4th Dec 2024
Overall Rating: ★★★★★
Simply fantastic and utterly excellent from start to finish! Highly entertaining.
There aren’t enough positive adjectives to justifiably heap upon the production of this cult stage show.
The entire cast were slick and uber-professional. Their acting skills and timing were perfectly in keeping with the comedic tone, their physical movements were sublime, and each cast member possessed singing voices completely off the scale—especially Lauren Chia, who played the iconic role of Janet. This must be the most highly energetic, outrageously phenomenal show that the iconic Playhouse Theatre has ever hosted during its Christmas period.
The fantastic band, in addition to the cast, worked seamlessly with producers, directors, choreographers, costume and make-up artists, set designers, lighting designers, and musical directors to create a production of outstanding quality. It was perfection personified—professionalism at its absolute best from every department and individual involved in creating this English rock musical.
Press and guest night saw no empty seats, an amazing achievement given the theatre’s charity status. Many attendees wore costumes replicating their favourite characters, and a significant portion of the audience enthusiastically shouted out the lines and phrases that have made this cult, audience-participation musical so popular.
Jason Donovan, endorsed by Tim Curry (the original, highly acclaimed Frank-N-Furter), was resoundingly ingenious, masterfully delivering his own slant on the libidinous and flamboyant character.
Aging local DJ Pete Price was cast as the Narrator. He was heckled on numerous occasions but forgiven by many of his contemporaries, as it was guest night and he had numerous friends in the audience. Despite this, his constant reliance on the script, which he held on stage throughout, and his frequent line stumbles were noticeable.
All the classics—Time Warp, Sweet Transvestite, Dammit Janet, and Science Fiction—were performed to the audience’s delight, both during the show and reprised at the end.
If you want to witness a first-class musical this festive period, don your fishnets, dig out your basque and high heels, and book tickets for the fabulous chaos that only The Rocky Horror Show can deliver! Be warned, though—this show has its share of risqué moments!
This is an absolute must-see show, so… Don’t dream it… Be it!
Cast Changes:
Photo Credit: David Freeman
Let’s drop the Hallmark card fantasies. Nature isn’t serene. It’s not here to cradle you while you write love letters to daffodils.
Beautiful Little Fools will be a stunning hardcover anthology celebrating and interrogating the glamour, obsession, and decadence of the Gilded Age, inspired
Are you a writer with a winter-themed story waiting to shine? The Broken Spine is seeking submissions for its 2025 Festive Short
The Broken Spine is a poetry and arts collective proudly published on the coastal edge of North-West England. Founded in 2019 by Alan Parry and Paul Robert Mullen – two school friends reunited after twenty years through a mutual love of poetry.
