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Little Shop of Horrors! by Halswell Drama Group in Halswell, Christchurch – Canterbury

What To Know About This Production

SYNOPSIS

The action opens on Mushnik’s Flower Shop, a failing store on Skid Row.  Here we meet Mr. Mushnik and his two employees, the blonde, very sweet, but vulnerable Audrey,  and the nerdish Seymour Krelborn, who secretly has a crush on his beautiful but much abused co-worker, Audrey.

Audrey, attempting to help Mushnik increase his customers, persuades him to look at one of the “exotic plants that Seymour has been tinkering around with”.  Mushnik is intrigued and allows Seymour to display his fly-trap-looking plant, which he has named, Audrey II, in honour of his secret love.  

**Seymour, along with Crystal, Ronnette and Chiffon (who provide musical accompaniment and commentary throughout the show), perform an upbeat number explaining that the strange flower was purchased from Chang’s Flower Shop.  The plant appeared “mysteriously” after a total eclipse of the sun.

The strange plant draws customers and business is soon booming, but the plant is starting to die, so Seymour stays behind one evening to tend the suddenly ailing Audrey II.  That night, alone in the shop, he discovers the shocking secret to the plant’s health and phenomenal growth: Human Blood! Seymour encourages the plant’s growth by pricking his fingertips and feeding Audrey II his own blood.  This only lasts for a few days and soon, the meagre drops of blood aren’t enough to satisfying the quickly growing plant.  Finally, late one night, the plant grows bold and speaks “FEED ME” – Audrey II has now become a singing, dancing, jive-talking, vampire vegetable!

The plant demands more and more, and Orin, Audrey’s abusive dentist boyfriend,  becomes more and more abusive to Audrey; bringing Seymour to the conclusion of murdering Orin and feeding him to Audrey II.  Luckily he is spared the ghastly deed, when the nitrous-addicted dentists laughs himself to death on his on anaesthetic gas.  Seymour then only needs to dismember the dentist and feed him to Audrey II.  This brings up new possibilities in Seymour’s love life.  He builds up the courage to tell Audrey of his true feelings for her. Audrey responds by singing “Suddenly Seymour” , and the two are united.  

Unfortunately, Mushnik witnessed Seymour’s crime and threatens to tell the police if he does not leave the country.  The plant, however, must stay.  Of course, the solution for Seymour is, again, right in front of him and he tricks Mushnik into the jaws of the ever-hungry Audrey II.  As the plant and body count grow, so does Seymour’s fame and fortune.

However, Seymour’s natural goodness makes him think about his lifestyle and what he must do to maintain it.  He decides to flee with Audrey to be married and so he plots to destroy Audrey II.  Before Seymour can complete his plan, the plant mortally wounds Audrey.  Dying, she requests that she can be fed to the plant so she can become part of it and always be near Seymour.  Relunctantly, Seymour feeds her to Audrey II, who at last reveals its’ ultimate plan – World Domination! After a failed final attempt to kill the plant,  Seymour too is devoured.  Dead characters return to warn us all that Audrey II and other alien plants have begun to devour the world, one city at a time. World Domination has begun!


LIST OF CHARACTERS/ROLES

SEYMOUR KRELBORN – A menial labourer at Mushniks Flower Shop. Seymour Krelborn is the improbable hero of the story.  Nebbish-like and insecure, he has poor social skills, is naive and feels much put-upon.  In spite of his flaws, he is a sweet, well-meaning little man.  Seymour is the owner of the carnivorous plant, Audrey II. 

Role Type: Lead

Gender: Male

Age: 20’s or 30’s

Vocal range: A2-G4


AUDREY – The gum-snapping, bleached-blonde, secret love of Seymour’s life. Audrey works with Seymour at the Flower Shop.  Lacking in education and self-esteem, she suffers from feelings of hopelessness at her situation in life, including her abusive relationship with her boyfriend Orin Scrivello.  She comes across as being very sweet and vulnerable and talks with a lisp. 

Role Type: Lead

Gender: Female

Age: 20’s or 30’s

Vocal Range: G#3-D5


CRYSTAL, RONNETTE & CHIFFON -  Three Female street urchins who function as participants in the action and as “doo-wop” chorus girls outside the action, acting as the occasional Greek Chorus. Young, hip, and smart, these girls are the only ones who have a grip on reality, they often sing directly to the audience in a narrative style. Must be confident soloists and be able to hold a harmony.

