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Little Shop of Horrors Theatrical Analysis

"Little Shop of Horrors" Theatrical Analysis

One of the longest-running and most successful off-Broadway shows of all time, “Little Shop of Horrors,” is what could be called an affectionate spoof of the 1960 Roger Corman movie, “Little Shop of Horrors.” “Little Shop of Horrors” has become a household name thanks to a highly successful film version and a score by the songwriting team of Howard Ashman and Alan Menken. The 1982 play “Little Shop of Horrors” is one of the most unlikely, but successful, musical comedies of all time.

The plot of the “Little Shop of Horrors” focuses around Seymour, a poor young man whose career and life are going nowhere. Seymour works as a florist’s assistant in a Skid Row flower shop. The love of Seymour’s life is his co-worker, Audrey, who dates a sadistic dentist named Orin. A miracle presents itself to Seymour at an unusual Chinese market in the form of a plant.

On the day after an eclipse, Seymour buys a peculiar-looking little plant and brings it to the shop. He names the plant Audrey II, after his real-life crush Audrey. For some reason, the plant attracts visitors, and the business of the shop increased dramatically. But as is always the case, there is one problem with the crowd-pleasing, publicity-attracting, money-generating plant. It feeds only on human blood. Seymour at first uses his own blood, but the plant keeps growing. It needs larger quantities of blood to live. The plant’s favorite phrase is,” Feed me” (Menken 52). As the plant’s appetite gets larger, the cast of the play decreases with Seymour’s desperation to feed the plant.

The play “Little Shop of Horrors” was loosely based on Roger Corman’s infamous 1960 science fiction movie “Little Shop of Horrors.” The 1960 movie of the same name is best known for two things: Having been filmed in under a week and featuring a young actor named Jack Nicholson in a supporting role. “The 1986 film version of the “Little Shop of Horrors” was directed by Frank Oz”( Menken 2) It brought Seymour and Audrey II into many houses across the world.

Howard Ashman and Alan Menken are the authors of the play “Little Shop of Horrors.” Ashman and Menken’s unique theatrical gifts enabled the play to become the third-longest-running musical in off-Broadway history, as well as the highest-grossing...

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