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Shing-A-Ling, What a Creepy Thing To Be Happening…
A Brief History of Little Shop of Horrors
By Jeanette Sanchez-Izenman
What is Horror Comedy?
“The Horror Comedy, a sub-genre that sets blood, gore, and screams
right next to gags, prat falls and laughs, is one of the most interesting of
these mixed categories to study, because we get to see the diametrically
opposing effects of horror (fear, repulsion, anxiety) and comedy (happiness,
laughter, pleasure) play together in real time.”
—V. Renée in “How Does Horror Comedy Work?”
Horror Comedy is a form that combines horror with parody, spoof, and black comedy.
In literature, its origins go back to Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
Contemporary pieces like The Evil Dead, Shaun of the Dead, and Cabin in the Woods
exemplify the form, relying on over-the-top gore and characters existing within a world
turned upside down without seeming to be fully aware of the danger around them.
The Film and Literary Roots of Little Shop of Horrors
In 1959, Roger Corman and Charles B. Griffith paired up to write and direct the film A
Bucket of Blood. Finding they wrapped the movie early and still had two days on the set, they created the script for Little Shop of Horrors over a drunken night at a bar. Griffith said in an interview that he asked Roger Corman, ‘How about a man-eating plant?’ and Corman said, ‘Okay!’ By that time, we were both drunk.” The original film did not feature music.
It is likely that three literary works inspired this wicked little tale: H.G. Welles’ “The Flowering of the Strange Orchid” (1905), John Collier’s “Green Thoughts” (1932) and finally, a gem by Arthur C. Clarke, “The Reluctant Orchid” (1956). Each seems to contribute something to the monster that is Audrey II. In Welles, she attacks her keeper and nearly kills him. In Collier, we see the head-shaped blossoms after she digests her victims, and in Clarke, we meet a Seymour-like Hercules who tries to use the murderous plant to do his bidding.
Audrey II Flourishes in a Musical
The musical version of Little Shop of Horrors premiered off-off Broadway at the Workshop of the Players Art Foundation on May 6, 1982. It was one of the first musicals Alan Menken (The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas) composed. Howard Ashman, who also wrote the book, directed the musical when it moved off-Broadway to the Orpheum Theatre on July 27, 1982. Little Shop of Horrors received critical acclaim, winning the 1982-1983 Drama Award for Outstanding Musical, the NY Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, and the Outer Critics Circle Award, among others. The musical did not appear on Broadway until a revival in 2003 at the Virginia Theatre.
The musical was turned into its own film in 1986, starring Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Steve Martin, James Belushi, John Candy, Christopher Guest, and Bill Murray. The film featured an alternate, happier ending to the musical, as preview audiences did not respond well to the original musical’s dark ending.
Now, Little Shop of Horrors is one of the most popular theater pieces for high school, community, and professional theatres across the country. Audrey II would be proud to be infiltrating the world through this musical!
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS’
CINEMATIC INSPIRATION
Some pieces that would have inspired the original movie Little Shop of Horrors and exemplify Horror Comedy at its best include:
1925 Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde
1930 The Cat Creeps
1944 Zombies on Broadway
1948 Abbott & Costello
Meet Frankenstein
1959 A Bucket of Blood
Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Lizabeth Scott, and Carmen Miranda; Super Skyway Drive-In Ad (1966) Allentown, PA; The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967) with Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski.
HORROR COMEDY IN FILM
1960s—1980s
The trend of Horror Comedy continued through the 1960s and eventually influenced some of the splatter horror of the 1970s and 1980s. Films began to contain more original plot lines (as did the film Little Shop of Horrors when it was released in 1960). Examples include:
1964 The Comedy of Terrors
1966 The Ghost and Mr. Chicken
1967 The Fearless Vampire Killers, Or Pardon Me,
But Your Teeth Are in My Neck
1968 Spider Baby
1972 Beware! The Blob
1975 The Rocky Horror Picture Show
1986 The Little Shop of Horrors