The Plantman's Journals

Why We designed Audrey II the way We did!

As you know, in the play, "Little Shop of Horrors", the carnivorous plant, Audrey II has four stages: Stage one--the little plant in the coffee can, Stage two--the larger plant that Seymour carries around in the flower pot, Stage three--the big plant that munches body parts, and Stage four--the huge plant that can swallow people whole. When the director and I first discussed Audrey II, we shared a mutual concern. While Stages one through three become successively more active and aggressive, the Stage four Audrey II becomes downright sedentary due to the awkward size and weight of its huge clamshell pod.

Of course, in the movie version, Stage four Audrey II is the most active and aggressive stage of all. Since our plant budget was $500 and we didn't have 60 puppeteers, we couldn't duplicate the movie version! But still, there had to be a way to increase the animation and menace of Stage four Audrey II. Here is what we considered:

1) If we could carry the Stage three pod over into Stage four, it would be more active and animated. But how would it swallow it's victims whole?

2) What if the pod drank blood and talked, but another part of the plant consumed flesh and bone and whole victims?

3) What part of the plant would consume its victims and where would this part be in relation to the talking pod?

That's when the concept developed for a large bulb, as the base of the plant, that could open and consume its victims. Then, placing the pod atop the bulb on a stem. This way, Audrey II can sing clearly while munching on Audrey at the same time!

When the stage and set design precluded hidden puppeteers to operate Audrey II's vine tentacles, the concept of Plantlings was born. (That and an ongoing battle with blackberry vines in the backyard. They constantly spread via runners: vines that branch off of the main plant and take root when they touch the ground, forming new plants.) Plantlings, then, are attached to Audrey II via runners. They have a root base and clusters of leaves above (a puppeteer costume). They also have vine tentacles to coax prey into Audrey II's bulb. In the finale, the victims become Plantlings as well, with flower heads instead of tentacles.

All together, these features add up to a more animated Stage four Audrey II. And, since Audrey II's base is on casters, Audrey II and the Plantlings are all free to move forward and menace the audience at the close of the finale. Also, Audrey II spreading through the use of runners is quite terrifying, especially if you have blackberry vines in your back yard!

Eric, who was the voice of our Audrey II has a goatee. This is why our Audrey II has a goatee as well!