Ethan Slater & Betsy Wolfe Will Join LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS Off-Broadway
Jordan Fisher and Nikki M. James will play their final performances on July 19, 2026.
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BroadwayWorld has just learned that Tony Award nominee and Drama Desk winner Ethan Slater (Wicked film, SpongeBob SquarePants on Broadway) will join the hit revival Little Shop of Horrors as Seymour, alongside Tony Award nominee Betsy Wolfe (Death Becomes Her, & Juliet) as Audrey, beginning Tuesday, July 21, 2026. Little Shop of Horrors is now in its seventh smash year at the Westside Theatre. Tickets are on sale now through January 23, 2028.
Slater recently starred on screen as Boq in the Oscar-winning film Wicked, which earned a SAG nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, and he reprised the role in Wicked: For Good. On the stage, he received a Tony Award nomination and won Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for his breakout performance in the titular role of SpongeBob SquarePants on Broadway, and co-wrote and starred in last season’s Marcel on the Train at Classic Stage Company. Wolfe is a Tony Award nominee for her performance as Anne Hathaway in the hit Broadway musical & Juliet, and is currently starring as Madeline Ashton in the musical comedy Death Becomes Her. Her past credits include leading roles in the musicals Joy, Waitress, Falsettos, and The Last Five Years.
“We feel incredibly fortunate to welcome two of the theater community’s most gifted artists to Mushnik’s flower shop! Ethan and Betsy have each built extraordinary, multifaceted careers driven by heart and humor, and we cannot wait for audiences to see them inhabit these two beautiful characters. It will be a truly special chapter for the Little Shop family!” said producers Tom Kirdahy, Robert Ahrens, and Hunter Arnold.
The musical’s current stars, Jordan Fisher (Moulin Rouge, Hadestown, “To All The Boys”) and Tony Award winner Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon), will play their final performances as Seymour and Audrey on Sunday, July 19, 2026. Continuing in the cast are Drama Desk nominee Claybourne Elder (HBO’s “The Gilded Age,” Company) as Dr. Orin Scrivello D.D.S., Tony nominee Reg Rogers (The Dazzle, Merrily We Roll Along) as Mushnik, Christian McQueen as The Voice of Audrey II, Christine Wanda as Ronnette, Savannah Lee Birdsong as Crystal, and Morgan Ashley Bryant as Chiffon, alongside Teddy Yudain, Weston Chandler Long, Mecca Hicks, Jeff Sears, Aveena Sawyer, Christopher Swan, Alloria Frayser, Chani Maisonet, Johnny Newcomb, Jon Hoche, Jonothon Lyons, and Noel MacNeal.
Little Shop of Horrors features a book and lyrics by Grammy and Academy Award winner Howard Ashman (The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast), and music by Tony and Academy Award winner Alan Menken (Aladdin, Newsies), the 2020 Drama League, Outer Critics Circle, and Drama Desk Award-winning Best Musical Revival of Little Shop of Horrors is directed by Tony Award winner Michael Mayer (Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Spring Awakening).
Little Shop of Horrors began previews at Westside Theatre on Tuesday, September 17, 2019 and opened to widespread critical acclaim on Thursday, October 17, 2019. Ben Brantley of The New York Times deemed the show a “Critic’s Pick,” declaring that “a certain carnivorous plant has been repotted in Hell’s Kitchen, and I am delighted to report that it’s thriving there. Michael Mayer’s delicious revival…summons the shivery elation I felt seeing the musical at the East Village’s Orpheum nearly four decades ago. It restores the show to its original scale and sensibility, reminding us of the special potency of grisly things that come in small, impeccably wrapped packages.” The Hollywood Reporter describes the production as “wildly exuberant and irresistible. This terrific revival will only deepen the devotion for those lucky enough to catch it.” Time Out gives the musical “Four Stars! A deeply satisfying revival… with a marvelous cast. What kind of deal with what kind of devil are you willing to cut to see it?” Several seasons later, the musical continues to play to sold-out audiences hungry for the thrill of live musical theater in an intimate setting. Three years into its run, Washington Post critic Peter Marks wrote, “I’m back at Little Shop of Horrors because, friends, I needed to laugh today. Hearing the glorious Menken/Ashman score sung by this cast fills the prescription. [A return trip] is WORTH IT.”
