By Brian Robin
Inside “Little Shop of Horrors” With Director Jenn Thompson
When SCR Artistic Director David Ivers called Jenn Thompson to offer her tto direct Little Shop of Horrors, the words were barely out of his mouth when Thompson eagerly accepted.
Thompson sees it as the perfect vehicle to make her SCR directorial debut. The cult classic is one of the veteran director’s favorite plays on numerous levels.
“It is equal measures funny, scary, thrilling, sexy, dangerous—all of those things,” she said. “The scale of it is perfect. It’s accessible. It’s relatable.”
Thompson took time to chat about directing a cult classic, handling the technical elements of a play with so many moving parts and the characters she relates to the most.
Tell us what it’s like to direct a cult classic like Little Shop of Horrors? How do you go about making such an iconic musical “yours?”
JENN THOMPSON: “It’s definitely interesting directing something that is so familiar and well-loved to so many people. But it’s my first time directing it—so in a very specific way it’s all new to me. My job—as I see it—is to be invisible. The story is the star and I think it’s a trap to worry about making your mark on something. Any accidental “ownership” I might feel is usually related to casting and design choices—the things specific to any given production. Theatre is such a collaborative effort with so many fingerprints on each show. It’s wonderful to get to captain something so good with such an incredible team.”
You talked about being excited to direct this, that it took you all of two seconds to say ‘Yes” when it was offered. What was so appealing about this to you?
JT: “I just flat out love this show. It was a pleasure to go to work every day and just be enthralled by it. I grew up in the East Village in NYC in the 1980s—so I suppose I relate to those Urchins hanging out on the stoop. It’s a world I recognize and am nostalgic for, but I think I’d love it even if I were from Newport Beach. LOL.”
Talk about the cast. How did you bring out their brilliance?
JT: “I picked them! It really is all about casting—which is one-part calculus and mostly magic. I love actors and I love talking to actors and I think I have good taste in actors. So much of what I do feels like a social experiment, it’s all about putting people together. These happen to be really great people.”
What “tricks,” from a directing standpoint, do you use to bring the story to full life?
JT: “Hmmmm? I don’t think I have “tricks”—maybe I do and I’m unaware? I try to empower the people telling the story to do just that and to enjoy it. If the actor believes it, chances are we will too. I certainly embrace and encourage details in all aspects of storytelling, even the things invisible to the audience. It’s all cumulative.”
Talk about the technical challenges: puppets, sets, etc. How do you get your arms around all of it as a director and how does it stretch your directing “chops?”
JT: “Technical elements are tough because as a director, there is little you can do to control any given element or situation and for a control-freak like myself, that can be challenging. Smart and thorough design really helps. I try and be as prepared as I can be—and as flexible as I can be for when things don’t go exactly the way we had imagined they would. I often find some of the best moments are born in those places where I’ve had to bend. Sometimes it’s about knowing what to insist on and what to let fall away.”
Don’t miss your opportunity to join in the fun that is Little Shop of Horrors, running through Oct. 20 on the Segerstrom Stage.