Ellen Greene remains remarkably adept at delivering a compelling portrayal of Audrey.

In conversation, she effortlessly switches between that distinctive voice — a bit breathy, a bit squeaky, a bit lispy, a bit New York — which made her "Little Shop of Horrors" heroine an instant icon.

It wasn't a style she had planned to use at the audition.

It just came out naturally in the moment, and it stuck.

“I hadn’t given it any thought,” Greene, 75, remarked in a recent interview with Reporters.

“It was peculiar—I mean, I’ve no idea where half of that material originated.”

In her long and distinguished career across stage and screen, Audrey stands as perhaps Greene’s defining role.

Her tragicomic portrayal of a skid-row shopgirl captivated audiences off-Broadway in 1982, and later in Frank Oz’s 1986 film opposite Rick Moranis.

The catchy musical about that flesh-eating plant is never too far in the rearview either.

Every few years it seems she’s beckoned for an encore.

In 2015, she reprised the role for three sold-out shows, with Jake Gyllenhaal playing Seymour.

Beginning this weekend, she will embark on a multi-month tour of the country for screenings commemorating the 40th anniversary, spanning from Seattle (Aug. 18) to Atlanta (Nov. 13).

Live renditions of “Somewhere That’s Green” have also been assured.

That aching ballad about longing for more, apart from being one of the major showstoppers, occupies a special place in Greene's heart.

She recalls first hearing it while standing in the unemployment line, awaiting her benefit check, and softly murmuring the lyrics to herself.

“I was acutely aware that an Audrey lay dormant within me, awaiting her emergence,” Greene remarked.

She carried that feeling into the audition, where composer Alan Menken spontaneously joined in on the piano while lyricist Howard Ashman—already a close friend of hers—looked on.

By the time she finished, everyone was moved to tears.

Securing the role was hardly an immediate financial boon.

Upon joining the WPA Theatre in New York, she earned $50 per week for a month of rehearsals followed by two months of off-Broadway performances.

Nevertheless, the production proved a resounding success.

On one occasion, Steve Martin—who would later portray Audrey’s abusive dentist boyfriend in the film—attended a performance alongside Mary Tyler Moore.

On stage, she performed "Somewhere That's Green" while seated on a trash can.

For the film, Ashman wrote the number to be staged like the Leslie Caron and Cyd Charisse routines they both loved, where a character walks into a room and suddenly appears in a different outfit for the song.

One might expect me to have been utterly overwhelmed and overjoyed by his gift, she said.

Instead, I called him up, sobbing uncontrollably, and said—brace yourself—'Where's my trash can?'

Ashman, she said, merely laughed and reassured her that they would get the same reaction when the camera pulls back to reveal she is still on skid row.

Ironically, this whole exchange happened before she had even been officially cast in the movie.

The production history of the film was protracted and fraught with setbacks.

John Landis was initially slated to direct, followed briefly by Martin Scorsese, before the project ultimately landed with Oz.

Greene’s involvement was likewise far from assured, as producer David Geffen had sought a more prominent name, such as Cyndi Lauper, for the role.

"I never anticipated that I would be the one to obtain the film," Greene observed.

Yet it is hard to imagine anyone else delivering such a distinctive performance.

Test audiences were so taken with her Audrey that they flatly rejected an ending in which she dies.

“I’m rather fond of that death scene, personally,” Greene remarked.

“But I had a suspicion, you see, because Frank directed Audrey for the screen in a more heroic vein.”

He had removed lines from the play such as "you don't meet nice boys when you live on skid row," she said in her typical Audrey-speak.

She thinks this gave her a slightly different start.

Then at the end, there's the line "when I die, which should be very shortly."

On stage, she said it to the audience.

In the film, she says it to Seymour.

It's more intimate and serious.

"Frank thinks it's because we didn't take a bow, like in the play, but I believe it's because the line can be interpreted in two different ways.

One makes it seem silly and I'm fine with that, while the other makes it real and touching," she said.

Oz ultimately capitulated, and they opted to film a more upbeat resolution.

Greene now simply appreciates that both versions coexist—the original preserved in a director’s cut.

Recalling "Little Shop" also serves as a tribute to Ashman, who died from AIDS-related complications in 1991.

Their friendship was filled with laughter, songs, and adventures, and he even took her on her first trip to Paris.

We made our way into my room, and he drew a bubble bath for me, knowing full well how much I adore them.

I slipped into the tub, and he handed me Champagne and caviar, then put on Piaf," she recounted.

"We had separate quarters, naturally, but we were in such close proximity that it was inevitable—what could one do?

And having come from the theater, I'm hardly one to be prudish.

He also looked out for her.

When they were drawing up contracts for the "Little Shop" stage run, her only concern was making sure London was included.

Without her knowing, Ashman had also given her a half point of the profit, "because I created Audrey," she said.

"Such was his generosity and kindness, and how deeply he loved me," she said.

"Everyone loves Audrey because we—I—loved her first.

And everyone loves 'Little Shop' because we put so much love into it…

I am truly grateful and humbled, because when they love 'Little Shop,' they keep it alive, and they keep Howard Ashman's memory alive."