WHAT do you do when you stumble upon an intergalactic cadaver hungry plant but people are just getting in your way?

Well it's a no-brainer isn't it and the body count rises in this lurid off-piste rock and soul musical which has got off to a flying start at Keswick's Theatre by The Lake landing.

Little Shop of Horrors was an offbeat cult movie hit in 1986 starring plant pruning protagonist Rick Moranis and Steve Martin as dastardly dentist Orin Scrivello now concocted into a leftfield theatrical romp from Bolton Octagon's production team. 

Directed by Lotte Wakeham, this song filled sci-fi comedy thriller is set in Skid Row, New York with shop assistant Seymour (Oliver Mawdsley) the painfully puny day-dreamer who pines for pretty Audrey whilst his prehistoric perennial lusts after the blood of the entire cast.

"Feed me" demands the terrorising triffid of its anaemic owner, and a bloodthirsty murderous plot unfolds with foreboding frolics and menacing soliloquys in this spoof rock opera. Let's just say this production, like the plant, quickly grows on you as does the inevitable audience interaction. 

The versatile theatre lends itself to this dazzling but downtrodden New York set with flashing neon signs and garbage cans. A florist desperate for cashflow is on the verge of closure until an eye-catching exotic plant leads to a dramatic reversal in fortunes. So the deadly blood money drama unfolds. 

The multitalented cast are sublime, led by mesmerising singer Anton Stephans who famously wowed Simon Cowell in his X Factor audition 10 years ago. The voice who took on Luther Vandross in 2015 blows you out of the park with his depth, range and power. 

A packed Theatre by the Lake on Press Night saw a rousing ovation for this virtuoso performance.

Even though Little Shop of Horrors might be tad out of the comfort zone of mainstream musical-goers, this production is eminently palatable.

Great to see Theatre By The Lake stage an unabashed highly entertaining, in-your--face, loud and proud production.

Little Shop of Horrors runs until Saturday, April 20 at 7.30pm. Tickets from £12.
Age: 11+
Full details at theatrebythelake.com