LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS is a rock musical by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman. LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS is playing now through March 28th at St. Dunstan's Theatre Guild of Cranbrook.
To see this show in such an intimate setting compared to seeing it on Broadway in 2003 I wasn't sure how they were going to bring the same excitement and action to life in such a small theatre. Sure, on Broadway they had the man power and funding to be able to make Audrey II extend into the audience and feel like we were all going to be devoured in a huge theater, but St. Dunstan's did a great job of bringing that same feel into the off-broadway type theater in Bloomfield Hills Michigan.
The set and costume design, and direction really stood out in this production of the show. Even though, I felt the casting was a little off, especially for the Do-Wop girls, one of the acting performances that did stand out above the rest was Kate Rasmussen as Audrey. She really knows how to project her amazing voice and her acting skills were remarkable. Another great performance worth a mention was Kevin Lee Branshaw as Mr. Mushnik, his comedic portrayal of this character was enjoyable.
The set design by Chris Steinmayer and set decoration by Leslie Ann Pilling, as well as, the set construction lead by Temple Cumiskey was amazing, the detail and time that was put into the set really made you feel as though you were in the alleys of New York in the 1960's. Each brick on the wall was meticulously designed to look real and the way the flower shop opened and closed was very clever. Basically, when the characters were supposed to be on the street, the outside of the shop had two main outer walls that would close in a V shape, but then when we were taken inside the flower shop the two outer walls would open to revel the inside of Mushnik's flower shop in great detail.
All of the costume design, lead by Kathy Shapero was amazing and also very detailed, however there is a special story behind the Audrey II prop. This particular prop is normally very difficult for a nonprofit organization such as St. Dunstan's to rent because they are typically expensive. Sue Mancuso, the shows director, admitted to The Oakland Press that she was at her "wits' end" searching for an Audrey II until she got a phone call from the mother of a young man named Billy McLean. McLean is a junior at Avondale High School in Rochester who has Asperger syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. He has been fascinated with "Little Shop of Horrors" and served as the puppeteer for Audrey II when Rochester's Avon Players presented the show. McLean then acquired their Audrey II and reconstructed the pieces to make them more colorful and detailed. He has rented his Audrey II set to other theater groups - and now to St. Dunstan's, where he also serves as puppeteer.
This production really does bring the characters we all know and love from the original film back to life. The show is worth checking out despite its small issues, so if you want to feel like you are part of the action and risk being eaten by a hungry plant then I would say to hurry and get tickets for this show before its too late. For information about St. Dunstan's or to buy tickets call 248-737-3587 or visit
www.StDunstansTheatre.com.
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