Little Shop of Horrors (musical)

Little Shop of Horrors
A thick, dark green border around an intricate drawing of the plant monster Audrey with a woman lying limp below it.
Original Cast Album
MusicAlan Menken
LyricsHoward Ashman
BookHoward Ashman
BasisThe Little Shop of Horrors
by Charles B. Griffith
Productions
2019 Off-Broadway revival
AwardsDrama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics

Little Shop of Horrors is a horror comedy rock musical[1] with music by Alan Menken and lyrics and a book by Howard Ashman. The story follows a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood and flesh. The musical is loosely based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors. The music, composed by Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop and early Motown, includes several well-known tunes, including the title song, "Skid Row (Downtown)", "Somewhere That's Green", and "Suddenly, Seymour".

The musical premiered off-off-Broadway in 1982 before moving to the Orpheum Theatre off-Broadway, where it had a five-year run. It later received numerous productions in the U.S. and abroad, and a subsequent Broadway production. In part because of its small cast, it has become popular with school and other amateur theatre groups.[2] The musical was also made into a 1986 film of the same name, directed by Frank Oz.

  1. ^ Higgins, Jim. "Skylight Music Theatre revamps 2020-'21 season, plans small-cast shows for limited-capacity audiences", Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, August 31, 2020
  2. ^ TIME magazine reported in its May 26, 2008 issue, p. 51, that this musical ranked as the most frequently produced musical by U.S. high schools in 2007.