'Little Shop Of Horrors'
tells the tale of a down-at-heel florists and its staff members. Seymour is a plant geek who has come
across a unique little plant that he can’t identify and has begun to
nurture. Audrey is a sales
assistant in the shop with terrible taste in men. Her current boyfriend is a sadistic dentist, Scrivello. The shop is owned by Mr Mushnik and
until Seymour’s sentimentally-named plant, Audrey II, brings
infamy, he is planning to close the shop permanently. The ever-present Ronettes serve as
narrators who weave in and out of the story as it unfolds.
The stage was set with two “brick
wall” trucks - the downstage corners dressed with trash cans and crates to
create the feel of down at heel New York. Later, these walls were to roll away revealing the shop. The set served its purpose adequately, and
surely will move more efficiently as the week goes on.
On stage, opening night nerves
plagued the first number with the Ronettes, fluffing lyrics and glancing
at each other for choreography – Charlotte Callan worked hard to keep the
number going, unwittingly establishing herself as the most watchable of the
three. They seemed to find their
confidence as the rest of the cast joined them though and soon the whole cast
relaxed into the night. From his first note as Seymour, James
Goodwin shone; he has a gorgeous voice which he uses beautifully. He also seemed to be the salve to others’
nerves, everyone seemed more sure of themselves when he stepped on stage. Stephanie Niland as Audrey was also a
capable actress and an accomplished vocalist – her rendition of 'Somewhere
That’s Green' demonstrated real longing and pathos. Supported by Daniel Mellor as a suitably
anguished Mushnik and Jon Gardner as the abusive dentist, this
group showed talent and carried the story confidently – delivering dialogue,
solos, and harmonies reliably throughout the whole night.
'Little Shop Of Horrors' is written as an
ensemble show and not necessarily suited to a large chorus, but Urmston Musical
Theatre is clearly a community society (we spent an enjoyable few minutes in
the interval spotting the family connections in the programme) and the chorus
members were used as often as possible. They sounded great musically and were clearly enjoying themselves. However, the choreography did not seem to suit their
age, their abilities or indeed the style of the show and at times was a real
distraction. The Ronettes tended to be equally distracting. The directorial decision to include them as Audrey
II’s accomplices was not well sign-posted; I would never have interpreted this
and only knew it from reading the programme notes. The use of them in almost every number felt in
turns intrusive and unnecessary – more than once, they were dancing in front of
the soloists, effectively hiding the storytelling. It was a brave try to use them differently,
but I can’t help thinking they were written as a tight 1960’s style backing group
for a reason.
As Seymour’s story develops,
we realise the plant he has nurtured with his own blood will inevitably turn
into a monster. The puppetry used to
portray Audey II’s growth was fabulous. I loved being able to see the puppeteers, cleverly dressed in their green
overalls with purple details. They were
a brilliant addition and served as great back-up to Adam Garnett who portrayed Audrey
II with talent and relish – a fabulous performance! The only criticism here
is the lack of sound as the plant consumed its victims, leaving an awkward,
silent transition from the red-light state back to normal – a detail that could
have enhanced the comedy and made more of Garnett’s lovely business with the
strawberry laces.
Unfortunately, the comedy of the
piece was missed in several places. The
costume choices for Audrey made her too glamorous and missed easy one-liner
laughs. Likewise, the laid-back delivery
of 'Call Back In The Morning' also felt like a lost opportunity for some
classic visual comedy. The show is a
spoof horror and is best told with tongue firmly in cheek. Adam Garnett seemed to understand this but
it’s not clear that others did. It
didn’t spoil the night; it was just a shame not to have taken every opportunity.
Overall, this was an enjoyable performance,
not least due to the fact that there was clear joy from everyone on stage and
some really strong lead performers, all accompanied by live music. Urmston laid on a lovely welcome; their front
of house staff were all very friendly. The society are rightly proud of their heritage, and excited for an
ambitious future. I wish them well in
their future endeavours!
Reviewer - Justine Sutcliffe
on - 20.4.22
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