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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2016 22:13:42 GMT
I must say, I've been consciously wanting to avoid this tour as I've seen LSOH twice professionally and many amateur productions - thought I was sick of it, but hearing the opening song just reminds me of how brilliant and how much energy this show has when it's done right! May have to get a ticket after all!
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Post by chinatoy on Sept 5, 2016 9:51:06 GMT
A pretty full house in Belfast and a standing ovation for the cast which they thoroughly deserved. I wouldn't say there was a weak link amongst them although I did have problems with the diction of Crystal, Chiffon and Ronnette a lot of the time.
Sam Lupton and Stephanie Clift are both spot on as Audrey and Seymour. Great acting, great vocals and how they don't manage to get tangled up in those telephone wires, I'll never know! Audrey is much more likeable than she was in the film for me and Steph Clift really shines in Somewhere that's Green. Lovely duet with Sam and he never puts a foot wrong throughout the whole show.
Loved Rhydian as the dentist. Highly amused to see him enter stage at the opening as a tramp which the reviews don't seem to have mentioned. His Orin was suitably nasty, sadistic and hilarious, and his voice is impressive. The four different characters he plays in Act Two showed his versatility. Four roles, one of which was Mrs Luce! and four different American accents. Not an easy ask.
I didn't get a programme so I'm not sure who's operating and singing the plant. Sterling job by both of them though. Haha, too funny!
The whole production is high energy, loads going on even with a small cast, really funny and I loved it.
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Post by avfan on Sept 5, 2016 10:47:32 GMT
Wow those recordings sound amazing. Will need to check it out in Woking this week.
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Post by talkstageytome on Sept 5, 2016 13:22:20 GMT
I just listened to those audios and the cast sounds fabulous, especially Sam Lupton. Wish this was coming near me!
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Post by drowseychap on Sept 28, 2016 23:19:28 GMT
Have seen all other major U.K. Productions over the years
After seeing sell a doors fab avenue q last year was looking forward to this
Much the same scale and quality of last years Q it doesn't disappoint. The 3 girls are sublime ..... and all performers give 100%
Some slightly different character interpretations of Audrey and also Seymour ....didn't mind most of them .. and also Audrey's outfits are too nice one joke falls flat .....
but all in all a great production that fits well into smaller theatre I saw it in maybe look a little lost in larger venues
Was no animation during swtg?? So maybe it's been dropped but I think it was in the movie ?
A really enjoyable night out and some great ticket offers on line too
I'm sure they are selling the Su pollard cast recording £15
Merchandise quite £££
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Post by HereForTheatre on Oct 1, 2016 19:46:21 GMT
I really enjoyed this today. It was my first time seeing the show and quite honestly over the past few weeks haven't felt too fussed about actually going to see this for some reason even though i;d booked. I went anyway and as often is the case i ended up really enjoying it. I find it often happens the shows I've not been too sure about or anticipating end up being some of my faves. Anyway i thought the score was great, all the cast were brilliant, energetic, funny and had great voices. It was a really fun afternoon.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Oct 1, 2016 19:59:47 GMT
Totes looking forward to it in Manc.
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Post by HereForTheatre on Oct 2, 2016 10:03:21 GMT
I meant to add as well that as as i can remember the band was only three strong yet somehow managed to sound very loud and full. It was excellent.
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Post by welsh_tenor on Oct 2, 2016 13:28:42 GMT
Seeing this tomorrow in Cardiff and can't wait!!
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Post by HereForTheatre on Oct 5, 2016 17:19:40 GMT
Did you see it welsh_tenor? What did you think?
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Post by welsh_tenor on Oct 6, 2016 9:20:49 GMT
Yes I saw this on Monday and it was a great production - I will confess that I'd never seen the show before but am addicted to the movie - I didn't expect the ending to be different... [*no spoiler].
Seymour and Audrey were the stand outs for me, I loved Sam in Wicked and it was great to see him take the lead and he puts so much into his performance. Great vocals and acting he really got into the character of Seymour.
Stephanie Clift was equally as strong as Audrey with lots of little humorous moments - the delivery of some of her comedy oneliners was very similar to how Rebel Wilson played Adelaide for me! Lovely voice too and great solo numbers.
