Back in the mid 1980\u2019s The Little Shop of Horrors was a huge hit off Broadway down in the East village. Actors and directors alike were all champing at the bit to have a crack at doing this fun and campy show. I was amongst them. My chance came right away, just as soon as it was released for summer stock productions in the summer of 1986. Jill Stover, producer of the Enchanted Hills Playhouse (a small professional summer stock theatre) in Syracuse. Indiana) tapped me to direct and choreograph the production that season. I was in seventh heaven. Of course with my usual chutzpah, I assured her I was experienced and comfortable working with puppets of all sizes and shapes. The honest truth was that I had no experience with puppets whatsoever, but I was keen to work with them and keen to do this show. Fortune smiled on me once again. As luck would have it, the charming and talented actress Lilia Scala studied ballet at the same studio where I took classes. When I mentioned I was going to direct this show, she said you must meet my friend Peter Bogyo. Peter was one of the producers of the show. She introduced me and the rest is history. When I went to see Little Shop downtown, Peter saw to it that I got the royal treatment. After the show he introduced me to the backstage crew including the puppeteers, and they walked me through the operation of each and every puppet. I left elated and confident I could handle the demands of this very special show. Wow, what a treat and a privilege! My experience is that the truly famous are some of the nicest and most generous people in show business. You never know who knows who. Show business is truly a world where six degrees of separation is the norm. Ms. Scala\u2019s generosity of spirit was in part what helped me create a memorable first-class production that summer. The critics all raved saying it was the best production ever at the Enchanted Hills Playhouse. I was so passionate about this show and those glorious puppets, that I directed and choreographed it two more times and it got better and better each time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Back in the mid 1980\u2019s The Little Shop of Horrors was a huge hit off Broadway down in the East village. Actors and directors alike were all champing at the bit to have a crack at doing this fun and campy show. I was amongst them. My chance came right away, just as soon as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-498","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-stockomania"],"metadata":{"_edit_lock":["1538172029:60"],"_edit_last":["60"],"_wpac_members_redirect_to":[""],"_wpac_show_in_search":["0"],"_wpac_show_excerpt_in_search":["0"],"_wpac_nonmembers_redirect_to":[""],"ase_map_component_start_point":["a:2:{s:3:\"lat\";d:29.760000000000001563194018672220408916473388671875;s:3:\"lng\";d:-95.3799999999999954525264911353588104248046875;}"]},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n