This fall, LM Players is pleased to announce their first show of this school year: Little Shop of Horrors. This musical was adapted from the cult-classic, low-budget film released in 1960. The play, set in the dreary urban sprawl of Skid Row, follows orphan Seymour Krelborn, a modest florist’s assistant who finds an odd, yet fascinating plant. Subsequently, he names the plant Audrey II, after his love interest. The plant swiftly grows into a talking, singing, and incredibly charismatic carnivorous behemoth, driven by its ravenous appetite for human blood. In an attempt to win over the real Audrey, Seymour faces many moral dilemmas all while tending to the plant and satisfying its needs as Audrey II becomes a national celebrity.
In an effort to promote the production, Players’ publicity crew has produced an array of eye-catching posters and pictures. Wren Purcell ’25, the marketing director of Players, is behind all of the vibrant advertisements for this fall’s musical. Wren expresses, “As the head marketing director, I am in charge of the Publicity (Pubz) department at Players. This means that if people come to the show, I’ve done my job. My crew and I work on various projects to achieve that goal, such as all of those lovely painted and printed posters you see around school — and also around town. Pubz also designs the playbill from scratch, puts together weekly newsletters, and runs “Front of House” (a group of students who sell food, raffle tickets, and gifts for Players members outside of the auditorium).”
In order to showcase these scenes and characters to be as authentic to the show as possible, Little Shop of Horrors features an impressive set. The set includes a charming flower shop and pair of fire escapes ,which all have been painstakingly designed by Juliana Messinger ’24, the show set designer and president. Messinger states, “I designed this show’s set and made sure the whole thing looks good. I also created technicals and layouts of individual set pieces so our scenery crew knows how to properly construct everything without it falling apart. This year, I want to make sure that our set has factors and features that help it to stand out from other sets that I’ve designed.”
Alongside the spectacular sets, a Players show is never complete without masterful lighting. This Fall’s production was lit by master electrician Marco Ziccardi ’25, who is in charge of the illumination for Little Shop of Horrors. Ziccardi shares, “As the master electrician for this show, I coordinate tasks like hanging lights, cabling them, and focusing the fixtures by delegating tasks to the crew, answering questions, and helping them however I can. Each show presents its own challenges, and Little Shop has involved a lot of wiring and moving tall ladders around the auditorium.” Working with Ziccardi, lighting designer Talia Earl ’25 states, “I’ve designed all of the lights for the show, including other lighting aspects, such as colors and specials, and I’ve also spent time programming cues to create a look for the scenes. We have a lot of exciting things planned for this show, so make sure to come and see it!”
A great show must have a set of talented sound designers behind the scenes, perfecting the audio of the show to best fit each and every scene. Oren Goldberg ’25 and his assistant Nora Gaub ‘26 are behind the production and design of the audio elements of the performance. Oren asserts, “I create the sound effects and am in charge of all audio elements of the show, including microphones, speakers, and controlling the sound board during the show. For Little Shop of Horrors, I will use many dramatic sound effects to embrace the nature of this show.” To add to the score of the show, the dedicated members of the Show Orchestra, directed by Sela Kostinsky ‘24, accompany the cast to bring to life the Little Shop of Horrors songs.
Another integral part of the musical is the costumes used to showcase the story being told. To fully immerse the cast and the audience into the world of Skid Row, the cast of Little Shop of Horrors dressed in costumes designed by Audrey Smith ’26. Smith states, “As the head costume designer, I design all the costumes and put all the outfits everyone wears together. I also decide when people wear certain costumes during the show and pick out fabric and patterns.” Del Reid ’25, being the head of costumes, is responsible for the technical aspects of costumes. Smith’s designs, which Reid’s costume crew has beautifully adapted into garments for the actors, fit perfectly within the time period of the musical. Reid adds, “I help the costume crew sew and create the costumes for the show from scratch! We take the fabric and patterns that the costume designers give us and guide the crew and help them turn it into dresses, pants, and much more.”
There is no doubt that the Players’ fall musical will be thrilling, hilarious, and produced to perfection. Production manager Ally Treves ’25 excitedly proclaims, “The amount of work put in by crew members, actors, and PDS [Production and Design Staff] shows in every aspect of the production and elevates this version of Little Shop of Horrors as a distinctly Players production; everyone is immensely proud and excited for opening night.” Purchase your ticket at lmplayers.com to see LM’s adaptation of this beloved tale as soon as you can! The LM community should anxiously await the Players production of Little Shop of Horrors, set to open on November 16.
