Little Shop of Horrors is made by Exeter Northcott Theatre. It follows a boy named Seymour (Scott McClure) who works at a flower shop owned by Mr Mushnik (Andrew Whitehead) he is in love with a girl who works at the flower shop with him called Audrey (Leigh Quinn); who has an abusive boyfriend Orin Scrivello (Ross Clifton) who is also a dentist. Seymour finds a unique strange new plant but wonders why it won’t grow. He soon finds out the plant needs blood instead of water to grow and this leads to danger and deadly consequences!
Little Shop of Horrors was a fantastic show from start to finish. The story was very good and had some great songs. The musical was also very funny and had the audience laughing lots. The whole performance had a great atmosphere and was full of energy from beginning to end. The songs were catchy and fit the story perfectly. The cast were all fantastic and a joy to watch as they brought these characters to life. Each character was unique and the cast worked really well together and had great chemistry.
Scott McClure was fantastic as Seymour. He gave an energetic and engaging performance while also showing Seymour’s nervous side, especially when he was around Audrey. This made his character very likeable. You could see how much he cared about Audrey but struggled to express his feelings. As the story progressed, I felt that Seymour became more confident and sure of himself, which Scott portrayed really well through his acting. I enjoyed seeing the change in Seymour from being shy at the start to becoming more confident as the show unfolded. Scott’s performance made Seymour an enjoyable character to watch.
Leigh Quinn was great as Audrey and brought emotional vulnerability to her character while also making her very funny and entertaining to watch. She showed the different sides of Audrey, from her sweet and caring personality to her more nervous moments. I liked how she balanced the comedy with the more emotional parts of the character.
Andrew Whitehead gave a very strong, energetic and lively performance as Mr Mushnik. He brought a lot of energy to the character, making him entertaining to watch throughout the show. Dashaun Vegas gave a very powerful performance as Audrey II, with a deep, and commanding voice. His vocal performance gave Audrey II a strong presence on stage and made the character feel intimidating while also adding moments of comedy to his voice.
Ross Clifton brought a great mix of coolness, confidence and humour to his role as Orin. He played the character with vibrant energy, which made Orin very entertaining to watch. His comedic timing was great, and he balanced the character’s meaner side with plenty of humour. He fully committed to the role and gave a very confident and memorable performance.
The rest of the cast were also fantastic, with everyone bringing strong performances and beautiful voices to the show. Each member of the cast helped create the energy and atmosphere of the production, and it was clear that everyone worked well together as a team. The ensemble was great, with some fantastic dance choreography and strong use of the stage space. They brought a lot of energy to the larger group numbers and made sure the stage always felt full and lively.
The set itself was very clever and creative, especially considering that the theatre was not super big. The flower shop was incredibly detailed and looked like something you could see on a Broadway or West End show. I also really enjoyed seeing the band on the stage.
The plant itself looked fantastic, and each time it grew, it became bigger and more menacing, as the story progressed. When speaking to some of the people who worked on the show, I found out that the performers controlling the plant could not see inside while moving it, meaning they had to rely heavily on memory and coordination. This made the plant-work even more impressive, as it showed how much skill and teamwork went into bringing such an important part of the show to life. The costumes and shoes were great for all the cast but I especially liked the colourful outfits the 3 narrators wore.
The only thing I was a little disappointed by is that the musical was a bit sad and I would have preferred a happier ending, but for the most part it was still kept light-hearted.
Overall, Little Shop of Horrors is a must-see musical show that did feel like watching a west end of broadway show. You can watch it at Exeter Northcott or catch it on its small tour soon! Check out my video here.
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