HORRORS IN THE ROUND
Little Shop of Horrors, based on the 1960 science-fiction film by Roger Corman, opened off-Broadway at the Orpheum Theatre in Manhattan’s East Village on July 27, 1982. The production, directed by lyricist Howard Ashman, was so popular that David Geffen and team swooped in to buy the rights. The music, composed by Alan Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop, and Motown, includes several well-known songs: the title song, “Skid Row (Downtown),” “Somewhere That’s Green,” and “Suddenly, Seymour.” The musical was made into a 1986 film of the same name, directed by Frank Oz, and produced by, you guessed it, David geffen.
The popular rock musical is now onstage in-the-round at the Nocturne Theatre in Glendale, where director Justin P. Meyer, choreographers Melissa Meyer and Ernie Peiffer, and music director Nolan Monsibay, more than meet the challenge to include triple-threat actors who can belt out songs to the hilt as well as creating the many different sizes of the plant that need to move and sing on cue, as well as eat and swallow adults. And it’s no easy task to ensure all audience members will experience Audrey II’s evolution in a realistic way, always including a way for the hidden puppeteers to be able to manipulate the mouth, coordinate the singing with movement, and move the roots to effectively add to the horror of the situation.
In case you are not familiar with the story, it centers on Seymour Krelborn, a shy down-and-out Skid Row floral assistant, brilliantly portrayed by Aaron Ellis as a nerdy nebbish who becomes an overnight sensation after discovering an exotic plant which appeared during a total eclipse of the Sun on the Autumnal Equinox. He names it “Audrey II” after his real lady love, floral assistant Audrey, played by curvaceous redhead belter Jett LaFever, dressed to “The Gutter” nightclub trashy nines by designer Tanya Cyr, who also designed the amazing Audrey II puppets built by Greg Feiler. But as it grows larger and larger, the plant turns into an ill-tempered, foul-mouthed, R&B-singing carnivore who offers Seymour fame and fortune in exchange for feeding its growing appetite – for fresh human blood.
Before the show begins, be prepared to interact with several Skid Row bums who walk through the audience to beg for food, money, or share their stories about how tough life is. These drunk and disorderly bums are played for laughs by Bedjou Jean, David Gallic, and Darius Aaron Frye who take on other roles during the show.
To forward the story from start to finish, a Greek chorus of three singing Skid Row Street Urchins (Cameron Jackson as Chiffon, Dara Adedara as Crystal, and Auriana Chisholm as Ronnette) bring their wondrous harmonies to the stage, dressed first as 60s style airline hostesses, then dental assistants, and Supremes-style sequined-gown stars, among several others, each performed to perfection thanks to their spectacular harmonies. And take it from me, each member of the entire cast can belt up a storm, turning the entire production into a swirling tornado of musical talent.
This is especially evident during Audrey’s heartfelt solo to the Urchins, “Somewhere That’s Green” during which she describes her perfect future life in the suburbs in her dream house, married to her kind and loving man. Fortunately, the trio soon gets Audrey to realize she already has the perfect guy, namely Seymour. And when the two floral assistants finally do confess their love for each other, their show-stopping duet “Suddenly Seymour” certainly deserved the standing ovation of applause it received.
When his own supply of extra blood runs low and Audrey II demands “Feed Me,” Seymour decides to get rid of Audrey’s boyfriend Orin Scrivello (played by Connor Bullock to the sexy, leather-clad hilt as a combination of early Elvis rocker and early Marlon Brando motorcycle thug), a sadistic nitrous-oxide inhaling dentist who orders Audrey around and beats her frequently when she fails to meet his demands for total obedience. Intent on making Orin the first of Audrey II’s gustatory delights, Seymour goes to his dental office fully prepared to do the dastardly deed. But Orin winds up taking his own life when his gas tank equipment fails during “Now (It’s Just the Gas)” causing him to overdose in a fit of laughter. After clumsily removing the body, Seymour chops Orin into pieces in Mushnik’s shop and feeds his parts to Audrey II. But to increase the grotesque nature of Seymour’s actions, more than just a few small bloody body parts should have been fed to the plant, who certainly would gobble up an arm or leg with great gusto. After all, there is no reason to tone down this gruesome scene!
As Audrey II’s fame rises, floral shop owner Mr. Mushnik (Craig Sherman who delightfully brings the cigar smoking, newspaper reading character to life) decides the only way to keep Seymour and the plant at his Skid Row location, which is increasing business ten-fold, is to adopt the orphaned Seymour as his son. Once Seymour accepts the offer, the two men perform a tango-filled “Mushkin and Son” to great comic delight with their required harmony and dance steps perfectly coordinated.
Soon botanists want to make cuttings of the plant to send all over the world to study. Several ensemble members have a blast bringing media moguls to the stage as the urchins perform “The Meek Shall Inherit” in the background, each one a great cameo part including an NBC executive, Life Magazine writer, and a wealthy socialite looking to increase her fortune. It is then that Seymour must decide if fame and fortune is worth sacrificing his friends and business associates for plant food or tell the truth rather than letting Audrey II take over the world. Or is it too late to stop the inevitable invasion of more man-eating aliens?
The Meyers succeed brilliantly in bringing the necessary Audrey II magic to the production, with moveable desks and wagons that carry both puppeteer and plant around the stage, even during the comical “Feed Me” number which is sung to perfection by David Gallic as the Voice of Audrey II, and Darius Aaron Frye as its Puppeteer.
But with the largest plant in a static location above the stage floor, when entire humans have to be fed to it without the audience seeing them come out the back, cast members needed to climb into its big mouth willingly, which was especially distracting when it came time for Seymour to feed the dead Audrey into it. Instead, while alive she willingly walked into its mouth as a live sacrifice, not the usual heartbreaking scene of Seymour picking up the dead Audrey and putting her gently into the plant’s mouth.
Other remarkable tech credits include scenic design by Jay Michael Roberts with assistant Brittany Archambeault, lighting design by Justin Meyer with assistant Micah Delhauer which enhances the bloody red and green nature of the musical, costume assistant Koalani Walker whose creations with Tanya Cyr enhance every scene, and sound engineer Matt Merline who perfectly mixes the live pre-recorded tracks to enhance and not overpower the onstage singers.
photos courtesy of Meyer2Meyer, The Nocturne Theatre
Little Shop of Horrors
Meyer2Meyer Entertainment (Justin and Melissa Meyer)
The Nocturne Theatre, 324 N Orange St in Glendale
2 hours and 15 minutes with intermission
Thurs-Sun at select times
ends on May 18, 2025
for tickets ($27.50 to $73.50), visit Nocturne (also find on Facebook and Instagram)
for more shows, visit Theatre in LA
