LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

I perennially love 5-Star Theatricals, whose production this is. And this famous and fun Broadway musical from them continued their tradition of excellence.

Little Shop of Horrors is the perfect entertainment for this Halloween month! I’m not a fan of dark-ish comedies, but this one is always a hoot. This was actually the fourth different rendition of this show that I’ve seen, (and additionally the movie,) and I can honestly say it’s the best one.

The musical is based on the cult classic black-and-white low-budget 1960 indy film, (with the same title,) and was originally produced off-Broadway in 1982. The story’s basics are a crumbling florist business on skid row, a budding love story between the two employees, and a crazy plant. That’s all you need to know going in, but if you feel you need more, just look it up. If you’ve never seen the show, I advise you to just go with the flow and not know anything in advance. That’s how my friend Laura did it the other day, and she was enthralled by it all.

This presentation features a talented cast led by Jared Goldsmith as Seymour and Emily Goglia as Audrey, both of whose voices are beautiful. I could have just listened to them duet on their song I adore, Suddenly, Seymour, for the entire two hours!

I had actually seen Jared before, six years ago in Dear Evan Hansen at the Ahmanson, and in my review I wrote, “The stand-out for me is Jared Goldsmith who plays “family friend” Jared Kleinman. He nails every nuance of [the role].” I’m glad that my opinion of him back then still holds up today.

Tyler Matthew Burk, the actor who plays the lunatic dentist, (and about a half dozen other entertaining characters,) gave my favorite performance, curiously, (since it’s a musical,) not with his singing but rather with his overall comedic ability. Man, does he give each character his all! He makes each persona soooo funny without overdoing them.

My fave voice belongs to Rezia Landers who plays Crystal, one of a trio of girl singers who act as a sort-of Greek chorus to help move the plot along. I predict that she will star in the show about Tina Turner one day soon. (Or some other musical in that vein.)

The first-rate cast is rounded-out by the other two singers in the “girl group,” Luz Rodríguez as Ronette and Naya Ramsey-Clarke as Chiffon, (all three characters are cleverly-monikered with names of famous girl groups of the ’60s); Jay Brian Winnick as the florist; and Mitchell Gerrard Johnson as the wonderfully-booming voice of Audrey II, the ever-growing flytrap plant. And the plant puppeteer we saw, Christian Anderson, is fabulous, as well. [Note: A different artist is listed in the program, so I don’t know who future audiences will see, but I imagine they’ll all be equally wonderful.]

I rarely ever mention a show’s director, but when I read that Brian Kite is also a professor of directing at, and the Dean of, the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, (where I first laid eyes on Mr. X, who was starring in a play there, and as he rightly claims, thought to myself, “How soon can I get that head on my wall?,”) I had to laud the job Brian’s done with this production. As interesting as it implicitly is, the script has the high potential to go south if not done just right.

As to the music itself, the score features some songs with a doo-wop or Motown feel, while there are even a couple with a bit of a Fiddler on the Roof influence. The lyrics are all worthwhile, so I’m glad we can understand every word from these vocalists. Interestingly, there did not seem to be a “pit” under this smaller stage, so the musicians were off to the side of the audience, mostly hidden by screens. Very clever. (I discovered them during Act I because I could see the conductor’s baton leading them from where I was seated across the audience, but we could never tell their different-from-the-norm location because of the high-quality sound system.)

Laura and I got a fun surprise when we arrived at the Bank of America Performing Arts Center; we discovered that Little Shop of Horrors was in a different, smaller theatre in that complex that the bigger Kavli that we’re used to for 5-Star Theatricals’ productions. We had never seen the Scherr Forum Theatre before; neither of us even knew it was there! Its more intimate seating is perfect for this show. When the team who created the off-Broadway musical was offered to take it to Broadway back then, they declined, citing that it belongs in the smaller space. So I applaud 5-Star for keeping that feeling. And I believe that every seat in the Scherr has an excellent sightline.

Little Shop of Horrors running through October 20, 2024
Bank of America Performing Arts Center–Scherr Forum Theatre
2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. Thousand Oaks
805-449-2787  www.5startheatricals.com