Now... Rhydian [cannot say without the X-Factor voice either!] I just didn't like him in this, it was very hammy and whilst he did some lovely comical laughter it all felt a bit panto! And the multiple changing voices and parts in the 2nd half got more of a laugh for how he'll be dressed next rather than for the parts he was playing!
The three urchins/street girls had amazing voices, I'm a big fan of close part harmony singers and they shone from the moment they came on stage, a very key part of the story and they were brilliant!
Mushnik was ok nothing really to say if I'm honest...
Audrey 2 was very well done on stage, loved seeing her grow and being able to swallow people whole on stage was well done, great singing and interaction with Sam particularly!
It's a great touring production and if it comes to a down near you I'd recommend going along! #dontfeedtheplant
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Post by stevej678 on Nov 4, 2016 23:49:16 GMT
I came to this as a Little Shop of Horrors newbie having never seen the film and knowing only the title track from the musical. However, I absolutely loved every second of the show tonight.
It's hard to imagine a better pairing as Seymour and Audrey than Sam Lupton and Stephanie Clifton. Stunning vocals, brilliant comic timing and so much infectious energy on that stage. They're undoubtedly the two leads I've most enjoyed watching this year. Stephanie in particular looked to be having a ball.
I also really liked the performances of all three members of the Chorus with great work from Sasha Latoya, Vanessa Fisher and Cassie Clare. Sasha in particular has an incredible voice that shone through in the beautiful harmonies that frame much of the story. Paul Kissaun also impressed as Mushnik - great stage presence. The only weak link was Rhydian. He certainly gave it his all but it was just a bit too much and felt too forced for me.
One thing I didn't expect, perhaps assuming that this would just be a fun, throwaway evening but little more, was just how fantastic the score is. Pretty much everything featuring the Chorus, as well as Suddenly Seymour and Somewhere That's Green, is fantastic. The first thing I did on returning home was to snap up the more recent Broadway cast recording.
Credit to Selladoor too - I thought the staging of this and especially how they brought Audrey 2 to life was brilliantly done. I've found their shows a bit inconsistent in standard this year, with American Idiot quite underwhelming, Footloose generally good with a terrific young cast, and then Little Shop of Horrors which unexpectedly blew me away. I might give feeding the plants a miss tonight.
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Post by WireHangers on Nov 20, 2016 14:08:57 GMT
Saw the show in Glasgow.
While I agree with the majority of the comments. Seymour and Audrey were played well. They had great stage presence and fantastic energy. Audrey was actually acted better than I've seen before.
The three urchins were vocally fantastic but the middle one seemed to be lacking energy and her dance moves weren't as high energy as her fellow Urchins.
The ensemble seem to have the easiest job in UK musical theatre, they do virtually nothing and are clearly there as understudies. Although the female ensemble member was HILARIOUS and owned the stage anytime she set foot on it.
Mushnik's singing was pretty wonderful. Solid vocals but his acting was extremely amateur. He sleepwalked through the whole production and his accent actually dropped out a few times which was incredibly distracting. Just as he seemed to be getting into the role he went and got himself eaten!
Audrey II couldn't seem to control the head and sang out of sync with the movements most of the time. I saw the Australian tour last year where Seymour voiced the plant which I think should be implemented into every production, it added so many more layers to both characters!
Rhydian was good enough. Not great. Not awful. His voice, obviously, was like absolute honey and his vibrato makes my loins quiver with lust. However, the role should be played by someone with natural comedic ability and he's about the unfunniest person imaginable. It was like he was told exactly how to play the role for laughs. When he came on as the three characters in 'The Meek Shall Inherit' I cringed every single time. Good for him for giving it a go though.
Overall the vocals were absolutely incredible but with the mediocre set and let downs among the cast it just came across as a really, really good amateur production rather than a national tour. Still a great night at the theatre.
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Post by anthony40 on Nov 20, 2016 14:20:51 GMT
Hello plannietink05. Welcome to the board.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Nov 20, 2016 14:22:51 GMT
Welcome to the forum WireHangers and thanks for your first review  |
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Post by WireHangers on Nov 20, 2016 14:41:00 GMT
Thanks, @burlybear and anthony40 I've come here from BroadwayWorld.com and I can already see there's far more class and decorum on this page than anything I've seen on BBW so I'm very happy to be here! |
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Post by Theatre Fan on Jan 16, 2021 22:43:27 GMT
Selladoor are reportedly touring this production again as soon as they can.
