The Rocky Horror Picture Show is unlike anything else. The 1975 movie musical follows a newly engaged couple, Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon) as they interact with a group of alien transvestites and their mad scientist leader Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry) from the planet Transsexual in the galaxy of Transylvania.
Beyond the film's out-of-this-world plot, its star-studded cast and the killer songs, it's truly one-of-a-kind because it allows audiences to embrace the gritty weirdness they're seeing on the screen, in their own worlds.
The film quickly became a cult classic, and its fans have organized atypical live showings since 1976, just a year after it was released. At first, folks were just watching the movie, but after some time the audience began to pull the quirky vibe on the screen into the auditoriums and theaters.
It became common for people to yell things out from the crowd in response to the movie. So when Brad and Janet are stripped down to their undergarments, some in the audience will strip down and run around the theater in their underwear. Or during the film's biggest number, "The Time Warp," most people get up on their feet to dance along. People don't just watch The Rocky Horror Picture Show, they become a part of it.
For Bostwick, too, who boasts over 190 TV and film credits, The Rocky Horror Picture Show remains a singular experience.
"It's incomparable to anything I've ever done in my career. People aren't going back to see the mini-series of George Washington that I was in," he says. "It is so unique creating this atmosphere where the audience is more important than the film. Nobody realizes that the movie started in a little theater in New York and just grew and grew."
Those interactive cinematic thrills are coming to Spokane this weekend, as Best of Broadway Spokane hosts a one-night-only showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, complete with a cast of shadow actors playing along as the movie plays with Bostwick serving as a host. (He'll even be doing meet-and-greets with a gaggle of die-hard fans.)
Audience participation aside, Bostwick says the best thing about these annual viewings are the dedicated shadow casts that perform during the showing.
"Each shadow cast has a different take on it, whether it's their costumes or the way they improvise. Some of the best Brads have been women, if they have the right gestures and the right behavior, they're just as good as the guys," he says. "The props are always interesting, and I'm always amused by what new thing I hear yelled out — usually something vulgar."
One of Bostwick's favorite moments to see acted out is from the beginning of the movie when Brad proposes to Janet. The awkward sequence is a defining moment for the loveable naïvete that really defines the newly engaged couple through the rest of the show.
"I'm always amazed when they get all the footwork right and go down on their knees and present her the ring," he explains, reminiscing on when he shot the scene nearly 50 years ago. "The coordination of them doing what's on the screen is always great. Everytime I see it I see something different."
That's why this special Spokane show is perfect for those who come every single year, and those who have somehow never made it out to do the Time Warp in person.
"I'd describe it as the funnest night out as a young adult, especially if you're a virgin to The Rocky Horror Picture Show experience," Bostwick says. "In the film, Brad says, 'It's just a party, Janet,' and that's why I'm doing this. I just want to go have a party and meet the newest members of our cult... uhhh... congregation." ♦
The Rocky Horror Picture Show • Sun, Oct. 27 at 7 pm • $50-$70 • First Interstate Center for the Arts • 334 W. Spokane Falls Blvd • broadwayspokane.com
