Stephanie Klemons, director of “Little Shop of Horrors,” with Lin-Manuel Miranda, with whom she worked on “Hamilton.”
Stephanie Klemons, director of “Little Shop of Horrors,” with Lin-Manuel Miranda, with whom she worked on “Hamilton.”

‘LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS’
WEDNESDAY 4/5-SUNDAY 4/30. ARKANSAS REPERTORY THEATRE. 

Despite being something of a comedy musical mainstay, “Little Shop of Horrors” has a gruesomely cynical premise. In a struggling Skid Row flower shop, an abnormally large Venus flytrap appears out of nowhere. Due to its size and continuous growth, the plant — nicknamed Audrey II — becomes a popular spectacle that keeps the business alive. What the public doesn’t know is that in order for the demanding and swaggery flytrap to stay satisfied and maintain its aggressive ascent toward humongousness, it must feed on human flesh and blood. This leaves the main character, a lowly shop employee named Seymour, madly scrabbling as he attempts to maintain his rising fame while sacrificing as little as possible. Directed by Stephanie Klemons, the associate choreographer for “Hamilton,” the production will break the mold of how “Little Shop of Horrors” is typically produced. Though most renditions portray Audrey II as a puppet, Klemons’ version transforms the character into a human role halfway through the show, pushing the already strangely anthropomorphic nature of Venus flytraps to new heights.

Tickets are available here.

Daniel Grear is the culture editor at the Arkansas Times. Send artsy tips to danielgrear@arktimes.com