Theatre Tuscaloosa is bringing skid row to Shelton State Community College, presenting the musical “Little Shop of Horrors.”
In a grimy neighborhood just beyond somewhere green lies a small flower shop, Mushnik’s, where Seymour works and tries to win the affections of Audrey.
Audrey is a woman in an abusive relationship with a dentist who has a rather odd addiction to nitrous oxide. Scarlett Walker, a sophomore majoring in theater, has been preparing for this role since she was in high school.
“I started singing one of her songs that’s called ‘Somewhere That’s Green’ in the ninth grade in voice lessons,” Walker said. “I really fell in love with the part there, so forever it has been a dream role of mine.”
In the show, Audrey has an accent that was made famous by Ellen Greene in the 1986 movie, which also starred Steve Martin as Orin Scrivello, D.D.S.
“I’ve watched the movie a thousand times and I’ve watched different renditions on YouTube,” Walker said. “Just trying to really perfect that accent leading up to the auditions for the show made me work on it every day. So when I got in here it wouldn’t be a problem, and I could just do my thing.”
The abusive dentist, Orin Scrivello, is played by Danny Salter, who has been with Theatre Tuscaloosa since 1994, when he was cast in “The Secret Garden.”
“It’s a role that Steve Martin made iconic, so it’s a fun role and very diverse,” Salter said. “A lot of people think it’s just getting out there and being cheesy, but the dentist, he’s got a lot of layers to him. He’s a guy who’s got a lot of anger issues, he beats women, he is addicted to nitrous oxide, he can become irrationally violent, and he can become sickeningly sweet. He’s creepy and weird, and that to me is fun; it’s a challenge.”
Props play a crucial role in “Little Shop of Horrors.” Audrey II is a plant Seymour creates that can only be fed fresh human blood. As Seymour begins to run out of blood to give the plant he devises a plan to kill Audrey’s abusive boyfriend, the dentist, and feed him to the plant. The plant had to be rented by Theatre Tuscaloosa due to the large task it would have been to build it.
There are four plants used in the show. Each is a different size and can move to show the audience how life-like Audrey II really is. As Seymour’s plan moves forward, more characters fall under the plant’s conniving ways and are eaten by the plant itself. Bucky Clements, a junior majoring in theater, sits inside the largest of the plants and maneuvers it to the music and the lyrics the plant sings.
“The first time being eaten by the plant was a little scary, but it’s actually pretty easy to slide right through there. It’s just like going down a slide, and Bucky is awesome so he makes it fun,” Walker said.
Charles Prosser (Mushnik) – of the famous “Charles Prosser dressing room” – has been with Theatre Tuscaloosa since 1991. He is a staple at Theatre Tuscaloosa, Salter said, if you go to his dressing room, “You have to shout a robust ‘What’s up Charles Prosser dressing room’ before every show.” Prosser has been waiting to do this show and is excited to be gobbled up by Audrey II.
“Depending on how long you’ve been in the plant, that tells how much time you’ve changed, so I will be putting on green makeup,” Prosser said. “I will be putting some vines on my head and I have these vine gloves. The dentist, because he’s in there the longest, has a whole bunch of stuff growing out of him.”
The show will play Oct. 25-Nov. 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Bean-Brown Theatre. Tickets are $22 for adults, $18 for seniors (60+), and $14 for students.
