"Little Shop Of Horrors": Two more performances at Farmington Players Barn

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (WXYZ) - The man-eating plant "Audrey" II has spent the past three weeks devouring laughter (along with people) in the hit musical "Little Shop Of Horrors."  There are two more performances this weekend at the Farmington Players Barn, in Farmington Hills.

Seymour the naive floral assistant must stop the plant before it munches on everyone he knows!

The two remaining shows are Friday May 18th and Saturday May 19th, both at 8pm. 

Tickets are available at farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office (248) 553-2955. 

The story focuses on the down and out denizens of  Skid Row. Seymour discovers an exotic plant (Audrey II) that sprouts like Jack’s Beanstalk and offers Mushnick, the hapless flower shop owner, the magic of its “Midas touch.”  But the plant can only thrive if Seymour quenches its thirst for blood.

Bring Back The Creepy”

Little Shop of Horrors (music by Alan Menken, story by Howard Ashman) mixes rock, doo-wop and early Motown soul with a campy and macabre script.  Director Rachael Rose of Waterford Township doubles as Music Director for the show. Rose says her goal is to “bring back the creepy from the original movie into the campy of the musical.”

 

Little Shop’s Roots

Little Shopopened off-Broadway in 1982, and eventually racked up more than 2,000 performances. It hit the big screen in 1986 with Steve Martin as the pyscho Dentist and Rick Moranis as Seymour.  But Little Shop is actually based on a Roger Corman black comedy from 1960, a spoof of old Sci-Fi films, with Jack Nicholson playing a masochistic Dentist in one of his first films. (Gary Weinstein of Farmington Hills handles that role at the Barn).

“Eerie Journey” At The Barn

Rose says the Farmington Players version of Little Shop will take people on an “eerie journey” that she describes as “more creepy and edgy than campy.”

Jason Wilhoite of Commerce Township, lends his captivating voice to the nebbish Seymour, desperately in love with his co-worker Audrey (Taylor Alfano of Livonia).  Wilhoite starred last season at the Barn as “Leo Bloom” in The Producers. In Little Shop, he performs his third comic duet with Barry Cutler of Ferndale (Mushnick), as the pair tango their way through “Mushnick & Son.”

Both Wilhoite & Alfano deliver gripping performances with their renditions of several hit songs, including “Suddenly Seymour” and “Somewhere That’s Green.”  Additionally, Alfano shines as Audrey, trapped in an abusive relationship with the sadistic Dentist, Tim Timmer of Wayne.  Timmer in turn, provokes lots of laughter singing “Dentist” and “Now (It’s Just The Gas)”.

Skid Row just wouldn’t be complete without the gospel-style Greek chorus, a terrific trio packing plenty of attitude and sass while the tragedy unfolds.  Crystal (Katie Aumann of Royal Oak), Ronnette (Amy Poirier of Farmington Hills) and Chiffon (Allison Boufford of Northville Township) provide perfect harmony for catchy tunes like, "Little Shop", "Skid Row", "Da-Doo", "Ya Never Know,”  "The Meek Shall Inherit" and more.

Maggie Gilkes (Farmington Hills) Walter Middlebrook (Detroit) Blythe Philp (Royal Oak) and Laurel Stroud (Redford Township) take on hilarious character roles, and John Boufford (Northville Township) proves entertaining as the narrator and interviewer.

But the star that may just steal the stage is Audrey II, morphing from a “strange and interesting” piece of greenery to the money-making Monster. The puppeteer Michael Rose of Waterford Township and the Voice Jarrod Henderson of Farmington Hills, team up to bring to life the saucy soul-singing beast from space, with hilarious show-stopping numbers “Feed Me (Git It)” and “Suppertime.”

Tickets for Little Shop Of Horrors are available now at farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office 248-553-2955. 

REMAINING SHOWS:

Friday      May 18  8pm

Saturday  May 19  8pm

 

TICKETS

Tickets are available at both www.farmingtonplayers.org and the box office at 248-553-2955.

•   Adults: $18

•   Students: $2 off any performance

•   Senior Sunday: April 29 is SOLD OUT

•   Thrifty Thursday: $2 off ONLY on May 3 and May 17

•   Group Discounts: $2 off any show with a group of ten or more people.

 

LOCATION

The Farmington Players Barn is located at 32332 W. 12 Mile Road, Farmington Hills Michigan 48334. It’s the big white barn on the north side of 12 mile between Orchard Lake and Farmington Rd.