Give yourself over to absolute pleasure

I’m a Rocky Horror Picture Show virgin. Or, at least, I was a Rocky Horror Picture Show virgin until last Thursday, when my innocence was taken from me in a flash of lingerie, transvestitism, and hilarious heckling. Musical Theatre Society provided the girls, guys, and the pizazz, while iCU Cinema provided the film that’s built a rock-solid cult following since 1970s.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show, for those who don’t know, is a weird and perverse musical about the sexy and mad Dr. Frank-N-Furter (played by Tim Curry) and a straight-edge married couple’s, Janet Weiss (SLUT!) and Brad Majors (ASSHOLE!), release into debauchery.

But this is much more than a film. It truly is an experience. For those in the know, it’s a chance to dance, to sing, and to heckle the screen. Whenever anyone in the film says Janet (SLUT!) or Brad (ASSHOLE!), scores of people scream ‘slut’ or ‘asshole’ at the screen. The narrator is derided for his apparent lack of a neck, and that horror film plot device of going to an old castle because your car broke down is lampooned as people shout, “CASTLES DON’T HAVE TELEPHONES,” at the hapless characters.

However, if you’re not in the know, if you’re a Rocky virgin (as indicated by the ‘V’ drawn on your forehead by the MTSoc guys and gals running around in lingerie) the effect of all this madness is really quite smart. You end up mimicking the experience of Janet (SLUT!) and Brad (ASSHOLE!) They’ve turned up at this weird castle with a bunch of barely-dressed people, and you’ve turned up to iCU Cinema with a bunch of barely-dressed Imperialites. They’re taken aback by the dancing and aren’t sure what to do, and you’re… well you get the gist.

By the end of the show, though, you’ve been converted (rather like Janet [SLUT!] and Brad [ASSHOLE!]) You begin to look at the people in lingerie and begin to feel like your jeans are a bit… stifling. But don’t tell my mother I said that.