Press

Recently, some Starlight patrons have been calling our Box Office to ask what our upcoming Halloween season show, Little Shop of Horrors is about.  Even my own parents had misgivings about the content when I took them to see this show twenty-five years ago in London, England.  Why see a show about a plant that eats people?

A simple answer might be that, like classic literature, many popular Broadway musicals are based on stories of diabolical behavior and flawed characters. Who has not enjoyed the haunting music and memorable scenes portrayed in the famous production of a devious, maniacal  genius who murders innocent people in his quest to dominate the girl of his dreams, otherwise known as Phantom of the Opera? Or the classic American musical about street gangs terrorizing and murdering a rival gang member, officially titled, West Side Story? Likewise, musicals about Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow are all produced abundantly during this Halloween season. In classic literature and theatre alike, there are no shortages of monsters, evil, murder and mayhem. Macbeth, anyone?  Hamlet?  How about Oliver?  Les Miserables?  Scarlet Pimpernel? The Wizard of Oz?  The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe? How about Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Snow White, or The Little Mermaid?

The real reason I have chosen this show, however, is much more personal. To my parents’ surprise those many years ago, they both loved Little Shop of Horrors, and as we discussed the message it contained, the reason became very apparent. Yes, the music was great and the lyrics catchy. Yes, many of the scenes were hilariously funny, while others were touching and poignant. But much more important was the fact that, just like the great classics mentioned above, Little Shop of Horrors is one of the great morality plays of our time.

Regardless of a person’s religious tenets, I think most people believe there are both good and evil forces in the world.  Little Shop shows how these evil forces can slowly and subtly move a nice, average person away from the good, and toward a dark sinister path they never imagined.

Today’s news headlines are filled with stories of betrayal, theft, assault, drug abuse, murder, and countless other horrifying acts. The people committing these terrible crimes didn’t just wake up one morning and decide to be a meth addict, or a mass murderer. These acts are the result of months and years of bad decisions, and choosing to follow that dark path away from what is good.

This is exactly what happens in Little Shop of Horrors, as the cunning plant seduces Seymour into darkness with promises of fame, fortune, and most importantly, the girl of his dreams.  However, unlike the 1986 movie version of this show starring Steve Martin, the stage production lets us all see the dire consequences of Seymour’s acts, thus teaching powerful life lessons about the forces of both good and evil, and the cost of our personal choices.  I think anyone who has, or works with pre-teens, teens or young adults should bring them to see this show, and then discuss the life lessons it teaches.

Speaking of the forces of good and evil in the performing arts, a past LDS prophet stated that it was perfectly acceptable to show evil in the arts as long as the consequences of that evil were also portrayed. Little Shop of Horrors clearly does this. Fortunately for all of us, it does it in a memorable and extremely entertaining way.

 Please join us Oct. 16, 17, 23, 24, 30, 31, November 7, 13, 14, 2009 at 7:30 pm for this wonderful show. We also have two midnight performances on October 30 and November 6. For tickets, call the Starlight Mountain Theatre Box Office at 462-5523. Visit www.starlightmt.org for more information.

I would be happy to meet with groups, or families, after the show and discuss the important life lessons I feel this play teaches. Just call the Box Office and we will be happy to set it up.