Who’s taking over “Little Shop”? Plant or director?
Herbert Mark Parker addresses his cast in a tone of voice that demands silence in order to be heard. Audrey II addresses anyone with a booming insanity that overrides all other sound. For several weeks, they are one and the same.
Parker, director of ETSU’s upcoming production of “Little Shop of Horrors,” opening April 19 at 7:30 p.m. at the Veterans Administration Memorial Theatre, will be playing the role of the voracious Audrey II himself.
Parker, a 26-year veteran of the theatre has been at ETSU for two years. Before coming to Johnson City he taught at Volunteer State Community College (in his home town of Gallatin, Tenn.), his alma mater Stephens College and the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Prior to that he was a working actor in New York City for 17 years.
“Little Shop of Horrors” is the musical tale of Seymour Krelborn, a young man living on Skid Row and working at the rarely patronized Mushnik’s Flower Shop. One day Seymour buys a strange plant during an eclipse and names it Audrey II, after his co-worker who he secretly loves. While trying to nurture the strange plant, he discovers that it feeds on blood. Once Seymour feeds Audrey II what it desires, it quickly grows large enough to move, sing and make demands.
Because it is such a difficult role to play and Parker has voiced Audrey II before, he reluctantly agreed to reprise his version of the carnivorous plant.
“I would have preferred to not do it myself,” Parker said. “It’s not easy because, at least in this arena, I go from writing down notes for my actors to having to jump in and be one of the actors. You certainly want to do your best in the role and you want to do your best as a director and they can’t be done at the same time.”
Though Parker was hesitant to reprise the role, members of his cast feel differently.
“It’s awesome, we kinda had to persuade him to do the voice of the plant,” said Ashley Cox, who portrays the original Audrey. “He did it a couple of times in practice and we all said, ‘You have to do it!’ He really helps you to get into character because he really becomes the plant.”
This is not the first time that the plant will be played by someone pulling double duty in production of “Little Shop of Horrors.”
The original voice was provided by the writer himself in the 1960 Roger Corman film. Charles B. Griffith both wrote and read the lines bellowed by Audrey II, originally called Audrey Jr.
Because these performances will be live, rather than filmed, a puppeteer will have to sync Audrey II’s movements with Parker’s delivery of lines. Parker will be backstage broadcasting the dialogue live each show. “It really has to be done live because the articulation of the plant is so delicate that a recording would be impossible,” Parker said.
“He’s only actually read it two or three times (in rehearsal),” Jordan Straight, the puppeteer for Audrey II, said. “We’ve had other people read it. I’ve been practicing with the soundtrack. I’m pretty much syncing up with him this week.”
Though only the third and fourth incarnations of Audrey II, after a swift growth spurt or two, will be speaking, the ETSU Scene Shop built four models specifically for this production, Parker said
Parker will keep the same voice for both sizes of the plant that speak and will be singing all the songs himself. When developing the voice of Audrey II, Parker took his cues from the script. “As written, it calls for a certain . I’ll say, Motown, R&B sound,” Parker says.
At rehearsals the week before opening, Parker manages to slip deftly from one persona to the other. One minute as the unpleasant-but-hip plant, he is hungrily belting out orders and a tune. “Cut the crap,” Audrey II says to Seymour. “Bring on the meat.”
The next moment, Parker is back at the orchestra pit railing gently-but-definitely explaining some business to Seymour and sadistic dentist Orin.
“Are you listening? Because this is important,” he says. “Laugh as you punch him, but don’t laugh too long. Seymour you wait. Then, you laugh – ‘Ha. Ha. Oooo.’ ”
To Herb Parker playing the viciously precocious Audrey II, no one listens until it is too late. When Herb Parker as the director speaks, in his carefully modulated tones, no Audrey II-like shouting or threatening is needed.
Although Audrey II is brutal about what it thinks and what it does, Parker is only interested in making the production the best it can be.
“He is very brutally honest about what he thinks about you but he does it in such a nice way,” Cox said, “He’ll say things like, ‘We need to work on this. We need to work on this. But there’s some really good things happening!'”
Overall, the juxtaposition of the two personalities has been of benefit to the cast of “Little Shop of Horrors.”
“Herb’s overall jovial attitude and undying perseverance creates an atmosphere ideal for character development,” said theatre major Everett Tarlton, who portrays Orin the sadistic dentist. “Just as Audrey II hungers for blood, Herb Parker hungers for dramatic excellence.”
“Little Shop of Horrors” runs April 19-21 at 7:30 p.m. and April 22 at 2 p.m. at VA Memorial Theatre. For reservations, call 439-6511 or 439-7576.
Sign language interpretation will be provided for the Sunday matinee. Please note Memorial Theatre bathrooms are not ADA compliant.

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