School play, Celina Record

Prosper High School stages `Little Shop of Horrors" Lisa Ferguson, lferguson@starlocalmedia.com Jan 28, 2016 For the theater department at Prosper High School, it’s been no big undertaking to stage the rock-horror-comedy musical “Little Shop of Horrors,” which plays Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the school’s auditorium. That is, at least in comparison to some of the other productions that students and staffers there have produced in years past. Take last year’s offering, “The Wizard of Oz,” for example: Some 300 students were part of that show’s cast and crew, dwarfing “Little Shop’s” roster of 65. That’s due in large part to the fact that every other year, the high school invites younger students from other schools within the Prosper ISD to take part in its annual musical production. “We just like involving the community,” explained Sariea Haney, who teaches Technical Theatre, Theatre Production and Theatre Arts classes at the high school. Because larger productions require additional work and funding, Haney said the school tries to “spread it out a little bit,” hence the biannual scheduling. The decision to do “Little Shop” this year resulted when “we really looked at our kids and who we had and what they were going to be good at, and this show fit them really well,” she said. For those unfamiliar with the plot of the Broadway stage show or the 1986 film it spawned, “Little Shop of Horrors” follows nerdy flower shop worker Seymour who falls for his co-worker, Audrey, while tending to a man-eating plant named Audrey II that is poised for world domination. The cast and crew at Prosper High began rehearsing the play in November. A lack of space at the school proved challenging at times, Haney said. “We try to share the (auditorium) stage because we have a big band program, a big choir program,” Haney explained. “Obviously, we want to support the other programs and give them their time onstage, but it does present its challenges just to lose the stage time.” The show’s main stars were double cast. One group of actors took the stage last weekend for the show’s premiere, and the other will close it out during this weekend’s performances. They include senior Connor McLaury as Seymour; junior Aja Hinds as Audrey; and Austin Walker, a senior, as flower-shop owner Mr. Mushnik. For Audrey II, Haney said the school rented a giant plant puppet from a company in McKinney. She has one student operating the puppet while another, sophomore Eniami Adegbamigbe, provides its voice. “It’s absolutely fantastic,” she said of the puppet, which appears to actually consume the other actors onstage. “People literally go in it, and you don’t see them come out.” Haney said most of the students involved with Prosper High’s production were familiar with “Little Shop’s” story, having seen the movie or read the script. Several had previously starred in productions of it elsewhere. Nevertheless, a few minor tweaks were made to this production in an effort to make it a bit more family friendly. “We definitely dialed it down a bit,” Haney said, citing an infamous scene featuring Audrey’s sadistic-dentist boyfriend. “There are some very adult versions of this show – we are not doing that. But, we also don’t want to overly censor and make it to the point where they’re losing the meaning of the show.” Haney said “Little Shop” audiences should expect “to laugh and see some surprises. "I think they can expect to see an enjoyable musical – something they’re going to want to tap their toes to - and they’re going to leave with the songs stuck in their head.” Follow the Celina Record on Twitter @celinarecord.