OHS Drama Club staging ‘Little Shop of Horrors’
A talking, carnivorous plant will invade Orrville on March 22, 23 and 24 as the Orrville High School Drama Club presents “Little Shop of Horrors,” a humorous musical featuring a cast and crew of 30 students accompanied by a live musical pit.
Performances will be held at the Orrville High School auditorium, 841 N. Ella St., Orrville, with performance times as follows: March 22 and 23 at 7 p.m. and a matinee on Sunday, March 24 at 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $10 each while Orrville students are free with their student ID.
This classic tale of love, greed and man-eating plants is directed by drama advisers Grayson Abend, the middle school and high school choir director at Orrville City Schools; Chris Jones, music teacher at Orrville; and Jill Holland, intervention specialist at Orrville.
“‘Little Shop of Horrors’ is a delightfully dark and comedic musical production written by Howard Ashman with music by Alan Menken,” Jones said. “The play is set amid the backdrop of skid row in New York City during the 1960s and follows the story of Seymour Krelborn, a hapless florist who discovers a mysterious, man-eating plant called Audrey II.
“Also included in the cast are Mr. Mushnik, Seymour’s grumpy but caring boss; Audrey, Seymour’s sweet but mistreated co-worker; Orin Scrivello, Audrey’s boyfriend, who is a sadistic motorcycle-riding dentist; a trio of sassy street urchins; and the enigmatic narrator. As Seymour’s fame grows alongside Audrey II’s capacious appetite, chaos ensues, blending elements of horror, romance and humor.”
Featured in the cast are freshman Jacob Crawford as Seymour, junior Jackson Doretich as Mr. Mushnik, and seniors Jannet Romero as Audrey and Max Miyashita as Dentist Orin Scrivello. Freshmen JR Reeves, Paige Baer and Lizzy Chong play the sassy street urchins while juniors Kendra Taylor Alleman and Sierra Rice make up the ensemble. Freshman Morgan Griffith gives voice to the carnivorous plant while sophomore Sarah Wellert lends her puppeteering skills to portray Audrey II.
Working on stage crew are juniors Julianna Boulton and Isabella Crank; sophomores Callie Jones, Kay Miller and Brandon Smith; and freshmen Serenity Feliciano and Hannah Legan. Junior Ben Osorio is in charge of sound. Musicians include John Weyrauch on keyboards, Kathy Seas on piano, Dave Baldwin on percussion and Noah Cloar on guitar.
“Even though our cast is relatively young with five freshmen in leads or supporting roles,” Abend said, “audiences should expect a very talented cast and a well-performed show. I am beyond excited to be able to showcase the talent that these students possess with this show. The show will also showcase professional-level puppets to portray the four stages of The Plant and Audrey II.”
