Ooh, Halloween! Ghouls, ghosts, goblins and . . . jumbo-sized Venus fly-traps? A slightly bizarre brew, but a tasty, lip-smackin’ combination nonetheless. Little Shop of Horrors played to a smidge-less-than-half-full crowd Tuesday night, and with the rain plapping against the roof, nobody could’ve had a better All Hallow’s Eve than us in the audience.

The show follows the life of young Seymour (played expertly by Patrick Spenceri), an Arvid from “Head of the Class” lookalike, who works in Mushnik’s Skid Row Florist. He has two whole hands full of green thumbs, and he finds and nurtures a mysterious fly-trap who has a taste for blood. Throw in a demanding boss (Robert Somers), Seymour’s crush object, Audrey (Sarah Zach) and her wicked boyfriend Orin (Ryan Burchett), and you’ve got a tale of love and murder that’ll keep ya laughin’. How do they fit all that into one show??

While a lot of people might walk into Fisher Theater thinking that they’ll see a clone of the movie version of Little Shop, get that thought outta yo’ head. The two productions are waaaay different (that’s good). I never understood why a person would make a musical into a movie in the first place; stuff like that works so much better on the stage.

Anyway, fabulous musical numbers, including some lighthearted ribbing of R&B and doo-wop, will keep your ears smiling, while very human and charismatic characters will make you laugh. Spenceri was born into the part of Seymour; he is reminiscent of Radar from “M*A*S*H,” both in voice and mannerisms. The sweet, boyishly innocent Seymour/Patrick will melt your heart; he’s the exact kind of guy who laments that girls always fall for all the wrong dudes. And in this case, he’s right.

Speaking of Audrey, she is a frustrating character. That’s nothing against Sarah; on the contrary, she is funny and the voice will have ya verklempt with chuckles. But the character, besides needing a makeover, also needs better taste in men, especially considering that no-good, leather-jacket-wearing boyfriend of hers, whose cackle would send chills up Dracula’s spine.

Watch for great scenery and smooth changes, and Audrey II (the plant) will blow you away! A puppeteer lurks inside (Scott Saunders) and the booming voice is separate (Christopher Johnson), which must be incredibly difficult. But the two guys pull it off like old pros, and you’ll think that Audrey II really is swallowing whole people and smooth-talking Seymour into offing somebody.

There were only a couple minor problems, though they are quite noticeable. First of all, too often the orchestra was so loud that they drowned out the characters’ lines and songs. I love live music to accompany a show, but it shouldn’t overpower the action of the play. A quick fiddle with the volume control should fix things.

The other difficulty is with The Chiffons, the three women who act as narrators and who sing harmony in some of the songs. While their costumes and wigs are fabulous, the characters themselves totally don’t have the bad-ass attitude or oomph that they need to carry off the parts. When you’re wearing sequins and a bouffant, you gotta snarl and growl and show the world how fab you are.

But back to the good stuff. I said before that the stage show is different from the Rick Moranis/Steve Martin version, and I can say that I’ll never, ever rent the movie — I’d be way too disappointed. ISU Theatre’s production is more gruesome, but it makes up for the gore with lots of giggles. And I’ll take the lesson to heart: “Don’t feed the plants!”

If you missed last weekend’s shows, you still have a chance to catch Little Shop of Horrors at Fisher Theater Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. Student tickets cost $6.75 at the door.