Off Broadway Review: ‘Little Shop of Horrors’

Groff and his Audrey, Tammy Blanchard (who won an Emmy for “Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows”), are both subtle comic presences and supple, dramatic vocalists, ensuring that in this new production there’s something lovely at work, something devoid of the usual camp, schmaltz and quirk of “Little Shop.” Without the big, stagey “New Yawk” accents and broad interactions of yore, the humor comes more naturally, and neither Groff nor Blanchard have to chase the laughs.

The same qualities define their vocal spins on the “Little Shop” songbook. When Blanchard touches on the epic crescendos of “Suddenly Seymour” and her softer soliloquy “Somewhere That’s Green,” there’s a shushing jazziness to her tender vocals that conveys the deeper hurt of physical harassment. In that respect, Blanchard (who can also belt out the big notes) is just a few steps away from Billie Holiday’s pained and nuanced expressiveness.