THEATRE REVIEW | Little Shop of Horrors – Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, London

On skid row in downtown Manhattan, a flower shop called Mushnik’s is not doing much business. But Seymour Krelborn (a wonderful Marc Antolin), who works at the shop owned by Mr Mushnick (Forbes Masson) has mysteriously acquired a plant, a plant so unlike any in the shop. It’s a plant that looks like a venus flytrap, but this plant is very different. It’s a plant he has called Audrey II (Vicky Vox plays the plant later in the show), named after the co-worker he is secretly in love with Audrey (Jemima Rooper). This plant doesn’t want water like all the other plants in the shop, as discovered by Seymour when he pricks his fingers and drips blood on the plant, and it’s happy drinking his blood. But the more blood Seymour feeds the plant, the bigger it grows, and soon enough Seymour can’t give any more blood to the plant, and it’s grown so huge that’s it’s become a celebrity (and so has Seymour). But how can Seymour continue to keep his plant happy and all the while attaining his new celebrity status (and the money that comes with it?). He has to give Audrey II more blood, and this includes people. The first to go into the plant is Audrey’s abusive boyfriend Orin Scrivello (Matt Willis – of pop group Busted). But who will be next? The plants keeps telling Seymour ‘I’m Hungry’ so he’s at odds as to what to do next. And this all takes place in the beautiful outdoor theatre.

Playing until Saturday, September 22, ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ is great fun to watch. Let’s hope the good weather continues until the end of the shows run – as Little Shop of Horrors is best enjoyed when it’s not raining. The cast are all wonderful, and Vicky Vox is larger than life as the plant. With music and lyrics by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman, Little Shop of Horrors is still good fun and even better set amongst all those trees in Regent’s Park. Just be careful and don’t get too close to one, it might eat you!