Review: ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW at Actors Theatre Of Little Rock Brings Castle Frank-N-Furter to Discovery Night Club

A wild, raucous good time was had by all with The Actors Theatre of Little Rock Season Zero performance of ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW Thursday night, Oct. 27, at Discovery Night Club, 1021 Jessie Road, in Little Rock. We Time Warped, met a few Sweet Transvestites, played with the goody-bag props, and drank down some tasty beverages. The music was rockin', the club was the perfect setting, and there were plenty of opportunities to let your freak out....or die of embarrassment. I'll get to that shortly.

As you walk into the club, the vibe is already set for a special evening of fun and debauchery. The lighting is low, there is a bit of fog, and the crowd is buzzing with antici....pation. Seating is first come, first serve. I suggest you go online to buy tickets early, so you don't have to wait outside for the reserved ticket buyers. We were able to get really good seats close to the stage, which is where you want to be for the really "good" views (insert winky face). Also, get your drinks early, because the line to the bar gets long, fast.

For some pre-show entertainment, Queen Anthony comes out and asks for the Rocky Horror virgins. Idiot me raised my hands, and obviously my plus one hates me and pushed me up to the stage. Do you know what Rocky Horror virgins do? They are judged by making their best (or worst) org*sm sounds. I'm a writer-I hide, so instead I froze and lost. My other comrade virgins put out decent effort and an over-all winner was declared. An announcement was made that there may be some touching throughout the performance, and I quickly switched seats with my plus one so she could have the isle. There will be more on that as well.

For those of you that haven't seen Rocky Horror at all, here is a brief synopsis. Brad (Carson Horton) and Janet (Maranda L Barris) get engaged and decide to go visit their professor Dr. Scott (Libby A. Smith). On their way, they get a flat near Dr. Frank-N-Furter's (B. Dumas) castle. They are introduced to Riff Raff (Micah Patterson), Magenta (Kelsey Marie) and Columbia (Leslie Heister), who welcome them into the abode. They dance, they meet Dr. Frank-N-Furter, and learn of his invention of a man named Rocky (Taijee). Eddie (Taylor Fulgham) comes in singing and gets slaughtered by Frank-N-Furter. Columbia gets upset, then an uproar happens. Riff Raff and Magenta decide to kill Frank-N-Furter and go back to Transsexual, Transylvania. Somewhere in between the beginning and the end there is quite a bit of sexual activity, but you need to come see it to fully get the best picture of that.

Director Mark Burbank created an amazing cast! Dumas embodied the spirit of Frank-N-Furter as she paraded around flaunting sexuality all over the place. Horton and Barris's coupling were fun to watch, especially during their duets. As Janet, it was great to see her transformation from innocent to vixen. Same can be said of Brad and his embracing of his inner sexual being. He even had a solo that was not in the movie. Patterson was perfectly cast as Riff Raff, and I am not the only one who thought so on that opinion. And Marie and Heister were great, especially during the Time Warp. Taijee was a surprise and delight as Rocky. He cracked me up, as did Fulgham as Eddie.

Let's not forget the extra touches (pun intended). If it weren't for the costuming, music, lighting, stage construction, and wonderful choreography, the magic of theatre would be greatly minimalized. Costuming (Anthony McBride) was eccentric, colorful, and over the top. The assless pants were a crowd favorite, and everyone looked great in their underwear. The music, orchestrated by the amazing Michael Heavner, was beyond phenomenal. I always love to hear what he has created, and every single time it blows me away. Lighting (Sidney McGough) was flashy, colorful, and helped set the party mood. The scenic design (Austin Aschbrenner) was simplistic yet colorful, and they made use of video projection. However, a lot of ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW is about the choreography (Skyler Jay). Their use of the whole night club was genius. They weaved in and out all through the crowd, and gave special attention to willing participants, including my plus one since she was right where the main traffic went in and out. I am so glad I switched places hahaha. I am a little sad I couldn't video that part of the show.

Assistant Director Queen Anthony James Gerard says this show holds a special place in Queen's heart. "My career is a professional drag queen. I work every weekend," Queen said. "This musical was my first ever experiencing anything out of the ordinary- man in female clothing, and I was instantly inspired at 12 years old." Queen continues, saying, "And so I watched it hundreds of times and it just holds a place in my heart. The term 'don't dream it, be it' means so much and brings such a tear to my eye every time. 'Don't dream it, be it' is the phrase of this show that I live by."

ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW continues through Halloween, Monday, Oct. 31. To get tickets to this fabulous production or for more information about season zero, visit their website at https://actorstheatrelr.org. Don't miss it!!

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