Yahoo Lifestyle Your Exclusive First Look at Liz Gillies and Milo Manheim in ‘Little Shop of Horrors'
If you poll audience members exiting the Westside Theatre after each performance of Little Shop of Horrors in the coming weeks, chances are they’ll share that they’ve flocked there to see one of two people: former child star Liz Gillies of VICTORiOUS fame who most recently starred as Fallon Carrington in The CW’s Dynasty reboot, or Milo Manheim, best known as Zed from School Spirits on Paramount+ and the Zombies franchise on Disney.
The NYC theater scene is no stranger to stunt casting. But Little Shop of Horrors might actually be the best at it, because whoever they put in the role, they're always great. Liz and Milo are no exception, as proven by these exclusive first-look photos of them tackling the roles of Audrey and Seymour.
We sat down with the stars to talk about the show, their fans, and how excited they are to be joining the Mushnik family business.
Liz, I want to start with you stepping into the role of Audrey. This is your first time returning to the stage in 16 years. What does this comeback feel like at this chapter in your life?
LG: I was nervous to come back to theater. I got lost in TV land for a long, long time. But I’m so happy that I have finally made the return, because it’s where I feel most at home, and it is truest to my heart. I’m very excited and thankful to be back.
Were you looking for this opportunity? Or did it find you?
LG: I have been looking to do this show since I first saw it in 2003. I’m very specific. I say no to a lot, but this was an immediate yes for me. When I saw that it came back in 2019, I immediately had my eye on it. I didn’t know what the casting system was like, and I was on Dynasty, but my team knew that if ever the opportunity came, I was there. So when they first did an availability check on me a year ago, I was like, “Stay on this! Yes. It’s a yes, yes, yes.” And they stayed on it! I’m so, so happy to be here now. It’s amazing.
You made your Broadway debut in 2008 opposite your bestie Ariana Grande in 13: The Musical. How does that younger experience compare to your return as a full-fledged adult?
LG: That was thrilling. I was 15 and I said being on Broadway was my “lifelong dream.” How obnoxious! Coming back now, I had to relearn so much of the process and reacquaint myself with theater. So much of it felt similar in a lot of ways. It’s like riding a bicycle in that regard, and I’m lucky to yet again have a wonderful cast that I really connect with. Everyone here wants to be here. Everyone in this building genuinely loves the show, and that makes it all the more special. So it’s similar in that regard. I love that sense of community. The only thing that’s different is I’m old now.
And Milo, this is your New York stage debut. Why this show, and why now?
MM: I believe that the universe sends things your way, so when this opportunity came, I pounced on it. And then when I found out I’d be working with Liz, I knew it would be amazing. It’s been going swimmingly ever since I said yes.
LG: He’s a great Seymour. He really, really is. And that’s coming from a superfan of the show.
Did you manifest Milo as your Seymour?
LG: I admittedly did not know who Milo was! But I was quickly and fiercely educated by the youth in my life about how famous and incredibly talented he is. And they were right! He’s spectacular in the show.
MM: My only goal coming into this was to make sure that whoever my Audrey was was satisfied by my rendition of Seymour. And I think we came in with similar ideas of how we wanted this iteration of the show presented.
LG: We really did!
MM: And I think what we’ve got going on is working well.
Did either of you catch any of the stars who stepped into these roles before you? Like Jinkx Monsoon, Sarah Hyland, Maude Apatow, Constance Wu? Or Jonathan Groff, Corbin Bleu, Darren Criss, Andrew Barth Feldman? These are such big shoes to fill! No pressure, of course.
MM: I saw the show with Jonathan Groff. I came in with no expectations and was blown away by how fun it was and have seriously thought about his performance often ever since then.
LG: I was dying to see so many of them but was always so busy with Dynasty. And I wasn’t living in New York. But I was lucky enough to catch it twice with Sherie Rene Scott who is an absolute legend. She is one of my all-time favorites and one of the Broadway greats, and it’s not at all intimidating to fill the role right after her. I’m not doing anything at all like her because I couldn’t if I tried. I can’t touch what she did and I’ll never be able to, but I so enjoyed getting to watch her twice. Having any sort of remote correspondence or connection to her in this world has been very exciting to me.
Aside from seeing Jonathan and Sherie, have either of you connected with the Seymours and Audreys who came before you?
MM: I just ran into Andrew Barth Feldman, like, a week ago right next to the theater. And he was so sweet. He was just as excited for me as I was. Everybody’s been so warm and embracing here. And like Liz said, everybody that works on this production truly thinks it’s brilliant and loves being here. Honestly, walking into the dressing room on my first day and seeing all the names of the people who’ve been in the show was a little overwhelming. But it became so much easier once I realized that every single person running this theater is so warm, welcoming and embracing. It’s amazing.
LG: Jinkx Monsoon reached out to me on Instagram within 10 minutes of the news being announced. And I am such a huge fan of hers. I’m seriously a Drag Race superfan! So that was super special. She wrote me the sweetest DM and we had a little back and forth, which I thought that was just incredibly kind of her. I’ve only heard the best things about her from everybody in this theater and, of course, out in the world. I hope I get to meet her one day.
