Virginia Theatre Festival Announces Casting For LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

The Virginia Theatre Festival has announced casting for its upcoming production of the beloved cult-classic musical Little Shop of Horrors.

Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Jeffrey Meanza, will run from July 11-21 in Culbreth Theatre.

The cast for Little Shop of Horrors will include:

• Robert Ariza (Seymour): Robert (he/him) has appeared on Broadway in Spring Awakening. His Off-Broadway credits include The Visitor and Spamilton. He has appeared in Chicago in Hamilton, in the national tour of Les Misérables and internationally in The Great Comet - Shanghai. His television credits include the acclaimed series Girls5Eva, Poker Face, and Pose. 

• Jonice Bernard (Chiffon): Jonice (they/them) has appeared on stage in a variety of roles including Ariel in the Little Mermaid, Nettie in The Color Purple, and Sam in the MCC Theater reading of Hearts Beat Loud.

• Daniel DiPinto (Orin and others): Daniel (he/him) recently completed the international tour of West Side Story, which included a three-month run at the Theatre Du Chatalet in Paris. Other regional credits include Mamma Mia, Sweeney Todd, and Footloose. 

• Matthew Donahue (Ensemble/Puppeteer): Matthew (he/him) has been seen on regional theatre stages in shows including Murder on the Orient Express, Every Brilliant Thing, Much Ado About Nothing, The Fox, Peter and the Starcatcher, and Oklahoma! Matthew is a rising 2nd year MFA student at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. 

• Claire Fossey (Crystal): Claire (she/her) has appeared in numerous regional theatre productions including Sunset Boulevard, Violet, Little Shop of Horrors, In the Heights, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, State Fair, and Matilda.

• Mary Hall (Ensemble/Puppeteer): Mary (she/her) is a rising fourth year at the University of Virginia making her VTF debut in Little Shop of Horrors. Her UVA credits include roles in Everybody and A Chorus Line.

• Richard R. Henry (Mr. Mushnik): Richard (he/him) has performed Off-Broadway in Two Gentlemen of Verona: The Musical at The Public Theater; Drift (New World Stages) and Streets of New York (Irish Repertory Theatre). His extensive regional credits include Assassins (Yale Repertory Theatre), Oliver! (Goodspeed Opera House), Two Gentleman of Verona (Old Globe), and The Music Man (Guthrie Theater). Richard has performed in national tours including Urinetown, Sweet Charity, Man of La Mancha, and Jesus Christ Superstar. His television credits include The Other Two, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Younger, Girls 5Eva, Search Party, Bupkis, YOU, and Law and Order.

• Mya Ison (Audrey): Mya (she/her) is a North Carolina-based actor/playwright with Off-Broadway credits including Constellations (Wild Project) and Lorena (Workshop @ NYTW/Dartmouth). She has appeared in regional theatre productions including Blue Sky and King Charles III at Burning Coal Theatre, and Sweeney Todd at PlayMakers Repertory Company. Her plays have been workshopped at New York Theatre Workshop, The Tank, and The Flea. 

• Je'Shaun Jackson (The Plant (Audrey Two)): Je'Shaun (he/she/they) is a Lexington, Kentucky native who recently appeared in the 20th season of ABC's American Idol. Their recent theatrical credits include The Las Vegas Composers Showcase, where they originated the role of Chantal Marveaux in Angel of Arkansas, a new work written by Richard Oberacker and Robert Taylor. Jackson also appeared in the regional premiere of The Lightning Thief Musical and the touring production of LabelLess Musical. 

• Thabitha Moruthane (Ronnette): Thabitha (she/her) is a South African actor from Burlington, Vermont whose regional credits include Hair (Cortland Repertory Theatre) and Sister Act (Interlakes Summer Theatre). She has also performed internationally as a featured singer for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines.

Joining director Jeffrey Meanza on the creative team are Ian Miller (Music Director); Tristan André (Choreographer); Sasha Schwartz (Scenic Designer); Grier Coleman (Costume Designer); Charlie Morrison (Lighting Designer); Michael Rasbury (Sound Designer); Tovah Close (Dialect Coach); Christine Jacobs (Assistant Dialect Coach); and Ruth E. Kramer (Production Stage Manager).

Casting by The Casting Collaborative/Jason Styres.

Little Shop of Horrors book and lyrics are by Howard Ashman, music is by Alan Menken, and is based on the film by Roger Corman, screenplay by Charles Griffith. The show was originally produced by The WPA Theatre. Little Shop of Horrors (Broadway Version) is presented through special arrangement with and licensed by Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. http://www.mtishows.com/.

The Virginia Theatre Festival is a program of the University of Virginia, with support from the Office of the Provost, Vice Provost for the Arts, The Caplin Foundation, The Thomas and Carolyn Witt Foundation, 

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