40 youths in this weekend's 'Little Shop of Horrors' at RRCA

Suzanne Nolan Wisler, The Monroe News
·4 min read
"Little Shop of Horrors" cast members (from left) Courtney Perttula, Gena Craanen, Emma Glover and Maggie Granata rehearse recently on the River Raisin Centre for the Arts' stage. The show will be presented this weekend at the theater.
"Little Shop of Horrors" cast members (from left) Courtney Perttula, Gena Craanen, Emma Glover and Maggie Granata rehearse recently on the River Raisin Centre for the Arts' stage. The show will be presented this weekend at the theater.

Forty area kids and a killer plant puppet will present “Little Shop of Horrors” this weekend at the River Raisin Centre for the Arts.

The young actors and singers are part of the River Raisin Repertory Youth at the theater.

“I can’t express enough how well these kids are doing with the story. You will have to remind yourself that they are kids,” Tracy Glover, show director, said.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Aug. 11-12, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13. Tickets are $13-25. Call 734-242-7722, stop by the theater or visit riverraisincentre.org to purchase.

This is the second time RRCA youth and Glover have staged the sci-fi/comedy musical. Glover has led summer youth programs at the downtown Monroe theater since 2012.

“We did this show in 2014 with the Summer Youth Theater,” Glover said. “I just wanted a fun show with awesome music that we could have a blast with. The music, the story, everything is a great escape. Being that it’s an older show, it’s fun because it’s a period piece, set in the late ’50s, early ’60s. It’s something that the kids are enjoying because it’s not like your contemporary musical."

“Little Shop of Horrors” debuted in 1982 and was later made into a film. The plot follows meek floral assistant Seymour Krelborn (played by Mason Olvera) who stumbles across a new breed of plant that he names Audrey II after coworker/secret love Audrey (played by Jillian Villa). Audrey II is portrayed by Mario Tucker.

The R&B-singing plant promises unending fame and fortune to Seymour, as long as he keeps feeding it blood.

“I love the storyline, being a satire of old B horror movies," Glover said. "I’m having a great time with this cast and how well they are putting things together. Our leads are really nailing their characters."

The musical’s famous songs include "Skid Row (Downtown),” "Somewhere That's Green" and "Suddenly, Seymour.” Josh Glover is the music director. He also directed music for the RRCA’s 2014 performance. Madyson Davis is the choreographer. The cast has been rehearsing since June.

“The cast is singing like crazy, the music is great, and they are really doing a great job with the vocals and telling the story,” Glover said. “Our Doo Wop girls are wonderful vocalists and sing their brains out.”

Props for "Little Shop of Horrors" came from the RRCA's storehouse and from Bedford High School.

“The costumes are some new, but also some vintage garments that we own at the RRCA," Glover said.

One of the four versions of killer plant Audrey II from "Little Shop of Horrors" is shown. The plants have been used for years in local productions. This weekend, they will be on stage at the River Raisin Centre for the Arts.
One of the four versions of killer plant Audrey II from "Little Shop of Horrors" is shown. The plants have been used for years in local productions. This weekend, they will be on stage at the River Raisin Centre for the Arts.

Four plants, two of which are puppets, portray Audrey II in various stages of growth. The plants are from BHS’ theater department. One of the plants was featured on the RRCA’s float in the recent Monroe County Fair parade.

“They have been around for many years and have been used in a lot of area productions,” Glover said. “There are four different sizes, depending on how big the plant is during the course of the show. They are a wonderful addition to further the story along. The third and fourth plants are operated by a puppeteer and really bring ‘Twoey’ to life. The puppet plants are a blast to watch on stage.”

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Glover is looking forward to this weekend’s show.

“I am so proud of this cast and cannot wait for everyone to see this show," she said.

If you go

WHAT: “Little Shop of Horrors” by River Raisin Repertory Youth

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Aug. 11-12 and 2 p.m. Aug. 13

WHERE: River Raisin Centre for the Arts, 114 S. Monroe St.

TICKETS: $13-25; for tickets, call 734-242-7722, stop by the theater or visit riverraisincentre.org

SPONSOR: La-Z-Boy

Cast

Seymour Krelborn: Mason Olvera

Audrey: Jillian Villa

Mr. Mushnik: Xavier Memije

Audrey II/Twoey the plant: Mario Tucker

Orin the Dentist: Nathan Glover

Crystal: Emma Glover

Shirelle: Lorelei Wilburn

Chiffon: Courtney Perttula

Chantelle: Abby Younglove

Ronette: Maggie Granata

Angel: Genevieve Craanen

Wino No. 1: Davis McDonald

Customer: Micah Bourbina

Mr. Bernstein: Jose Jones

Mrs. Luce: Astrid Thomas

Skip Snip: Layne Miller

Patrick Martin: Zach Robinson

Pretty Ladies: Leah Ferguson, Caroline Grenn, Londyn Heinzerling

Bag Ladies: Chloe Bourbina, Danielle McFarland, Jessie Wood

Bums: Layne Miller, Jacob Robinson, Jose Jones, Noel Piasecki

HopHeads: Jason Loveland, Jack Fowler

Street Kids: Brianna Lynch, McKenna Ringle, Elizabeth Zwack, Ethan Zell

Ensemble: Mariana Calkins, Sophia Campbell, Sabina Dillon, Alexis Etue, Ashe Etue, Emerson Gruber, Karmin Kleparek, Lucy Kosakowski, Mal Perkey, Elizabeth Rosas, Maegan Wygand

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: 40 youths in this weekend's 'Little Shop of Horrors' at RRCA