Slow Burn Going Out Hot: Little Shop

ByWarren Redlich

Twoey and Seymour (Mike Westrich)
Twoey and Seymour (Mike Westrich)

We’ve been fans of Slow Burn Theatre Company since we first noticed them at West Boca High. Happily for them (and sadly for us) they’re moving on up to a deluxe performing arts center on the east side of Broward.
Their last show at West Boca High is Little Shop of Horrors, which is more of a mainstream hit than their usual stuff. We saw it opening night (Saturday) and really enjoyed it.
For starters we should note that the show is relatively family friendly. There are a couple swear words and some content that may be troubling for some kids, but there is no gore like in the PG-13 movie version.
Amy Miller Brennan as Audrey
Amy Miller Brennan as Audrey

Slow Burn’s performance of Little Shop is wonderful. There were four of us and we all enjoyed it. We’ve heard from other friends who were also delighted.
For this writer the highlight was Amy Miller Brennan’s voice in the female lead as Audrey. The show is designed to highlight her character’s voice and she knocked it out of the park, especially on Suddenly Seymour.
Matthew Korinko as Mr. Mushnick and Mike Westrich as Seymour
Matthew Korinko as Mr. Mushnick and Mike Westrich as Seymour

Mike Westrich and Matthew Korinko were both great. Westrich has the male lead as Seymour and Korinko has the biggest supporting on-stage role as Seymour.
Shane Tanner as Orin the Dentist, with Elisa Danielle as Chiffon in the background
Shane Tanner as Orin the Dentist, with Elisa Danielle as Chiffon in the background

Shane Tanner was a crowd-pleaser playing the sadistic dentist and several other minor parts. The other major character in the show was Audrey II, aka Twoey, one heck of an unusual plant with a taste for human blood. The larger version of Twoey later in the show was performed physically by Rick Peña in his dual role as both puppeteer and costume designer. Twoey was voiced offstage by Geoffrey Short. Our only regret was that he didn’t get to sing Mean Green Mother from Outer Space, a song from the movie that was not in the Broadway show.
Little Shop of Horrors will play Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm through June 28th. It’s your last chance to catch this great performance company on the rise here in West Boca. Don’t miss it.
Meanwhile the West Boca High team won’t miss a beat. They’re bringing in the Marquee Theater Company which will start in September. The first season will include Aida, Songs for a New World, Jekyll & Hyde and Footloose.

Here’s our video from just before the start of the show last night: