THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW
DIRECTOR: Matthew Wild
MUSICAL DIRECTOR: |Stefan Lombard
CAST: Brendan van Rhyn, |Paul du Toit, Sharon Spiegel-Wagner, Daneel van der Walt, Andrew Laubscher and Dominique Maher
VENUE: Pieter Toerien Main Theatre, Montecasino
UNTIL: February 1
RATING: ****
The Fugard Theatre’s production of the smash-hit musical hypnotised Cape Town and Joburg audiences last year, with month after month of sold-out shows. LARA DE MATOS finally discovers why…
MESMERISING. Phenomenal. Beyond brilliant. Would that I could simply throw in the typically trite “you won’t want to miss it” and that alone would encapsulate why Rocky Horror undoubtedly ranks as one of the best productions I’ve seen in years. Scratch that – one of the best productions ever to grace the South African stage.
The storyline remains much the same as it has since the world was first introduced to the rebellious musings of creator, Richard O’Brien’s mind over 40 years ago. But it’s the execution thereof that leaves you in complete awe.
From the very moment your foot crosses over the theatre’s threshold, you are ushered (literally) into the time warped world of science fiction-meets- B- grade horror movies-meets cultural and sexual dissent that has so captured cult audiences for decades.
The well-known tale tells of recently engaged – and decidedly dull in their conservatism – couple, Brad (Du Toit) and Janet (Spiegel-Wagner), who stumble across a Draculian manor after their car breaks down along a lonely road on a rainy night.
If the decidedly ghoulish butler (aka Riff Raff), creaking doors and freakish folk that slither into focus seemingly out of thin air weren’t sufficient indication that something is seriously amiss in this house of horrors, the macabre events that unfold throughout their forced stay leave little room for doubt.
And then, of course, there’s Frank-n-Furter. The sweet transvestite from Transsexual Transylvania-cum-mad-scientist-cum-lord of the manor (or so he thinks).
It’s a role that, despite the play’s many permutations over the years, as always been identified with Tim Curry in the 1975 film adaptation. But Brendan van Rhyn may just be the (wo)man to finally take that title from Tim.
Standing almost 2m tall, he would be hard to miss even in the most ordinary of circumstances. Squeeze him into a corset with fishnet stockings (which he pulls off better than most any female ever could), slap a pair of impossibly high hooker heels on him and it’s easy to understand why his is a presence that dominates the stage.
But beyond Van Rhyn’s dramatic physicality, what will leave your jaw dropping (literally, in my case) is the sheer power of his performance. And that voice! The “Mufasa meets Michael Clarke Duncan, wrapped up in Orson Wells with a generous dash of Barry White” quality of his magnificent vocal instrument will have you goose-pimpled throughout.
Considered within that context, it’s no mean feat that some of the supporting cast members almost threaten to steal the show at times. Laubscher is unfaltering in his subtly menacing portrayal of Riff Raff, as is Maher’s rendering of the sprightly Columbia, while van der Walt’s passive-aggressive Magenta is absolutely enthralling.
Ultimately, however, the very strength of the Rocky Horror has always rested on the fact that it is very much an ensemble production.
And while virgins to the show may be shocked by the naughty shenanigans of the he-she usherettes-slash-phantoms, the sudden outcries of “slut!” and “asshole!” from the veteran audience members, or Frank-n-Furter’s salacious retorts, it truly is a delightful evening of no-holds barred fun!
But as silk-voiced narrator, Adrian Galley, reminds us with the iconic closing line, there is much more to O’Brien’s masterpiece than a jolly ol’ visual romp. For we all remain, as we were 40 years ago, “crawling on the planet’s face, some insects called the human race. Lost in time and lost in space… and meaning.”