Theater Review: "Little Shop of Horrors" by CRT

UConn Storrs - It is not often that I head to a performance where the element I am most looking forward to seeing is the props, but this was the case for my recent trip to Connecticut Repertory Theatre’s Nate Katter Theatre on the University of Connecticut Storrs campus.

“Little Shop of Horrors” has a book and lyrics written by Howard Ashman and music by Alan Menken. It tells the story of a hapless floral shop worker who raises a strange and unusual plant that feeds on human blood and flesh and is loosely based on the low-budget black comedy film.

Director Vince Tycer, who deems the musical a wonderful blend of science fiction and B-horror movies, makes very good use of the space on the stage. Tom McDonough leads the onstage band from behind his piano and serves as music director. The musicians covered the score very well. UConn junior Rebekah Santiago was the choreographer who guided the steps of the dancers.

Robert Liniak, a junior BFA Acting major at the university from Maryland, leads the cast in the role of Seymour and does well with it. Megan O’Connor, a junior in the BFA Acting program, makes the most of the role of Audrey.

Paul Flores is an actor, director, comedian and playwright from East Los Angeles who nails the comedy in his role as Mr. Mushnik. The actor is currently completing his MFA at UConn and “Little Shop” is his favorite childhood movie.

Sophomore Charles Rusciano, who was born and raised in New York but now resides in Connecticut, portrays the evil, pain-loving dentist Orin. After the dentist becomes plant food, Rusciano returns in several other supporting roles, every one more delightful than the one before, and in ever better costumes.

And that all-important prop, the Audrey II? The scary plant, fabricated/wrangled by Carrie Fowler, grows through four versions, ever more menacing, larger and amazing. In fact, the final iteration is so large that a section of the set must open like an overhead garage door in order for it to make its entrance with the help of the able stage hands. Of course, the large puppets appear to speak and there are large tendrils that also move on the ground with the help of three puppeteers.

The voice of the evil plant is provided by Tony King, who hides in the shadows of the stage. King is an actor, writer and Afro-creative from Charlotte, NC who is a second-year graduate student at UConn pursuing a MFA in Acting. The Plant is brought to life by puppeteers Ian Haffman, Sam Kendal and Yanniv Frank, who are all students studying Puppet Arts at the acclaimed program.

From the Puppet Arts website: “Graduates of the puppetry program perform and design for many theatres around the world. They appear in, build for and manage internationally recognized television programs (such as “Between the Lions”) and films, write books, design toys, teach children, and direct prominent schools and museums. My cousin Tim Lagasse is a graduate of the program that worked on the PBS “Between The Lions” as Arty Smarypants and Barnaby B. Busterfield.

The street urchins are played by Emmanuella Agoumba as Chiffon, Kiera “Kee” Prusmak as Ronnette and Briana B. Dawson as Crystal. The trio sing together very well and look fabulous while doing so. Andre Chan is the only ensemble member, so he keeps quite busy. Chan appears as a “wino” that helps to set the mood of Skid Row even before the show begins. Dramaturg Will Jenkins stresses how horrible conditions were in the area and how desperate the characters are to “get out of Skid Row.”

The scenic designer Amber Meadows evokes Skid Row and the evolving flower shop of Mr. Mushnik. The lighting design done by Jacob Sikorski adds to the gritty ambiance. Third-year graduate student Sofia Perez has designed costumes that bring back the early sixties; don’t miss the tooth design on the back of Orin’s leather jacket, the purple suit on the ensemble member in the final scene, and the floral pods that enclose the lead characters.

The performance runs 1:45 including one ten-minute intermission. I had a great seat that was socially distanced from others. The first two rows in every section of the theater were blocked off so that no patron was too close to the performers and audience members were required to wear a mask.

“Little Shop of Horrors” runs through May 1. The Nate Katter and Studio Theatre is easy to find at 820 Bolton Road in Storrs, across the street from the E.O. Smith High School, and has plenty of nearby parking. No backpacks, laptops, or briefcases are permitted inside CRT theaters.

Nancy Sasso Janis has been writing theatre reviews since 2012 as a way to support local theater venues. She posts reviews of well over 100 productions each year. In 2016, she became a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle. She continues to contribute theater news, previews, and audition notices to local Patch sites. Reviews of all levels of theatrical productions are posted on Naugatuck Patch and the Patch sites closest to the venue. She recently became a contributor to the Waterbury Republican-American newspaper. Her weekly column and theater reviews appear in the Thursday Weekend section of the paper.

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