assessment: ‘Little shop of Horrors’ at Paramount Theatre goes mighty large indeed

without "Little store of Horrors," there would had been no "elegance and the Beast," no "Little Mermaid" and perhaps even no "Frozen." That's because this satirical 1982 off-Broadway musical about a cannibalistic plant named Audrey II is what brought its creators, Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman, to Disney.

The mighty mouse then employed the duo to reinvigorate its then-languishing animated franchise by turning these films into Broadway-style musicals. Disney ran with that next to Julie Taymor ("Lion King"), Elsa and all the solution to the financial institution within the years that adopted. listen carefully to "a part of Your World" in "Little Mermaid," and also you'll hear essentially a revision of "someplace That's green" from "Little shop."

I'd hardly ever be alone in announcing that "Little store of Horrors," which opened Friday night at the Paramount Theatre in Aurora, is certainly one of my favorite musicals. It's witty, sweet, strikingly usual and filled with the best possible type of theatrical music, a memorial to the whopping skill that turned into Ashman, who died from AIDS in 1991 at simply 40 years ancient.

Paramount's "Little shop" isn't so little. It's extra like Costco compared to your native florist, an incredible construction stuffed with a blowout reconstruction of Skid Row, including a re-introduction of Mushnik's store that continues relocating from side to side on the stage with such regularity, the plant Audrey II need to were getting dizzy. Add in a sing-it-to-the-hilt forged with massive voices and satisfactory stage business to fill anybody's backyard and also you've got a supersized "Little shop."

That's both a power — hardly ever will you've got heard "somewhere That's eco-friendly" sung with the emotional drive that the satisfactory singer Teressa LaGamba brings to the number — and a weak spot. "Little shop" has quirky songs, in reality, more than energy ballads and it doesn't want huge physical adjustments coming at you each 5 minutes. It's a sardonic piece, a satire of human greed, for certain, but no longer a display that otherwise makes loads of ethical judgments, past "don't feed the plant," anyway.

Jack Ball as Seymour and the plant Audrey II, voiced by Je'Shaun Jackson, in "Little Shop of Horrors" at the Paramount Theatre in Aurora.

Jack Ball as Seymour and the plant Audrey II, voiced through Je'Shaun Jackson, in "Little shop of Horrors" on the Paramount Theatre in Aurora. (Liz Lauren/HANDOUT)

That off-Broadway comedic sensibility, in case you will, is what's lacking from director Landree Fleming's creation, despite the fact I'll well known here's very a lot a query of style. Fleming and her choreographers (Michael George and Mariah Morris) have very plenty leaned into the reveal's gothic qualities: The ensemble looks and acts at times like zombies at a Halloween Fright Fest, the place most productions of this display simply deal with them like regular denizens of Skid Row, bemused through all they see and hear.

right here, the famed trio of Chiffon, Crystal and Ronnette (played by way of Lydia Burke, Marta Bady and Tickwanya Jones, respectively) sing their faces off, which is complete lot of enjoyable to listen to, however you don't with no trouble see them as droll excessive schoolers on the droop. Even the plant struggles to compete with the dimension of the ambiance and the size of the performances: it's a fab Audrey II, as voiced through Je'Shaun Jackson, the puppet through Adam Fane, nonetheless it has a lot of competitors here for center of attention in a creation the place a bit too an awful lot is appropriate on the nose.

Jack Ball is Seymour, Gene Weygandt is Mushnik and Teressa LaGamba as Audrey in "Little Shop of Horrors" at the Paramount Theatre in Aurora.

Jack Ball is Seymour, Gene Weygandt is Mushnik and Teressa LaGamba as Audrey in "Little store of Horrors" on the Paramount Theatre in Aurora. (Liz Lauren/HANDOUT)

For my tastes, anyway. The stage sure is full of skill. Gene Weygandt is Mushnik and Jack Ball, a reputation to monitor, makes for a very good Seymour. Ball premier catches the comedian style of the cloth, treating the gags with a glancing blow and delivering the variety of candy performance that crucially makes you believe like Audrey is in good hands. unluckily, not one of the dentist stuff actually lands; it's complicated to drag off.

The Paramount is a huge theater and a few of those choices make experience for this reveal in so gigantic a space. Fleming, a proficient performer, is a relatively new director: she clearly was brimming with staging ideas right here and casting a passionate ensemble who obviously care in regards to the piece. but should you've obtained cloth of this first-class, it wants less extra meals than you consider; a number of drops of blood and it might develop on an audience all by means of itself.

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Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.

cjones5@chicagotribune.com

review: "Little shop of Horrors" (2.5 stars)

When: via Oct. 15

the place: Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora

working time: 2 hours, 20 minutes

Tickets: $38-$79 at 630-896-6666 and paramountaurora.com

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