Role Type: Lead

Gender: Female

Age: 20’s or 30’s

Vocal Range: Ab3-F5


MR MUSHNIK – Nosy owner of Mushniks Flower Shop.   A failure as a florist, Mr Mushnik is given to cursing in Yiddish.  He is a man who seldom smiles, often yells, is profit-driven, greedy and sweats a lot.

Role Type:  Lead                                                                      

Gender: Male

Age: 50’s or 60’s

Vocal Range: G2-F4


ORIN SCRIVELLO – Audrey’s Dentist Boyfriend.  He is a motorcycle-riding, black leather jacket-wearing tough guy with sadistic tendencies.  His fondness for his own nitrous oxide proves to be his undoing.

Role Type: Supporting Lead

Gender: Male

Age: 30’s or 40’s

Vocal Range: G2-G4


VOICE OF THE PLANT (AUDREY II) – A wise-cracking anthropomorphic cross between a Venus flytrap and an avocado with teeth, Audrey II is Seymour’s favourite and soon-to-be famous, plant.  Seymour purchased the plant from Chang’s Flower Shop during a mysterious total eclipse of the sun; but once the plant has the taste of human blood, there is no stopping it.  Voiced from off-stage, it is important that this actor can provide accurate lip-syncing and reliably replicate the detail of their performance.  Think of The Voice as that of a street-smart, funky, conniving villain – simultaneously alluring and persuasive, as well as intimidating and dangerous. 

Role Type: Lead

Gender: Male

Voice Type: Big and Authoritive

Vocal Range: G2-G4


PUPPETEER FOR THE PLANT (AUDREY II) – The Creature is played by a series of four increasingly large puppets, 3 of which a manipulated by the puppeteer.  The first time we see the plant, it is less than 1ft tall and the puppeteer is concealed behind the set for operation.  The largest 2 plants require the puppeteer to sit inside them on-stage throughout much of the show.  Physical stamina and a great deal of patience will be required for this role.  Previous experience with puppeteering would be an advantage, but not essential.

Role Type: Lead

Gender: Male or Female

Vocal Range: N/A


ENSEMBLE MEMBERS – We are looking for 10-12 ensemble members to help boost the vocal and visual impact of the production.  We are looking for a good variety of males/females who have good singing voices and who move well.  The following roles, among others, will be cast from this group: 

PATRICK MARTIN – A sleazy opportunist who tries to talk Seymour and Mr.Mushnik into leaf cuttings of Audrey II, to exploit the plant and sell seedling across America.

RADIO ANNOUNCER/INTERVIEWER – offstage role – will need suitable ‘radio’ voice

MR BERNSTEIN – A bigshot from NBC who offers Seymour his own gardening show.

MRS LUCE – The wife of the Editor of  Life Magazine

SKIP SNIP – A Gangster type character who tries to make money out of Seymour’s success.

WINO/BUM #1 & #2 – Typical homeless beggar-type person 

VOICE - Very much like God's - Does the show introduction - Sc 1

CUSTOMERS/LOCALS/PATIENTS – Selection of different characters/scenes/situations       


LIST OF MUSICAL NUMBERS

  • Prologue (Little Shop of Horrors) - Chiffon, Crystal, Ronnette
  • Skid Row (Downtown) - Ensemble
  • Da-Doo - Chiffon, Crystal, Ronnette & selected ensemble
  • Grow For Me - Seymour
  • Don't it go to Show, Ya Never Know - Mushnik, Chiffon, Crystal, Ronnette, Seymour
  • Somewhere That's Green - Audrey
  • Closed for Rennovations - Seymour, Audrey, Mushnik & selected ensemble
  • Dentist! - Orin, Chiffon, Crystal, Ronnette & selected ensemble
  • Mushnik and Son - Mushnik and Seymour
  • Feed Me (Git It) - Seymour and Audrey II
  • Now (It's Just the Gas) - Seymour and Orin
  • Call Back in the Morning - Seymour and Audrey
  • Suddenly, Seymour - Seymour, Audrey & Ensemble
  • Suppertime - Audrey II
  • The Meek Shall Inherit - Ensemble
  • Don't Feed the Plants - Ensemble     
  • Finale - Mean Green Mother from Outer Space) - Full Cast        


YOUR CREATIVE TEAM .........     

DIRECTOR - BYRON HILL

22 Years ago Byron began his involvement with local theatre – from working Front of House, as an Usher and Door Person to Back Stage as a Sound Operator, Lighting Designer/Operator, Assistant Stage Manager, Stage Manager, Props Person and Director.

For the last 15 years he has been involved with another local theatre group called PMH Players as their Technical Director and Treasurer. Byron is also involved with his local church as the Technical and Production Manager for their Creative Ministries Team.

The past 6 years Byron has either been the Stage Manager, Sound Operator or Director with Halswell Drama Group. And is very excited to back as the director for this year’s show.

MUSIC DIRECTOR - NERIDA BRITTEN

Nerida has been involved in a variety of shows, both on the stage and in the orchestra, either as Musical Director or playing keyboard or flute. Nerida credits her High School Music Teacher, Richard Marrett, with giving her a passion for music and shows during her teenage years. After training as a High School Music Teacher herself, Nerida spent several years as the Musical Director for a variety of school shows, both in Christchurch and in the UK. After taking a break from musical involvement while her children were young, Nerida jumped at the opportunity to play keyboard for CentreStage Rolleston's 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in 2018. This lead to being part of Halswell Drama Group's show - 'All Shook Up' in 2019, as both rehearsal pianist and pianist in the band. Nerida is now looking forward to being the Musical Director for 'Little Shop of Horrors' in 2020.

CHOREOGRAPHER - KATRINA JOHNSON 

Katrina started dancing at age 4 and graduated with a teachers diploma in Modern Dance from The Royal Academy of Dancing and The Imperial Society Of Teachers of Dancing. She danced professionally in performance troupes around New Zealand for many years and was a principal dancer in a show that toured internationally.  Katrina has performed in over 30 musicals and for the last 12 years has worked as a choreographer in London.

Katrina joined Halswell Drama Group in 2019 and is excited to be sharing her passion for dance and choreography on this side of the world again after living overseas for 16 years.  Having performed in Little Shop of Horrors in Auckland (1996) she is looking forward to revisiting Skid Row and choreographing this fun, quirky, well loved show.


OTHER PEOPLE OF INTEREST .......

PRODUCTION MANAGER - CARLA WEBER

Carla has been involved in countless different shows over the years, more recently, Directing 'Nunsense - the Mega Musical' (2016), 'The Wedding Singer' (2017), and Musical Directing - 'Who Loves Me' (2018) and 'All Shook Up' (2019), all with Halswell Drama Group. Carla has also been Production Manager for multiple shows plus enjoys Marketing and Social Media. She is also a co-founder of 'CentreStage Rolleston' so keeps super busy as she is heavily involved with both groups.

Carla is looking forward to another great year with HDG and is looking forward to sharing her extensive knowledge and expertise with Monica and the rest of the Creative Team.

ASSISTANT PRODUCTION MANAGER - MONICA WHITHAM

This is Monica's third show with Halswell Drama Group - that is simply because theatre is her life! She grew up on stage and later went on to study Theatre Studies and Directing, alongside Primary School Teaching at Otago University.

Monica is really looking forward to assisting with Production Management this year and she hopes to learn more about all facets of putting on a show, as well as sharing some of her own flare and wisdom with the Production Team.

   

Performance Dates

  • Jul 9 Thursday 7:30 PM
  • Jul 10 Friday 7:30 PM
  • Jul 11 Saturday 2:00 PM
  • Jul 11 Saturday 7:30 PM
  • Jul 15 Wednesday 7:30 PM
  • Jul 16 Thursday 7:30 PM
  • Jul 17 Friday 7:30 PM
  • Jul 18 Saturday 7:30 PM

Auditions For Little Shop of Horrors!

What To Expect At Auditions

WHAT TO EXPECT

Auditions will be held at the Halswell Community Hall, 450 Halswell Road. Please arrive at least 10 minutes prior to your booked audition time. One of our members will be there to meet you. Your audition will last for 10-12 minutes.

