ROGER CORMAN'S 1960 cult classic The Little Shop of Horrors is notable for three things: our first introduction to the triffid, known as Audrey, Jack Nicholson's first and most disturbing motion picture performance and Mrs Krelborn's immortal health-related line: "Bring me the Evening News, they're running a self diagnosis competition. The winner gets to go to the male clinic."
One wonders if the citizens of this fair city would be so taken with the idea of such a competition in their own local paper.
Playing like a witty, elongated episode of the Twilight Zone, the film was made in less than a week with a cast, crew and
film equipment that had some spare days left after the end of another project.
Becoming an underground hit after Cannes' critics took it to their hearts, that might have been the end of the story of the small florist shop on Skid Row. In the early Eighties, however, a young man shirking the family trade of dentistry for the bright lights of an auditorium off Broadway turned it into a musical and gave the great green beast a whole new lease of life. Working with partner Howard Ashman, Alan Menken turned The Little Shop of Horrors into an award winning musical franchise that's been captivating theatre-goers ever since.
And the current adaptation playing at the Festival Theatre this week is no exception. Starring 2007 Dancing on Ice finalist Claire Buckfield and EastEnders baddie Alex Ferns, the action centres on Audrey Two, a mysterious plant named by humble assistant florist Seymour Krelborn, played by Damian Humbley, after his fragrant love interest Audrey (Buckfield).
When the plant finds its way into the shop window, all of Seymour's dreams suddenly start coming true as more and more people flock to see it. Yet keeping up with the fragile flora's increasingly deadly demands comes at a cost that Seymour can't pay.
Sharply observed and darkly funny, the ensemble bring vigour and passion to the production. The narrating trio of 'Ronettes' are brimming with chavtastic sass and pull off some strikingly modern choreography in the show's introduction. The large set is beautifully constructed as a dingy back alley, with pleasing attention to detail; there are B-movie posters pasted on street walls and a prostitute sitting in a window as vagrants mill the stage while the audience files into the auditorium.
Buckfield's Audrey is charming and likeable, paired well with Humbley's overtly dishevelled and bumbling anti-hero.
Ferns multi-tasks with tongue firmly in cheek as an array of extras, including Audrey's semi-sadist biker boyfriend Orin Scrivello DDS. While Ferns' husky vocal performance leaves room for improvement, his take on the role of laughing gas addicted dentist, made famous by Steve Martin, captures just the right elements of creepy, funny and scary to win the audience's appreciation.
The ever-increasing Audrey Two is powerfully and dramatically voiced by Clive Rowe and manipulated by Brian Herring. Although surprisingly static, the creature's conniving all-diva attitude is convincingly portrayed.
Anyone who fails to be won over by this may just want to run a self-diagnosis and make an appointment at their nearest clinic.
Your reviews: 'The set really pulled you into the story'Amanda Callaghan, 20, student, Tollcross: "It was awesome. We did a version at school a few years ago, so I had to drag all my pals down here tonight to see what they were missing out on. Our Audrey Two was far better, of course – all her tentacles writhed about – but I loved how in your face Chiffon, Ronette and Crystal were."
Becky Morrison, 19, student, Riego Street: "I didn't really know anything about it until tonight and I'm surprised by how much I liked it. I can relate to scary dental experiences, that was quite uncomfortable. The set was brilliant, it pulled you into the story and I thought that the cast sang it really well. Sometimes when you've not seen something before, you can get a bit lost, but you got the gist of it all in this."
Nick Baker, 34, recruitment consultant, South Clerk Street: "There's a lot of cool to the show. It's got a really wicked streak of black humour which I like about it. The tag-line says it's fun for all the family, and while I would bring my mum, I don't know about taking my wee nephew along, too."
