Pittsburgh Current: If anyone you know asks how come musicals these days have all been adapted from movies (instead of novels or real life like they used to be) I’d suggest you send them to the Pittsburgh Public Theater to catch their production of Little Shop of Horrors. The almost completely sold-out audience I saw the show with (on an evening when there was a sports game in town) proves the efficacy of a cinematic lineage.
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This article was very surprising for me to read because it presents a perspective that I do not know if it was ever agreed upon before.
A lot of the theatrical content today has been adapted from books and plays. And for the most part, they area appreciated because the theatrical version manages to grasp on to the nuances of the piece because it is spelled out in the play or the book. This is something that has been a constant problem when involving movie adaptations. It is said that when movies are adapted from books, they miss out on a lot of essential content and that when something is adapted from a movie, it is assumed that it will lack some of the connectivity that a book or a play has because of its limited run time of two hours.
However, the recent production of the Little Shop Of Horrors brings a new perspective to this, telling everyone that it is not always a bad idea to adapt something from a movie to be presented in a live entertainment setting.
I went to go see a Little Shop of Horrors with my design class this past weekend. I have I was not familiar with the show or the plot. The play was honestly not was not what I expected it to be. I thought it would be more horror oriented, and I was very surprised when the carnivorous plant began to sing rhythm and blues. This was the first local Pittsburgh Theater production I've seen outside of Carnegie Mellon since coming here. Unfortunately, the media was not working the night we went to see the show. Media was not a prominent feature in any of my own high school's productions, and I'm interested how media is utilized in the professional theater world. Like the comment above mentioned, it is always interesting how stories get translated between novels live performances and on-screen adaptations. One of my least favorite examples of the translation was the recent movie Cats. I grew up watching the 1996 London cast recording, and the movie honestly ruined it all for me. Which is sad.
I am super excited to see Little Shop of Horrors. I like how this article gives a history of the show and doesn’t just give a review of The Public’s production of the show. I wish the author gave more credit or in general spoke more about the creative team and design aspects of the show. The author talked for at least two paragraphs about the main characters and how well the actors portrayed them, but there is no mention of the costumes, scenic design, media design, or any aspect. I am mostly sad in that regard because our very own Susan Tsu was the costume designer for this show and she deserves credit for an amazing job well done. I also really like how the article mentions the Faustian details of the plot line. My final english class in high school was all about Faustian traditions and how it is shown in literature and on the stage. I look forward to recommending this show to my old teacher to look into.
I went to go see this production last weekend with my friends and I really did enjoy. I know Little Shop really well, but none of the four other people I was with had ever seen it or heard the music, so it was really fun to see their reactions to everything that was happening. Sometimes when I know a show so well, I forget what is supposed to be a joke, like how Audrey 2 is voiced by a man with a deep voice, to me that just seems like how it is. But watching my friends react to that for the first time and this article mentioning it made me remember that joke as well as many others. As far as this review goes, I don’t think it is a very successful review of this production. It seems to me like more of a review of the show itself because the majority of the review talks about the history and the script. But I do think this review would be good for someone who knows nothing about Little Shop to read.
I saw Little Shop of Horrors at the Public theatre this past weekend. It was truly a hoot. I loved Susan Tau's costume design (obviously because she's mom). Unfortunately, when I went the projections weren't working, so I missed out on what I later learned (and saw a few production photos) was very integral to the overall aesthetic of the show. Susan described it as being so integral, it took on it's own character in the show, and greatly influenced the decisions made by the lighting designer in specific. I will say that when I saw the show the colorful windows on the grey building were a lot, but seeing the way they interact with the media design, I think the aesthetic was very strong. I would love to see it again to have a chance to see the projection design. The performance in general was super spirited, and the technical aspects were for the most part stunning.
I am so excited to go see this show this weekend! Besides for the Iconic "Suddenly Seymor" number, I am not super familiar with this show or the plot. The article begins talking about the process of the various adaptations of the show, and the fact that the original movie was adapted to a musical, and then back to a second movie adaptation, and now is performed across the country. I find this type of footprint for a show very interesting, especially as more and more shows begin as musicals and then transition to the screen. I also find the design of this show very interesting. Little Shop has a very infamous color palate and several elements that are integral to the show. From the photo in the article, I love the way in which the costume designer (Go Susan !!) truely worked to connect the characters and the set through color.
