In 1983, I saw Little Shop of Horrors downtown at the Orpheum Theater about one year after it opened. The show was a smashing success and ran for five years. This sweetly diabolical musical was made into a film in 1986 and had a Broadway revival in 2003. With this production, Audrey II is back where she belongs in an intimate Off-Broadway house.
The plot is well known for being extraordinarily fun and cheesy in equal measures. The genius of this incarnation is the massive dose of talent on stage which supplies affecting newness, superlative characterizations and inspired clowning. Fans of the show, fans of musical comedy and fans of smiling will be entertained mightily. If you happen to embrace all three groupings, this version should impress.
Gideon Glick (Significant Other, To Kill a Mockingbird) is currently playing Seymour. Every inch the nebbish, he is awkwardly timid and secretly pines for co-worker Audrey. Rescued as an orphan by Mr. Mushnik (Tom Alan Robbins), Seymour works with Audrey at the failing flower shop. The relationship between the three is quickly established and effortlessly realized. When Seymour’s newly developed plant makes this flower shop famous, this nerd’s infatuation with the cult of celebrity fosters the bloody turn to the dark side. Mr. Glick is superb in the role.
Tammy Blanchard (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Gypsy) portrays Audrey, the punching bag girlfriend of so many undesirable men on Skid Row. This role seemed permanently stamped with Ellen Greene’s original interpretation. Ms. Blanchard is not the ditzy girl with some bad luck here. She’s damaged, unhinged and altogether wobbly. That characterization flows through her line readings and songs. The interpretation is darker, fragile and infinitely heartbreaking. From this Audrey, the ending is almost a relief.
If that weren’t enough to recommend this show, Christian Borle (Peter and the Starcatcher, Something Rotten!) takes on the role of the dentist and other assorted characters. As always, he is a consummate clown. This time he sports a pompadour and an unhealthy addiction to nitrous oxide. The physicality of his performance is exceptional.
The scenic design by Julian Crouch is niftier than I remember from the original and is very effective. A stage-wide bloody sheet and Bradley King’s lighting create a macabre dentist office that’s creepy and silly. Michael Mayer directed this truly memorable production. My only quibble is that the lyrics sung by the three Urchins can get garbled up in the sound design and choreography.
In a difficult period for the American musical, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken wrote this little show based on a science fiction B-movie. Their success led them to Disney and the creation of 1989’s The Little Mermaid which won Oscars for Best Song and Best Score. Their string of outstanding movie musicals helped keep the art vibrant and alive. An entire generation was influenced by their catchy tunes and lyrical wit. Little Shop of Horrors might be a touch darker in spirit (and more ghoulishly fun) but, like most of their work, the high level of entertainment quality is exhilarating.
Little Shop of Horrors is being performed at the Westside Theatre and has been extended until May 10, 2020. Jeremy Jordan takes over the role of Seymour beginning March 17th.
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