With a sassy evening of satirical splendour, Howard Ashman (Book and Lyric) and Alan Menken’s (Music) dark yet comic musical Little Shop of Horrors hit the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. Directed by Amy Hodge, designed by Georgia Lowe and choreography by Jade Hackett, the audience are transported back to 1960’s Skid Row and into the hapless interior of Mushnik Florists. Amongst the decaying plants we meet the proprietor Mushnik himself and his assistants Audrey and Seymour. With the help of the omnipresent and sparkling singing of the narrative trio – The Ronettes, we follow Seymour’s meteoric rise to fortune and fame after he stumbles upon a new genus of plant, but this one has a carnivorous appetite and a mission of world domination!
With new Musical orchestrations by Matthew Jackson, the band of 10 under the Musical Direction of Chris Poon are semi visible behind a gauze to the rear of the Thrust and produce a lively yet familiar score. The sound quality was perfect throughout the evening thanks to Rob Bettle’s sound design.
This iconic and kitsch offering has become something of a cult musical and has suffered in the past from endless re-production performances but that cannot be said for this one – this is from a different planet! With a cast of 16 performers this production is polished and ‘flowers’ beautifully – from wispy bud to bloodthirsty bloom! With a slightly lesser; but still evident; nod to the B movie comedy, we get a huge animated head shake to its more sinister and dark content giving this production ‘plant’ food for thought! The detail of the lyrical interpretation and choreographic movement is exceptional, and the cast deliver a finely and cleverly crafted powerhouse performance. The work rate and characterisation of the cast fully absorb and draw in the audience as the on stage spectacle mirrors Audrey II’s meteoric rise.
A note and my thoughts – the inconsistent mixture of UK and USA accents and locations, some changed to UK and some not, If, on one hand it takes anything away… the other hand cleverly sucker punches you with what it adds to the B movie comedy status! – Clever. I loved the Brummy accent of Seymour; it was the perfect choice to portray Colin Ryan’s character. Ryan really brought Seymour to life in a new fresh way – his personalisation was both intelligently innovative yet true to the writer’s intent – very impressive. Georgina Onuorah’s Audrey radiated ‘inner beauty’ and not a squeaky voice was audible! What a talented performer, Onuorah finds a whole new depth to the insecurities of Audrey. Her sublime rendition of ‘Somewhere that’s Green’ is the most heart wrenchingly emotive version I have ever heard, its poignancy within the mockery is bared for all to see – the audience left mesmerised. No set or AV tricks needed for this one!
Michael Matus as Mr Mushnik is seamlessly perfect in role and watch out for ‘Mushnik and Son’, it is hilarious. Wilf Scolding as Orin plays this role very differently and ‘Wow’ does he make it count! This has to be seen to be fully appreciated. Both these two gentleman are on a different planet to their predecessors!
Charlotte Jaconelli (Crystal) Lizzy Rose Eskin Kelly (Ronette) and Paige Fenlon (Chiffon) as the Ronettes, blaze a vocal trail from the very opening title track number and never relent. These three sound great together with solid harmonies, great intonation and modernised girl group dance moves. Fully immersed in the action, these three ladies are polished, precise and plentiful in role!
However holding its own, the spectacle of the show – the plant Audrey II itself, in all its stages of growth is an impressive piece of puppetry design by Daisy Beattie and Seb Mayer and one of innovation from its predecessors. A Stellar and Sassy performance by Sam Buttery brings the plant to life in a new sinister and macabre way and the vocal gives Audrey II a more multifaceted depiction – but still with the musical rock tone and power it requires.
If you are a Little Shop of Horrors traditionalist maybe this production will take you by surprise… It did me! It is a new production that maintains its heritage but grows to soaring new heights. The cast are quite simply superb, their powerhouse vocals are stunning and the whole production is a spectacle that launches the show into a satirically sinister stratosphere. You must really go see this; it really is special! On at The Sheffield Crucible Theatre from Saturday 7th December to Saturday 18th January, Sheffield Theatres Production’s once again prove there are a tour de force. https://www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/events/little-shop-of-horrors
Reviewer: Tracey Bell
Reviewed: 12th December 2024
North West End UK Rating: