Roxy’s Downtown putting new spin on ‘Little Shop of Horrors’

Roxy’s Downtown is billing its latest production as “not your mother’s ‘Little Shop of Horrors.’”

“We’ve gone a little bolder, brighter, more contemporary,” artistic director Rick Bumgardner said.

For one, Roxy’s has ditched the 1960s’ setting for the musical, which opens Thursday and continues through Aug. 22, with an unnamed era.

“We thought that the universal theme of the show needed to come through with today’s younger audiences,” Bumgardner said.

The costumes also will reflect a change in attitude, including that of Orin Scrivello, DDS – the sadistic dentist boyfriend of leading lady Audrey – dressed in a harness for the show, and using what Bumgardner calls “an instrument of torture” to administer laughing gas.

John Keckeisen, who plays said dentist, said he’s a fan of the changes made in the musical.

“It is one of those shows that when you think about it you automatically think of that ‘50s, ‘60s vibe,” he said. “So, adding this more contemporary, kind of darker look on the show really makes it stand out and I think audiences will really enjoy it.”

Based on a schlocky 1960 sci-fi/horror comedy, “Little Shop of Horrors” debuted off-Broadway 39 years ago. It catapulted into the pop culture pantheon thanks to a 1986 movie that starred Rick Moranis and Steve Martin.

Bumgardner said he and director Tom Frye discussed numerous changes that could be made to “Little Shop,” including the idea of Audrey II, the mysterious man-eating plant at the center of the show, being played on an on-stage actor.

“I think it’s wonderful and incredibly interesting, because you get to see the evil inside the plant,” Bumgardner said. However, “we thought we were messing around with it enough and we didn’t need to take it all the way that way.”

Dennis Arnold, who voices Audrey II, said he was excited about the updates.

“The concept to me seems ... almost like a graphic artist kind of thing,” he said. “I think they’ll see that with the costumes and the set and everything.”

Arnold, who voices the plant offstage, said he’s bringing the music to a lower range than it was written.

“I see the plant as being ominous,” he said. “I’m trying to keep the speaking part in my lower register as much as possible. He’s seductive with the lower way he’s talking.”

“I am surprised at the understated nature of what he’s doing,” Bumgardner said of Arnold. “He’s not allowing what he normally has, which is this huge volume when he opens his mouth to sing. He’s seductive but scary.”

Hagan Simmons, a Wichita State theater student, is the puppeteer for Audrey II. “He’s quite wonderful,” Bumgardner added.

Caleb Freeman plays Seymour, the nebbish plant shop worker who finds the plant, and Julia Faust plays Audrey, his co-worker and love interest. John Bates plays the plant shop owner, Mr. Mushnik.

J. Branson designed the set, Bumgardner said, including an homage to the sign for the Meadow Lark Drive-In, a Wichita landmark from 1950 to 1982.

Jesse Warkentin, who has had a busy summer working with Music Theatre Wichita and Opera Kansas, leads the music for “Little Shop.”

“He’s stayed very true to the music, which is a wonderful thing to see with these people because the juxtaposition of what you’re looking at and what you’re hearing makes you pay attention to the story that much stronger,” Bumgardner said.

“Little Shop” was staged in Roxy’s former incarnation as Cabaret Old Town in 1995 and Bumgardner said, topped the list in a 2019 audience survey of what musical patrons would most like to see.

“Our audiences know we’re going to put our own unique, unusual twist on whatever we do,” he said.

Director Frye, Keckeisen said, has encouraged creativity among the cast during rehearsals.

“Tom has given us the freedom to explore and play around,” he said. “That’s been freeing to go out there and have fun and see what happens.”

“Little Shop of Horrors”

When: Aug. 5-22; 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays

Where: Roxy’s Downtown, 412 ½ E. Douglas

Tickets: $30, from 265-4400 or roxysdowntown.com

This story was originally published August 4, 2021 at 3:19 AM.