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Livermore is set to be at the center of local celebrations of “Rocky Horror” in both its stage and screen versions, with this month marking the movie’s 50th anniversary on the heels of the original stage production’s 52nd anniversary in the summer.
Las Positas College’s theater department is currently in the final days of preparation for its rendition of the original stage production. Meanwhile, Nell Campbell – an original cast member of both the play’s first run and the cult classic film – is set for an appearance at the Bankhead Theater next week for a screening of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in honor of its 50th anniversary.
“’Rocky Horror’ is more than just a show, it’s an experience,” said Dyan McBride, director for the Las Positas production in a press release earlier this month. “We’re inviting the audience to let loose, dress up, and be part of a performance that breaks all the rules and celebrates freedom of expression.”
While audiences throughout the country and world have been celebrating the film more than ever this year, as it marks five decades since its debut, Campbell said that although she and the film’s cast had been proud of their work, the tone for them amid its debut was more one of bewilderment than celebrations in 1975.
Following the worldwide success of the stage production that initially debuted in June 1972, Campbell and her castmates underwent a rapid-fire, 18-month filming schedule, with the movie debuting shortly after it wrapped – only to flop at the box office, despite its success on stage.
“We were all surprised,” Campbell told the Pleasanton Weekly in an interview this fall. “The (stage) show had opened now in a dozen countries around the world, and it was a roaring success at the time.”
The film’s disappointing theatrical run had never occurred to her or her castmates during production, Campbell said. It was all the more painful given that the film marked the first on-screen acting roles for her and a majority of the original stage cast.
The box office failure for “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” was in stark contrast, Campbell noted, to another classic film that debuted at the same time: “Jaws”.
“So at the time, everyone was far more interested in sharks,” Campbell said.
She noted that publicists for “Rocky Horror” had sought to both satirize and capitalize on the wild success of “Jaws” with a promotional poster featuring a closeup of castmate Patricia Quinn’s mouth and the caption “A Different set of Jaws”.
But it was a different publicity move that would lead “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” to the cult following and worldwide success that have only continued to grow 50 years later – the decision to launch a series of midnight screenings that would continue into the present day.
Cynthia Lagodzinski, the producer for the upcoming Las Positas stage production, said that she was among the final generation that had grown up with regular midnight screenings of the film, which continues to run in limited release. However, it wasn’t until researching in preparation for auditions at Las Positas that she learned several key points about the production’s history.
“I only saw it live a couple of times, but of course I didn’t participate enough to even understand that it came out as a musical first,” Lagodzinski said. “I found that so fascinating right off the bat. And then as I was doing a little more digging on the show right before we started auditioning, to find out that one of the main characters in the show was its creator.”
The show’s writer, Richard O’Brien, performed double duty in both the original stage production and the film as the story’s creator and in the role of Riff Raff, the eccentric butler and right-hand man to its gender-bending anti-hero, Dr. Frank N. Furter. O’Brien has come to publicly express his identification as transgender, using masculine pronouns but considering his gender to be outside the binary.
The exploration and celebration of gender and sexual diversity in “The Rocky Horror Show” was one of the factors that made it a hit initially, as well as continuing to resonate with audiences in the present day.
“I think ‘Rocky Horror’ is so important because it’s a celebration of being trans, of being bisexual, of being a cross-dresser, of being homosexual – these are things to celebrate,” Campbell said.
“None of these people have a choice – we don’t choose our sex that we identify with, whether it’s on our birth certificate or not,” she continued. “We all need to really support the transgender community, because their journey is so hard. It’s very difficult for a lot of people still. Everyone just needs to be less judgmental and kinder to each other.”
The ongoing struggle for transgender rights and acceptance is also on the minds of the Las Positas cast and crew, Lagodzinski said.
“I think seeing the show come to life nowadays is so interesting, because we’ve got cast members who are transgender, and so I feel like the kids really have a different connection to it, and a really personal connection to it,” Lagodzinski said.
As Campbell noted, the overall message of the musical – and title of its closing number – is “don’t dream it; be it” … during which the cast in the film is donned in women’s lingerie, fishnets and heavy makeup, regardless of gender, while submersed in a swimming pool.
“And it’s so true – be the person you are, and be it with pride, and just whatever you do in life, try very much not to hurt anyone’s feelings,” Campbell said. “Because it all sort of comes back to you in the end. The kinder you are, the nicer people will treat you.”
Both the stage show at Las Positas and the film screening at the Bankhead are coming the week after this weekend’s Livermore Pride, and at the end of Queer History Month – which was established nearly 20 years after “Rocky Horror” debuted.
Las Positas’ rendition of “The Rocky Horror Show” kicks off next Thursday (Oct. 23) for a two-week run. Tickets for all six shows remained available as of this week at lpc.ludus.com, but Lagodzinski noted that they are selling fast.
The day after opening night, Campbell will take to the Bankhead for a screening and celebration of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” next Friday (Oct. 24) at 8 p.m. Tickets and more information are available at livermorearts.org.