MM: Oh! And Darren Criss made me a video!
LG: A Cameo?
MM: No. My mom went to see his show, and she went backstage to see a friend and he connected the dots.
Have you seen his show, Maybe Happy Ending? It’s incredible.
MM: No, but I’m dying to.
LG: Me too! We’re going to have to wait a couple months as our schedules align perfectly. I did just see Death Becomes Her though. Which was very good. Loved it. I want to do it! I was obsessed.
Liz, you really have manifested this role. What does it feel like now that you're finally in performances?
LG: In rehearsal, we were in a scene together and I was just very calm. And I was looking at Milo and then out at the empty house and just thought to myself, Oh my god, I’m really doing this right now. I’m back onstage. I’m Audrey. This experience has breathed new life into me. It has reinvigorated me and made me remember why I got into this in the first place. I’ve tapped back into my childhood love of musical theater and acting. My whole career started in the theater, so this return feels very important. My parents said they’ve even noticed a shift in me. They see a joy in me they haven’t seen in a long time. I adore Audrey. This is my favorite show. So it’s all very surreal. I’m very thankful.
And Milo, before this interview started, you shared with me that you had watched this film as a kid and how it was sort of a fever dream to you. Now that you’re stepping into the show as an adult, have you been able to piece everything together? And do you relate to Seymour at all?
MM: Well, first of all, I’d like for everyone to know that I’m a much more anxious person than the world thinks I am.
LG: You are a little anxious.
MM: Yeah! I am. So those tweaky parts of Seymour are pretty easy for me to find. It’s a genius story. Every word is chosen so carefully, and I really want to honor the material. I didn’t get that as a kid. The movie used to come on TV as I was falling asleep, so it was all a blur. But now I can really appreciate it. And as I step into the role, I’m finding that childlike love of theater again. I feel like a new person. I’m trying to look inward and really find who Seymour is with every performance.
I love that you have a childhood memory of the film, however faint. Liz, did you watch it as a kid?
LG: Definitely. My parents were Audrey and the dentist for Halloween one year when I was a kid—it must have been around 2003. And I would sing the songs around the house nonstop. “Suddenly Seymour” was my audition song for everything! I wish I still had that range.
You two didn’t get to audition together, correct? Was there any kind of chemistry test?
LG: Not only did we not do a chemistry read, Milo was sick and missed the first week and a half of our three week rehearsal period. He’s had half the time to prepare than the rest of us. But he worked diligently from his apartment and I insisted that we start Zooming while he recovered. Because I needed to know who my Seymour was before I started building my Audrey since he’s the center of the show. It’s Seymour’s show! I needed to see what he was doing.
MM: And thank you for reaching out. I’m so glad you got that going, because I never would have texted first. I was sitting in my apartment freaking out about not jumping in. Because there’s so much to tackle in this show! When you’re done with one scene, you’re on to the next. I liked the crunch time though! And I’m really valuing my time onstage with Liz. When I heard Liz was doing it, my jaw dropped. Like, physically dropped. My manager was like, “Do you guys have beef or something? Is there history?” because I reacted so strongly. But I was just excited. She’s such a star.
Which songs are you most excited to sing for audiences each night? You both get to put your own spin on these classics, and there are fans who will be seeing the show for the first time because you’re in it.
MM: I mean “Suddenly Seymour” is the one song that I was most nervous for.
LG: Me too, obviously!
MM: But then when we got here, I realized we just had to get onstage and be.
LG: Well, “Suddenly Seymour” is a real bitch for me. And Milo swims through it beautifully.
MM: I have my own bitch songs.
LG: I really am an alto, and there are notes that I have absolutely no interest in hitting. So I’m still doing a bit of tango between choices I’ve made. But my earworm right now is, shockingly, “Mushnik & Son.” There’s something about it that hits at 31 that didn’t hit as a kid.
MM: Oh, yeah. That’s a good one! And that’s what’s so hard about picking just one favorite, because every song does its job so well.
LG: I really like “Somewhere That’s Green.”
MM: Oh yeah, that’s a pretty one.
LG: And your riffs in “Feed Me.”
MM: It’s not too much?
LG: No! You sound really good.
MM: Liz and I are good at hyping each other up.
It’s good to have a hype man as your costar! And speaking of hype men, are you excited for fans who are used to watching you on TV get to see you do your thing live?
LG: Oh, yes! Very much so. And they are really showing up. I saw on Instagram that one of my fans booked a flight from Dubai just to see this production.
MM: Seriously. It’s so cool.
LG: It’s wild! They’ve been incredibly passionate and super into the show.
MM: I’m really excited for all the people coming who’ve never seen live theater before. And I’m especially excited to inspire others to do this. We had a Q&A after a show last week and one of the students asked me how I knew I wanted to pursue this, and I said, “If you’re jealous that you’re not on this stage with us right now…”
LG: “…then that’s your tell!”
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