By Alayna Een
Howard Ashman and Alan Menkin’s Little Shop of Horrors is appearing in West Valley, Utah! The West Valley Arts center presents this strange and unusual show that blends genres: a horror comedy rock musical. The story starts on Skid Row, a slum of an urban city, and introduces us to the unhappy inhabitants of a certain flower shop. Seymour, the sad shop boy with a fascination for weird plants, has just discovered an odd plant with the most unusual appetite. As he interacts with the strangely sentient Audrey II, named for the shop girl he secretly loves, his fortune begins to turn, and Skid Row will never be the same.
Ren Cottam’s Seymour captures the youthful energy and naivety of the role while bringing solid vocals to a variety of challenging songs: he hits the spitfire lyrics in “Closed for Renovation” and owns the soulful “Suddenly Seymour.” Tara Janae Smith is a phenomenal Audrey. “Somewhere that’s Green” is a longtime favorite song of mine, and Smith’s performance brings the dreamy and melancholic longing to the music, a perfect compliment to her tragic character. As a couple, the two have the adorable nervous chemistry of young love that keeps you fully invested in their story and the plot. Douglas Irey is Orin, the despicable dentist and Audrey’s awful boyfriend. Irey plays Orin as an especially greasy greaser and heightens the character’s hilarious and horrific side. His performance in “Now (It’s Just the Gas)” is especially notable.
Michael Hohl’s Mr. Mushnik is the harried and unkind boss. He does a great job with his role, walking the line between bad guy and normal guy. This nuance especially shines in the “Mushnik and Son” song. Jared Lesa is the voice of the bloodsucking botanical Audrey II—and what a voice it is! He whines and demands with a great vocal range through his many powerful songs. Puppeteer Byerly Neilsen brings movement to Audrey II so successfully that it’s easy to forget that the plant is a puppet—though certainly an impressive one.
The urchins (Crystal, Chiffon, and Ronnette) are like the nerve center of the show, singing along to almost every song and furthering the plot by sending and delivering messages. Nneka Barcelona (Crystal), Anna Kaitlyn Burningham (Chiffon), Daysha Lassiter (Ronnette), and Kortney King-Lives (swing) are clean and compelling in their muse-like storytelling and beautifully frame this cautionary tale.
The actors in this small but talented cast are easy to highlight, but the production team is just as important in making the show a sensation. This is Izzy Arrieta’s (director/choreographer) directorial debut in what is sure to be a long and illustrious career. Alicia Kondrick’s costume design captured the 50s charm while crafting the look of the Skid Row slum, with the help of Morgan Golightly (scenic designer). But for me, it was Ryan Fallis’s lighting design that really solidified the out-of-this-world scenes and deepened the emotion on stage. The lighting in “Somewhere that’s Green” transports us to Audrey’s dreamscape, which makes the inevitable return to Skid Row at the end of the chorus all the more heartbreaking, and the lighting in the penultimate scene with Seymour shows time passing in fascinating flashes.
Little Shop walks the line between horror and comedy, and the West Valley Art performance is perfectly timed to usher in spooky season. I loved this production’s attention to detail, both in the show and in the audience experience. There is a show-themed art exhibit open for perusal during the intermission, the concessions and decorations nod to show details, and there is a delightful surprise for the audience at the end of the show. I haven’t been to a West Valley Art production before, but I look forward to returning. If you too yearn to be “Somewhere that’s Green,” come and see West Valley Art’s Little Shop of Horrors—Audrey II awaits.
West Valley Arts Presents Little Shop of Horrors book and lyrics by Howard Ashman, music by Alan Menkin
West Valley Performing Arts Center, 3333 S, Decker Lake Dr, West Valley City, UT 84119
September 8–October 1, 2022 at 7:30 PM (3 PM Matinee on Saturdays)
Tickets: $20–25 (Check out their Facebook profile for discount codes)
Contact: 801-965-5140, harmanboxoffice@wvc-ut.gov
Box Office Hours: Wednesday through Saturday 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM
0 Comments