It Ain’t Easy Being Mean, But Tim Timmer Hopes You’ll Hate Him

Tim Timmer plays the despicable dentist, Orin Scrivello

Personally, I hate going to the dentist.  But after seeing Orin Scrivello, the Dentist in Little Shop of Horrors, I’ll never ever complain about mine again!  Tim Timmer plays Orin, who he says “chose to be a Dentist because as his mother put it, ‘it was the only career that people will pay you to be inhumane’.”  Tim describes his character as someone who is “evil and enjoys hurting people, especially his girlfriend, the ingénue of the show, Audrey. She doesn’t think she is good enough to leave him because of who she is, so she endures the violence that Orin dishes out to her on a regular basis. He is also known to indulge in a little Nitrous Oxide whenever he feels he needs a pick-me-up to help him enjoy the pain and suffering he administers to others.”  

Anyone who knows Tim knows that he would give a total stranger the shirt off his own back.  By contrast, Tim says, “Now I have to basically rip the shirt off of the total stranger’s back, and enjoy doing it. Also, it is tough to be so cruel and violent to Audrey. Here is this sweet, young, innocent woman who has never said a bad thing about anyone or hurt a fly, and yet I have to act like I enjoy beating her just to derive some weird sadistic pleasures.”  While it is out of character for Tim to play the bad guy, he realizes that to bring his character to life (or death, as the case may be), “my goal is to get the audience to hate me as well. That way I know that I would have done a good job with the role.”

Tim wasn’t sure that he’d be right for the part of Orin until he discussed the role with director Rachael Rose.   Tim learned that Rachael didn’t want the Dentist to be portrayed like the “campy, rock & roll” character played by Steve Martin in the movie version:  “She wanted him to be as dark and sinister as the actor could be. So, that really caused me to think about the challenge it would take to really pull something like that off.”  I think audiences will agree that Tim has discovered his dark side in the Dentist.

Tim met Rachael seven years ago in Rochester while was she the musical director of A New Brain. Tim really appreciates the opportunity to work again with Rachael, saying, “Watching her work and put 1000% effort in this production of Little Shop has been a joy. She brings fresh ideas and never fails to surprise me on what other talents she has up her sleeve.”  Tim has been a Farmington Player for over 10 years and has been involved in some capacity with every show put on by at the Barn since he joined in 2001.   His most recent performance on the Barn stage was as the Old Man in A Christmas Story. 

Little Shop of Horrors opens tonight (Friday April 27) and runs through May 19.  Get your tickets at www.farmingtonplayers.org or by calling the Farmington Players box office at 248-553-2955. Find us on Facebook under "Farmington Players".