Character/Vocal Auditions: 16th, 17th, 19th February 2020

  • If you wish to try out for a speaking role, there will be script excerpts available for you to look through prior to your audition - Please take the time to read through any roles that you are interested in. Your character audition will consist of reading an excerpt from the script for the role that you are interested in. Don't be alarmed if the Creative team ask you to read for other roles also - they are trying to get a good picture of where you fit. There may also be a couple of impromptu acting exercises that you will be asked to do.
  • Please prepare a short excerpt from a song of your choice from the 50's/60's, to keep with the era/genre of the show. We are looking for strong voices, so pick something that will show off your voice/vocal range.
  • Please bring your own backing track on Laptop/iPod/phone (with lightning jack or headphone jack 3.5mm connector), we will have a speaker available, but bring your own if you wish. If you would like to sing unaccompanied, you are welcome to do so.
  • You will also be taken through a series of vocal exercises to determine voice range, quality etc.

Group Dance Auditions: 20th February 2020 7.30-9.15pm- EVERYBODY MUST ATTEND

Please don't panic - this session will be very relaxed and fun and will start off nice and simple. It is designed to see how well you can move and express character through dance. A 30 second routine will be taught to everyone using the music to ‘Prologue/Little Shop of Horrors.’ Please familiarise yourself with this song if you don’t know it already. We will ask you to perform the routine in small groups then following a short break we will be calling back some people for a more advanced short routine to consider possible featured dancer roles. The routines are low impact and do not require any degree of flexibility but please warm up prior to the audition if this is something you feel you require - a warm up will not be included during the dance audition. Please wear comfortable clothing and bring a drink bottle and snack if you wish. If you have any questions about the dance audition please email the choreographer at katrinajohnson5678@gmail.com


CALLBACKS

These will be held on Sunday 23rd February 5.00-9.00pm @ Halswell Community Hall. Please ensure your availability incase you are needed.

Getting a call back does not guarantee a role. Likewise you may be cast even if you are not called back. Please ensure that you have included a telephone number on your audition application form where we can easily reach you during the audition dates.


NOTIFICATION OF AUDITION OUTCOME

Applicants will be notified by phone or email after the selection process is complete. You should expect to hear back from someone within the few days following auditions/callbacks.


THE REHEARSALS

Rehearsals will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting on Tuesday 10th March 2020 at the Halswell Community Hall - 450 Halswell Road, Halswell. These will run from 7.30pm-9.30pm. Sunday rehearsals will be added in from Sunday 24th May 2020 and will run from 5.00pm-8.00pm.

Please Note: We will be trying to stick to the time schedule as much as possible, but as we get closer to show time, these times will need to be extended in June/July to ensure that we are show ready for Opening Night. You will be given plenty of notice of any changes and the rehearsal schedule will give further details closer to the time.


Membership Fee

We require all Cast/Crew to become financial members of Halswell Drama Group for the 2020 Financial Year (Payable no later than 1 May 2020) This assists with the general running costs of the group. Becoming a Financial Member entitles you to the following:

  • Preferential booking & discount on show tickets for you and your friends
  • Access to events/workshops, conferences & newsletters through Musical Theatre New Zealand (MTNZ)
  • Discounted wardrobe hire
  • A Loyalty card from 'The Old Vicarage' (18yrs+) - Benefits include: Discounts off beers/wines/hot drinks; a free 2-for-1 meal in the month of your birthday (T&C's apply); earn loyalty points to redeem on future purchases; exclusive loyalty card promotions

Membership prices are as follows:

Single - $20

Double - $30 - (This consists of 2 people from the same family)

Family - $40 (This consists of 3 or more people from the same family)

If you require further information, or have questions about membership fees, please contact us at halswelldramagroup@outlook.com





Audition Times

  • Feb 16 Sunday 5:00 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 5:12 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 5:24 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 5:36 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 5:48 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 6:00 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 6:12 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 6:24 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 6:36 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 6:48 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 7:00 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 7:24 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 7:36 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 7:48 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 8:00 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 8:12 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 8:24 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 8:36 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 8:48 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 9:00 PM
  • Feb 16 Sunday 9:12 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 7:48 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 8:00 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 8:12 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 8:24 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 8:36 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 8:48 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 9:00 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 9:12 PM
  • Feb 17 Monday 9:24 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 7:24 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 7:36 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 7:48 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 8:00 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 8:12 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 8:24 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 8:36 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 8:48 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 9:00 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 9:12 PM
  • Feb 19 Wednesday 9:24 PM
  • Feb 20 Thursday 7:30 PM
  • Mar 16 Monday 7:45 PM
  • Mar 16 Monday 9:00 PM

Audition Form

Cast List For Little Shop of Horrors!

Casting Information

The cast list is not yet posted. Please check back later.

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