In somewhat of a departure from previous years, The Arts Club Theatre Company opens its diamond anniversary 2023-2024 season with a musical, the quirky Little Shop of Horrors.
Little Shop of Horrors features incredibly catchy music, sharply drawn characters, and a sense of silliness and sly humour. – Ashlie Corcoran.
Gaining cult-like status over the years, with help from Roger Corman’s 1960 non-musical film featuring a young Jack Nicholson in one of his first roles and the 1986 film adaptation of the musical starring Rick Moranis and Ellen Greene, it is the story of Seymour, a flower shop worker, who, on the eve of a solar eclipse, stumbles upon a human-eating plant. Calling it Audrey Two, he must curb the plant’s appetite by continuing to feed it.
“The nostalgia for this classic piece is strong,” says the Arts Club’s artistic director, Ashlie Corcoran, who also directs. “Little Shop of Horrors features incredibly catchy music, sharply drawn characters, and a sense of silliness and sly humour. There is a reason it is often cited by folks as their favourite musical; it’s definitely one of mine.”
A co-production with Edmonton’s Citadel Theatre, the production will feature an entirely Western Canadian cast hailing from Edmonton, Calgary, and Vancouver.
Little Shop of Horrors plays the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage from September 7–October 8. Visit artsclub.com for tickets and information.