“Dammit Janet,” it’s time to do the “Time Warp” once again.
In other words, get a few rolls of toilet paper, some newspapers, and maybe even a pair of torn fishnets, because an interactive performance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show is touring and may even come to your city.
The best part is that each performance includes more than just a screening of the movie. Each performance will feature local actors dressed as characters from the movie acting out the show in front of the screen. There will also be costume contests and a chance for fans to see a traveling museum of movie memorabilia before the performance.
Barry Bostwick, who played Brad Majors in the movie, will even be on-hand at each stop to meet attendees and introduce the film.
“It’s an excuse to go crazy, be rude, throw stuff, yell, and be silly — who doesn’t want that?” Bostwick asks, according to the Associated Press. “Everyone there is having fun, sharing a communal experience. Especially now after the pandemic, we need to gather and blow off some steam.”
What You Need To Know About The Rocky Horror Picture Show
If you aren’t familiar with The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the 1975 movie/musical really picks up when Brad Majors and Janet Weiss, a young couple who are engaged, have car problems on a dark and stormy night. After their car has a flat tire, they walk to a nearby castle looking for help.
Once at the castle, they meet an Igor-like butler named Riff Raff, his French maid sister Magenta, and Dr. Frank-N-Furter — a cross-dressing mad scientist who claims to be a “Sweet Transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania.” It is later revealed that Dr. Frank-N-Furter, who is actually an alien, has created a tall, muscular man named Rocky.
Rocky was created using some of the brain of a motorcycle-riding delivery boy named Eddie, played by Meat Loaf, who dramatically tries to escape.
Why Performances Are Interactive
The movie didn’t really fare well when it was first released. However, when it started being shown as a midnight screening at movie theaters, people began showing up in costumes such as fishnets and corsets. They recited lines of dialogue, singing along with the many songs in the movie, including “Science Fiction/Double Feature” and “Time Warp.”
This time around, attendees have even brought props to act out various scenes in the movie. For example, during a scene with a thunderstorm, audience members will put newspapers over their heads — as characters do in the movie — and squirt each other with water pistols. And during a dinner scene when Dr. Frank-N-Furter proposes a toast, audience members throw toast at the screen.
Scott Stander, who produces the traveling show, said part of The Rocky Horror Picture Show’s appeal is that audience members can participate.
“Where can you go dress in fishnet, or be square and act like Brad, and hear shout-outs from the audience, and have toast or toilet paper flying, and just be involved?” asks Stander, according to the Associated Press. “It’s just so different. There’s nothing like it.”
Know So You Can Go
The traveling, interactive version of The Rocky Horror Picture Show is already on tour.
Here are the upcoming dates:
- October 7, 2022; Palm Springs, California
- October 9, 2022; Boise, Idaho
- October 12, 2022; Akron, Ohio
- October 13, 2022; Flint, Michigan
- October 15, 2022; Kalamazoo, Michigan
- October 16, 2022; Benton Harbor, Michigan
- October 18, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona
- October 20, 2022; Sacramento, California
- October 21, 2022; La Mirada, California
- October 26, 2022; Chester, New York
- October 27, 2022; New Haven, Connecticut
- October 28, 2022; Atlantic City, New Jersey
- October 30, 2022; Lynchburg, Virginia
- October 31, 2022; Burlington, Vermont
- February 25, 2023; Newton, North Carolina
You can learn more about the tour dates here and you can buy tickets for shows here.
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