“Little Shop of Horrors” by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken (ACT)

“Little Shop of Horrors” by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken

Theater: A Contemporary Theatre of CT

Director: Jason A. Sparks

A Contemporary Theatre of Connecticut (ACT) opened their second season with their fabulous production of Little Shop of Horrors. Written by Academy Award winner Howard Ashman and composed by Tony and Academy Award winner Alan Menken, it is no surprise that the plot is entertaining and that the music is catchy. For a story that is about a vicious killer plant, it is, ironically, an extremely upbeat, full-blown musical comedy. I was extremely pleased to see ACT do justice to this masterpiece with production that included a lively and sassy killer plant, actors invested in their roles, a wonderful set, appropriate costumes and a live orchestra. 

Based on the 1960 film, Little Shop of Horrors follows amateur and nerdy botanist Seymour Krelborn (Robb Sapp) and his rise in success thanks to a plant he discovers from outer space. He names the plant Audrey II (voiced by Warren Nolan, Jr. and puppeteered by Thomas Bergano), after his love interest and coworker, Audrey (Laura Woyasz). This mysterious plant, prominently displayed in the flower shop window, suddenly brings booming business to the almost-bankrupt floral shop. This makes owner Mr. Mushnik (William Thomas Evans) extremely proud. Audrey II turns Seymour into an instant celebrity with all of his recent press. All’s well until Seymour discovers Audrey II’s food source… human blood. Does Seymour agree to feed blood to his plant? What does Seymour do when Audrey II becomes uncontrollable, demanding more than just a few drops of blood? Will Audrey love Seymour if he kills the plant? Will the flower shop go out of business without Audrey II’s success? As the lyric goes, “Look out… here comes Audrey II.” 

     ACT is located in Ridgefield, CT and was founded by Katie Diamond, Daniel C. Levine and Bryan Perri. This theater presents runs of well-known Broadway musicals and plays, as well as world-premiere productions by the next generation of writers and composers. Little Shop of Horrors was believed to have been a perfect fit for this venue, allowing audiences to be up-close to the monstrous, man-eating plant. There really wasn’t a bad seat in the house and all audience members had a great view of the detailed stage. 

          ACT acquired an impressive team for this undertaking. This production was directed by Jason A. Sparks, whose credits include Broadway productions along with serving as the Associate Choreographer of the 68th and 69th Annual TONY Awards. Sparks promised “an exciting production full of comedy, satire and camp” and successfully delivered. This show also included Music Director Garrett Taylor, who’s worked on Broadway’s Wicked and Annie. Other members of the creative team and cast also boasted Broadway credits and experienced resumes. 

One of my favorite aspects of this show were the three urchins, played by Kadrea Dawkins, Rachelle Legrand and Ashley Alexandra Seldon. Exuding Motown and girl group vibes, these three ladies were the narrators of the show. They underscored dramatic moments by speaking and singing from inside the world of Skid Row, and also from the audience’s point of view. The urchins delivered spunk, attitude, charisma and great vocal performances throughout the entire show. 

            

        The two lead characters, Seymour and Audrey, had great chemistry, easily leading the audience to cheer the couple on.  Audrey is a woman with low self-worth but possessing a big heart. Woyasz understood her soft-nature with an awareness of her hopelessness. Sapp succeeded at showing Seymour’s struggle with how to deal with the killer plant, his recent fame, winning Audrey over and keeping the business running smoothly all at the same time. Seymour was adeptly portrayed by Sapp. He showed his well intentions and hopeful spirit, but also let us in on Seymour’s thought process in making his decisions.  

           ACT Artistic Director and cofounder, Daniel C. Levine, played the maniac dentist, Orin Scrivello, who’s also Audrey’s abusive boyfriend. He captured the stereotypical “biker-guy” who’s rough around the edges and takes jokes a little too far. He was perfectly menacing in this role. Funny enough, Levine started dental school only to realize it wasn’t what he wanted, and instead began his career in theater. At some point he played Orin Scrivello in the Broadway National Tour of Little Shop of Horrors, and continues to impress audiences with this performance.   

            The set design by Ryan Howell was brilliant in the way it swiveled, allowing audiences to see both inside the flower shop and the outside stoop. Skid Row was perfectly presented as an unkempt neighborhood. There was also a nice surprise when one of the shop’s walls folded open to reveal Orin's white, asylum-like dentist office complete with drills and non-dental tools mounted onto the wall. There was a noticeable transition from the broken down and bankrupt flower shop to the thriving and cash-flowing flower shop. Howell’s set allowed for Audrey II to keep growing and growing until it was eventually taking up most of the flower shop. By the end of the show, the man-eating plant was fantastically massive. 

The live orchestra, situated behind the set, gave a stellar performance and filled the theater with the lively and upbeat music. Seeing Little Shop of Horrors at ACT has made me very excited to see their upcoming performances of Godspell, Nickel Mines and Freaky Friday. This theater shines with superb talent and should continue producing great pieces of art and entertainment. This production gifted audiences with a humorous, moving production that was captivating and of high quality. Little Shop of Horrors will remain one of my favorite musicals of all time. Anyone would be advised to plant a seat for themselves to enjoy this killer production.