Under hot starry summer nights, larger-than-life plant props move to live vocals as actors from the Altadena Music Theater perform “Little Shop of Horrors” for sold-out audiences.
The nearby cemetery and headstones are a fitting outdoor setting for the horror-comedy following a down-on-his-luck florist as a strange new discovery suddenly changes his life.
The Altadena Music Theatre opened its first season post-Eaton fire, with “Grease” — written by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey — which ran Aug. 6 – 16. “Little Shop of Horrors” — written by Howard Ashman, with music by Alan Menken — marks the second production of the return season, running Sept. 3 to Sept. 13.
The nonprofit theater group was displaced after its home performance spot, the Charles Farnsworth Amphitheater in Altadena, was damaged in the fire. The amphitheater is temporarily closed and like thousands of other structures in the area, is in the process of being rebuilt.
The Altadena Music Theatre’s post-fire production is temporarily taking place at the Mountain View Mausoleum, also in Altadena.
“It’s been a favorite of mine since my childhood,” Director Sarah Azcarate said of the current production. “I wanted to find something that could make people laugh, but also shine a light on a few thread lines that I feel are really important to society and everything today.”
The musical is widely regarded as a cult-classic that blends 1960s doo-wop, Motown-inspired songs, and rock.
Azcarate said “Little Shop of Horrors” has a “very clear message about greed and capitalism.”
“It takes place in Skid Row, so these characters are living in poverty when they get a taste of success and money and how far they might go to make those dreams come true,” she added. “I came up with a different kind of take with it and we’re having a blast.”
The season took around a year to produce and was an uphill battle after the devastation of the Eaton fire.
“After the Eaton fire displaced Altadena Music Theatre from the Charles Farnsworth Amphitheater, we knew one thing: The show had to go on,” the group’s website said. Buying tickets and season passes was a way of “helping bring theatre back to Altadena”
Azcarate, also the nonprofit founder, said that the group lost its years-long collection of props, costumes and set pieces since they were kept at her house, located nearby the amphitheater.
“We truly had to decide if we were going to be able to start from scratch and do this again,” she said.
Luckily, theater-lovers from all over and nearby arts communities have stepped in to help keep the Altadena Music Theatre going, with donations of money, sponsorships, volunteering to build set pieces and more.
“It was really a lot of artists that wanted to see us come back and really showed us that we made a difference in their lives and they don’t want to see us go,” Azcarate said. “It helped us with the strength to keep going, of wanting to come back for them too.”
Sponsors for the season include Warner Bros. Discovery, LA Fire Recovery, District Supervisor Kathryn Barger, the Pasadena Tournament of Roses, California Arts Council, and Rotary Altadena, among others.
“I’m just really hoping that lands for people, that they feel the love and the joy that we have doing this,” Avela Fongoqa, who plays Crystal, said in a social media video promoting the show.
“It’s just madness, camp and drama,” Ruby Lewis, who plays Audrey, said in the same video. “It’s going to completely reframe the show for people.”
So far, Azcarate estimated that over 3,000 tickets have been sold for “Little Shop of Horrors” and close to 6,000 tickets sold for both season’s productions.
“In a lot of ways, it feels very healing to be able to be sitting next to a person that’s also lost everything and just be laughing together and watching a performance,” she said. “I’ve seen so many neighbors that are coming out to support that I haven’t seen in so long.
“Art is a symbol of resilience to begin with. In order to do theater, you have to be an adaptable and resilient person,” she added. “I see it as a symbol of the enormous amount of strength that all our neighbors are dealing with and continue to deal with. Trying to rebuild here is a full time job.”
The Altadena Music Theatre production of “Little Shop of Horrors” continues until Sept. 13 at the Mountain View Mausoleum in Altadena. Tickets range from $40 to $107 and can be found at www.altadenamusictheatre.com/littleshop.