Review: THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW, The Alexandra Birmingham - Tour
Photo credit: David Freeman
Celebrating it’s 50th year, The Rocky Horror Show is the story of two squeaky clean college kids, Brad and Janet, who stumble across a creepy mansion one night when their car breaks down. Their meeting with Dr Frank N Furter leads to fun, frolics and some seriously X-rated behaviour!
Written by Richard O’Brien as a humorous tribute to classic science fiction and horror B movies, the show originated at the Royal Court Theatre (Upstairs) in London in 1973 and has slowly become a cult classic amongst fans; many dress up for performances both in the theatre and in cinemas.
Haley Flaherty (Janet) and Richard Meek (Brad) are our college couple, both having been a part of the Rocky Horror family for a while on and off, and both continue to bring a renewed vigour to their performances. There are a few additions that die hard fans will notice, our favourite is during ‘Once In A While’ (don’t worry, no spoilers!) but it’s a nice little moment between them.
Our Narrator for the evening was Philip Franks, never failing to respond to audience shout outs (in case you didn’t know the audience have a script to follow too), his political satire and unflappable camaraderie never failing for a second to have the audience in stitches; he is certainly a fan favourite.
Kristian Lavercombe (Riff Raff), as always, gives a spotless performance and is incredibly focused. Considering he has played the role for an astounding 2000+ performances, his ‘Time Warp’ is still as astounding as the first time we saw it, with the delightful choreography from the incredible Nathan M Wright. Suzie McAdam (Usherette/Magenta) and Darcy Finden (Columbia) complete the trio of Frank’s servants/groupies perfectly, each complementing the other just the right amount.
Ben Westhead (Rocky) is a charming Frank N Furter creation and Joe Allen (Eddie/Dr Scott) is the epitome of his opposite, having been created from the same brain - trust us, it will all make sense once you’ve seen it!
With costume design by Sue Blane (she also made the original designs for the film), set design by Hugh Durrant and direction by Christopher Luscombe, we couldn’t have expected this production to be any more outstanding, that is until Stephen Webb as Frank N Furter performs ‘Don’t Dream It’ and that goosebump moment is upon us. He manages to make us feel as if we are the only person in the room and we are totally blown away!
The Rocky Horror Show continues to delight 50 years after it began delighting audiences back in the humblest of beginnings, and we sincerely hope that it continues to breath life into theatres everywhere for another 50 years to come!
Vibrant, pulsating and extremely satisfying!
***** Five stars
Reviewed by: Rachel Louise Martin
The Rocky Horror Show plays at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham until 1 April and continues to tour the UK until October 2023. To book tickets for select touring venues, please click here.