Ethereal Theatre Company’s
Little Shop of Horrors is a colourful and zealous show with a relentless vitality that guarantees a whole lot of fun.
The 12-strong cast dazzle with insatiable enthusiasm. Dana Hudson’s tight choreography adds to the lively musical numbers and with vocally strong soloists across the leading roles, in particular, Natasha Kayser as Audrey, Lucy Helen Carruthers as Ronnette and Josh Berrington as The Dentist, it is clear that the cast is well trained. At times, it felt like the ensemble numbers were a bit of a competition to see who could sing the loudest, although this may be a result of adrenalin from the excitement of the high paced songs.
Leading man Seymour (Marcus Jones) is endearingly innocent and bumbling; easily gaining the support of his audience. Sometimes it was evident his lower register struggled to compete with the louder ensemble and some clarity was lost, This was either due to a strange choice not to turn on his microphone at this time or to shoot a technical difficulty that couldn't be helped.
The star of the show was the epicurean monster Audrey II, played by Anna Tammela, whose sensuous persuasion for Seymour to feed her was impressive. The monster was made up of Tammela and her branches who lithely wrap around one another and writhe around the stage in a mirage of personification – a credit to Mahmoud Zayat’s creative direction. The Audrey II costumes were particularly effective and well produced. Tammela’s strong voice sumptuously lent itself to the jazzy tones of the song Feed Me (Git It), a real highlight number in the show.
Little Shop of Horrors is a colourful and zealous show with a relentless vitality that guarantees a whole lot of fun.