This review does not really describe the show in the way that I experienced it. I saw it last weekend and loved the show. It was so entertaining and I really do not think I have laughed that much in a theatrical production ever before. I had not seen Little Shop before then, so I really appreciated seeing it for the first time and appreciating all of the jokes. That being said, this review does not say anything about any of the design aspects! Susan’s costumes for this production were amazing! Each piece of clothing really screamed Susan Tsu, and I loved that her aesthetic was so clearly shown in all of the pieces. The layered patterns and wide color palette matched this show so well and really made my experience watching that much better. I was part of the group that unfortunately was not able to see the projections, which I think would have made me love the scenic and lighting elements much more. They were ok, but after seeing some of the production photos with the projection, it is clear that lighting and scenic were not the main focus in this production.
I saw Little Shop of Horrors this weekend and I really enjoyed it!! I was especially impressed with the media design and the costume design by Susan Tsu! I thought the use of media was really great! It was very much a part of the show and really improved the set elements but it didn’t feel overwhelming or over the top. I loved how it made the building look so realistic. The costumes were also very well thought out and really pleasing to watch!! I especially loved when the three female ensemble members were wearing sparkly dresses that reminded me of something the Supremes would wear! I also enjoyed the puppets. They were amazing in their construction and the puppeteers did a great job of bringing them to life!! The little plant puppets at the end were so cute! I also loved Philippe Arroyo’s performance as Seymour!! He was so much fun to watch!
Little Shop of Horrors has been one of my favorite musicals from when I was younger. I’ve seen the original film adaptation with Jack Nicholson and also the movie starring Rick Moranis. I am really excited to see this production as it will be my first non-CMU show that I have seen in Pittsburgh. And I am also looking forward to seeing the costumes designed by our professor Susan Tsu! The article doesn’t seem to give a critical analysis of the production, which a review usually tends to do. Rather, it functions as a summary of the history of Little Shop and the Pittsburgh Public production. It also mentions a supposedly announced film adaptation that I haven’t heard of. As a fan of the movie from the 80s, I think I might be disappointed by a remake since I do appreciate the original one so much. Only time will tell.
I went to go see this show last weekend and thought it was enjoyable and well done. We discovered later that there was supposed to be a large media aspect of the show and that it had been malfunctioning that night, but it still did feel like a fully realized production without it. My one complaint is that we were sitting on the seats directly to the side of the stage, and the show was clearly blocked to be seen from the front. There were a few moments of action that I missed because the plant was directly in my way, and there was a lot of watching people’s backs as they stood downstage and sang. However, I still found the show enjoyable - I’d never seen it before and it was interesting to see how my expectations lined up with what the show actually was. I could also definitely see Susan’s influence on the costumes, especially at the end; it was fun to see our professors’ work in a real world setting.
I saw this production last Sunday evening and I am definitely in agreement with the article it was “thoroughly enjoyable”, but I had a different experience than most based on two main factors. I was seated in the first row all the way in the last seat on the house right. Because it was in thrust I spent quite a bit of time staring at the side of the wall craning my neck to see the action. I definitely would not sit in that seat again, but it was fascinating to see how everything worked up close. There was even a moment when the whole cast was singing and there was a cast member two feet away obviously lip-syncing. The second interesting part of this experience is that the media was apparently missing for this performance. I didn't even know there was supposed to be media until days later when someone else was discussing the show. But hey, the show must go on, working projector or not.
This past weekend I attended this show in support of Susan Tsu and her designs as well as support of the Pittsburgh theatre community as well. It was a wonderful experience. Little Shop of Horrors has never been the most powerful or morally hard-hitting show, but it is a fun piece, and it is tricky to do well, since the writing does not provide a ton of support to the production. But this production really bought into the camp of this show and found the deeper meaning behind the storyline and did a great time presenting that. Unfortunately, the night we attended the projectors were not working, so we missed out on the projection design completely which I think would have brought something fun to the show. Those who did see the projections truly enjoyed them, and I am sad we missed out on that aspect, but the show still had life and fun without them.
I of course have to first give Susan a massive shoutout. Her costume designs were PHENOMENAL. I really appreciate her attention to detail. Every time a new costume was introduced, I would check out of the scene for just a little bit to just examine all of the fine details of each costume. Then, I would jump right back into the show because the entire thing was really great. This was my first time seeing “Little Shop of Horrors”, and I did not really have too many expectations going in except for some of the songs I knew. The actors were all so talented, especially Philippe Arroyo as Seymour (woo CMU alums). I was always captivated by whoever was onstage because of their infectious energy! The entire production team did exceptional work, as well. The ways in which the set retracted into itself was entertainment within itself, and I really enjoyed the coupling of the media and lighting. Also, the puppeteer for Audrey II deserves a Tony. I said what I said. I would absolutely see it again!
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