Seymour is a down-on-his-luck florist with a crush on his co-worker Audrey. When he discovers a mysterious – and voracious – plant, suddenly Seymour and Audrey are thrust into an epic battle that will determine the fate of the entire human race. Little Shop of Horrors first premiered Off-Broadway in 1982, where it made audiences laugh, scream, and give up gardening for good. The musical has since catapulted into a global phenomenon, with productions across the world from Broadway to London’s West End, to Asia and Australia – plus a hit 1986 film adaptation directed by Frank Oz that starred Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene and Steve Martin. Now, the musical has made its highly-anticipated return home to Off-Broadway, in an intimate new production directed by Michael Mayer that offers an unprecedented opportunity to get close — maybe too close — to an incredible plant with an insatiable appetite.
The Little Shop of Horrors design team features Tony-nominated Scenic Designer Julian Crouch (Hedwig and the Angry Inch); Two-time Tony-winning Lighting Designer Bradley King (Hadestown, Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812); Emmy-winning Costume Designer Tom Broecker (Everyday Rapture); Tony-winning Sound Designer Jessica Paz (Hadestown); Emmy-nominated Puppet Designer Nicholas Mahon (Pyeongchang Olympics Opening Ceremony) and Hair and Makeup Designer Tommy Kurzman (My Fair Lady). Original puppet design is by Martin P. Robinson, Puppets are by Monkey Boys Productions, and Grammy nominee Will Van Dyke (Pretty Woman) serves as Music Supervisor, Orchestrator & Arranger.
Little Shop of Horrors is produced by Tom Kirdahy, Robert Ahrens, Hunter Arnold, Mickey Liddell, Caiola Productions, Curt Cronin, John Joseph, DDM Productions, DeSantis-Baugh Productions, Elizabeth Dewberry & Ali Ahmet Kocabiyik, Wendy Federman, Roy Furman, Deborah Green, Kayla Greenspan, Marguerite Hoffman, Sally Cade Holmes, Latitude Link, Seriff Productions, Silva Theatrical Group, and Eric Gelb/Oliver Roth. Casting is by Jim Carnahan, C.S.A./Jason Thinger, General Management is by Live Wire Theatrical/ Chris Aniello, Production Management is by Juniper Street Productions and Production Stage Management is by Kate Croasdale.
BIOGRAPHIES
Ethan Slater (Seymour) is best known for playing ‘Boq’ in the Oscar-winning film WICKED, a performance that earned him a SAG nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. He reprised his role in a transformational arc into the iconic ‘Tin Man” in the hit sequel WICKED: FOR GOOD. In television, Slater recently received critical acclaim for his villainous turn on Amazon’s THE BOYS spinoff GEN V, which he will continue in the forthcoming series VOUGHT RISING, and he can be seen in a multi-season arc on CBS’ ELSBETH. On stage, Slater received a Tony Award nomination, and won the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards, for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for playing the titular SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS on Broadway. In 2026, Slater starred in the world premiere of his critically acclaimed play MARCEL ON THE TRAIN, which he co-wrote, at Classic Stage Company. A well-regarded writer for the screen as well as the stage, Slater is currently developing a feature film inspired by the life of Buster Keaton.
Betsy Wolfe (Audrey) is currently wrapping up her run starring as Madeline Ashton in Death Becomes Her on Broadway. She earned a Tony nomination for her performance as Anne Hathaway in & Juliet. Additional Broadway credits include starring in Waitress (Jenna), Falsettos (Cordelia), Bullets Over Broadway (Ellen), The Mystery of Edwin Drood (Rosa Bud), 110 in the Shade, and Everyday Rapture. Betsy originated the title role in Joy, a new musical based on the life of inventor Joy Mangano. She starred as Cathy in The Last Five Years (Second Stage) and Beth in Merrily We Roll Along (City Center Encores!). A versatile vocalist, Wolfe made her Metropolitan Opera debut in Die Fledermaus and has performed as a soloist with over 65 international orchestras, including the New York Pops, Chicago Symphony, and BBC Orchestra. On screen, she can be seen in First One In and Instinct. Wolfe graduated from CCM and is the co-founder of @BroadwayEvolved, an industry-respected theater training program for students.
Photo Credit: Emilio Madrid/Justin Patterson
