It’s spooky season. The time of year with scares, chills, and thrills. Recurring halloween movies, T.V. specials, and haunted houses litter the month, and every year, The Theatre Company joins in on the festivities. This time around, on Oct. 26-28, they will put on the “The Rocky Horror Show,” a remake of the cult classic movie from the ‘70s.
“The Rocky Horror Show” is unlike any other horror show. For the few who haven’t heard of it, it’s a mix of sci-fi, horror, comedy, and rock and roll that expects the audience to participate in reciting the lines and singing along with the music. In fact, becoming involved in the production is a large part of the fun of it and part of what has made it so successful over the last 40 years.
“It is a very weird show,” says Adrienne Dobson, the artistic director at The Theatre Company. Weird it is indeed. It’s a double spoof—first on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, but then also on 1950s societal expectations. The story follows Brad and Janet, newlyweds who find themselves in the wrong place at a very wrong time. When their car breaks down, they are stuck in a creepy castle where they meet Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite who confronts their 1950s conventions in some very interesting ways. When the film first premiered in the US in 1975, it brought a new sense of freedom for many and offered a place to feel included. Thousands related to the film’s edginess, and audiences couldn’t get enough of it, often standing for hours in lines that snaked through several city blocks.
Dobson describes The Theatre Company’s production as very “nostalgic and cliche 1950s horror,” continuing that while this production is consistent with the original story, the company has taken a bit of artistic license. “The crowd is encouraged to yell and laugh just like the movie or any other production of Rocky Horror. But our style of the show is very different. The past couple of times we stuck to the grungy, underground aesthetic.” This time, however, Dobson states that the cast looks more “bougie” and “chic” instead of just grimy and dirty. Much of the choreography and staging mirrors past performances that Dobson has been part of, but thanks to the talent of the superior cast, the feel and take are very new.
“The cast for this show is fantastic,” Dobson says. “Our Dr. Frank-N-Furter, who is an A&M student, Tyer Lewis, is incredible. This is his first show with us, and he is just knocking it out of the park.”
Tickets for this show and all Bryan Theater Company shows can be bought in the individual ticket section on the theater company’s website.
