome of performance belied the difficulties and resulted in an excellent interpretation throughout. The show has a a wonderful score and lyrics and the opening number “Little Shop of Horrors”  by the triplets of Ronnettes set the scene for the quality of whole show. Seymour (Josh Heywood) and Audrey (Jessica Brett) were perfectly matched and their duet “Suddenly Seymore” was for me the musical highlight of the show.

There was no shortfall in any aspect of the show and principal performances throughout were excellent. Orin (Louis Wharton) a dentist and Audrey’s sadistic boyfriend who regularly beat-her-up was the first to be swallowed by the voracious plant as it grew alarmingly from a seedling to a man eater . Mushnik (Ella Hanks) the owner of the florist’s shop was next having discovered Orin’s blood soaked shirt and he was eaten by the plant together with his brief case).

The voice of the plant (Julian Richards) and the ensemble and small parts were all superb and the depth of young talent augers well for future productions. Choreography of these youngsters was well conceived so that the vocals and movement highlighted the quality of the whole performance. The lighting, sound and stage crew all contributed to a very fine production.

22/06/16

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