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The Observer, October 21st, 2003 Footlighters present Little Shop of HorrorsBy Joel SandersonFor a production made up almost entirely of new members to the Footlighters, Little Shop of Horrors promises to be a very entertaining show. I was treated to a dress rehearsal of the musical, and while it needed some polishing before the first performance on Thursday, the makings of a great show were all there. Little Shop of Horrors is most commonly known movie, the most recent version being made in 1986, starring the ultimate nerd Rick Moranis from Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. The plot of the musical, the original form of Little Shop of Horrors, is essentially the same as the movie. Nerdy but accident-prone Seymor works in a flower shop on skid row. He dreams about the shop assistant, Audrey. One day after a strange occurrence, he discovers a plant he had never seen before, so he buys it and names it Audrey II. What he did not know is the plant’s appetite … for blood. All but two of the characters in the Footlighters’ production are done by first- time Footlighters performers, and they delivered some noteworthy performances. The “Greek Chorus,” composed of freshmen Jessica Brick, Bria DuPont, and Sakura Huey, is outstanding. The three have tons of energy and Brick, who plays Crystal, has incredible stage presence. The sadist dentist Orin Scrivello (played by freshman Jeff Verespef) is hilarious and creepy at the same time, and Seymor (first-year law student Josh Holmes) is confused, determined, and seems perfectly sincere. Audrey (played by sophomore Kirsten Brown) has the low self-esteem of a down-and-out drunk. Mrs. Mushnik (Laurie Pantages) is as ruthless as could be expected. And the plant, well, the plant hogs the stage (though it is not too hard, considering its size). The plant costume was both ridiculous and perfect. The enormity of its final version was hilarious and puppeteer Sean Dee did a solid job, despite some moments in which the timing was not exact between the voice of the Audrey II and its puppeteer. Sean Wedig, the voice of Audrey II, is one of the few veterans of Footlighters. He is a senior and has been performing with Footlighters “almost as long as it has existed.” The puppeteer, sophomore Sean Dee, is performing for the first time with the group. Other first-timers include sophomore Kirsten Brown and junior Erin Jones (ensemble). Junior Bart Keyes was one of the few returnees as part of the ensemble. The production of the play took dedication from all of the thespians. Josh Holmes (Seymor) said that over the seven weeks of play practice, between sixteen and twenty hours a week of his time were dedicated to the play. “I just really didn’t need to sleep anyway,” Holmes commented. Kirsten Brown echoed his statements about the time commitment, saying that this was her first production because this was the first time she had found enough time to participate in Footlighters. Luckily for the cast, they have dedicated directors who are also veterans of other Footlighters productions. Seniors Nate Kundtz and Joseph Boutros approximated that they spent between twenty-four and thirty hours each week working on the production. Little Shop of Horrors plays at 8:00 p.m. tonight and tomorrow at Harkness Chapel, with an additional midnight showing on November 1. Tickets can be reserved at http://footlighters.cwru.edu/reservations/. |