Joanne Clifton is rumoured to be cast as Audrey x
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Post by djdan14 on Jan 16, 2021 23:00:43 GMT
Selladoor are reportedly touring this production again as soon as they can. Joanne Clifton is rumoured to be cast as Audrey x Like the sound of this - was a good tour the last time round On a related note the Twitter account has become active again recently after not tweeting since 2016... |
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Post by Being Alive on Jan 16, 2021 23:39:52 GMT
I'll be annoyed if she's Audrey - it needs a really good actress to properly capture the vulnerability of that character (and to also be funny). Lizzie Connelly would be a great choice
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Post by Deleted on Jan 16, 2021 23:52:29 GMT
I'll be annoyed if she's Audrey - it needs a really good actress to properly capture the vulnerability of that character (and to also be funny). Lizzie Connelly would be a great choice She was excellent in the garden theatre Pippin over the summer - a much better actress than I previously thought her to be. Looks as if she has been working on it. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2021 0:00:41 GMT
I love this musical, but I was hoping that if it were to comeback again either in London or on tour it would be a revival of the Regent's Park Open Air production as I didn't see it but it looked brilliant and a creative new way of presenting a classic.
However I also didn't see the Selladoor tour, but from what I heard it was good.
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Post by Theatre Fan on Jan 17, 2021 3:54:09 GMT
I love this musical, but I was hoping that if it were to comeback again either in London or on tour it would be a revival of the Regent's Park Open Air production as I didn't see it but it looked brilliant and a creative new way of presenting a classic. However I also didn't see the Selladoor tour, but from what I heard it was good. The Selladoor tour was excellent, I'm very excited it's coming back x |
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Post by drowseychap on Jan 17, 2021 17:35:04 GMT
I too thought the sellladoor was excellent for smaller theatre s a great production all round
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Post by fluxcapacitor on Jan 18, 2021 9:33:17 GMT
I love this musical, but I was hoping that if it were to comeback again either in London or on tour it would be a revival of the Regent's Park Open Air production as I didn't see it but it looked brilliant and a creative new way of presenting a classic. However I also didn't see the Selladoor tour, but from what I heard it was good. I'm a huge fan of Little Shop, and a massive fan of Regent's Park and their reworking of some classic musicals, but that production was a bit of a miss for me unfortunately. You can't go too wrong with Little Shop as the material is so strong, but the more abstract cartoony staging with skyscrapers in shopping carts, Audrey singing Somewhere That's Green on top of a ladder and the like just felt... off. I don't think the musical is impossible to reimagine (see the fantastic Pasadena Playhouse version in LA with a brilliantly active pink female Audrey II) but this one just hit the mark. If they were to revive any London production, I'd prefer the Menier Chocolate Factory's attempt. That was fresh enough whilst still being very true to the original. It was also the first time I'd personally ever seen the street urchins reimagined - the choreography and performance giving a much younger and grungier vibe rather than the 'Supremes"/60s girl group treatment they traditionally get. The Selladoor tour offered nothing new, but it's passable I guess - again because the material is strong. I really wish someone over here would have the guts to do what the Pasadena Playhouse in LA did with this from a casting perspective. Audrey II was female (Amber Riley riffing her way through the score) and transgender actress MJ Rodriguez played Audrey - which gave a completely new and beautiful take on the character's vulnerability and struggles in life. There are a few recordings on YouTube and it really works and shakes the show up in the right way (that is, without the need for skyscrapers in shopping carts!). It's a crime that production was never given a larger life with a Broadway transfer or similar, but the safe, traditional, copy and paste version with Jonathan Groff opened in New York at roughly the same time and blocked any immediate future it had at the time. |
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Post by kentwilliam on Jan 18, 2021 15:27:58 GMT
I’ve still got the programme from the 1994 touring production with Su Pollard as Audrey. Can’t remember a thing about it apart from it not having Mean Green Mother From Outer Space, but I think it was written for the film so guess that is why. Can’t remember what Su was like - no mention of Miss Cathcart as far as I can remember.
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