Don’t think Echuca-Moama Theatre Company can’t shock you... because it does every time the curtain rises on a new show.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
But when it comes to Rocky Horror, well, here we’ve come to something utterly fantastic, something almost otherworldly.
From casting to choreography, from the sound machine in the pits to the sets on the stage, this is the complete live theatre experience.
And it’s a rollicking reincarnation of that cult classic born in London 53 years ago.
There’s just one problem with The Rocky Horror Show – choosing your favourite characters.
For the director, when it came to camping it up, along came Dennis Carter, stepping straight into the spotlight with a pelvic thrust that really drives you insane.
Which he does, time warp and time warp again.
Frank N. Furter was dreamt up to strut the stage “in another dimension, with voyeuristic intention” and Carter rules those boards with his seductive blend of moues, fabulous voice and so much blatant suggestion it’s fortunate seats are in the dark to hide the blushes.
And if Frank N. Furter was dreamt up to strut, Darcy Elliott was born to be Riff Raff.
He mesmerises from go to whoa ‒ his innate sense of humour and razor sharp timing (and wit) crown his powerful singing. Not even spending the whole show stooped for the role dents his diaphragm.
No-one else in town could have pulled this off this well.
Indra Hubble as Janet Weiss evolves seamlessly into a depraved Sandra Dee.
Initially pretty in pink, then stripped down to the most virginal white, she surrenders to Frank N. Furter, going from her peaches and cream wedding dream to belting out “touch-a, touch-a, touch-a, touch me, I wanna be dirty. Thrill me, chill me, fulfil me, creature of the night”.
And the big Furter did exactly that, with enthusiasm possibly never seen on the local stage.
If Hubble/Weiss was happily being seduced by the dark side, Dillon Shelley as her beau Brad Majors was oh, so saccharin, in everything the role demanded and in everything he delivered.
Although in the end he would prove no more impervious to the “sweet transvestite from transsexual Transylvania”, turned into an equally depraved dweeb to match his Sandra Dee.
Multitasking Tamara Cadd as Magenta and Trixie delights throughout – from her solo to open the show to her almost accidental role in the unexpectedly brutal finale when her brother Riff Raff gets a little out of control.
Whether dressed as the popcorn girl in a theatre or the vampy Magenta, her soaring soprano is another high point for the show, and the way she melds her roles, never misses a move and hogs the spotlight in song is exactly what Echuca-Moama audiences have come to expect from this company veteran.
Gerry Oman raps out some rock and roll as Eddie, before being back in a wheelchair as Dr Scott, even breaking into German a la Dr Strangelove, as he tries to unravel the evil being perpetrated by Frank N. Furter.
He puts in a couple of classic Oman cameos and still manages to cut a fine figure with his legs given their own camp whirl from his wheelchair.
Casting Rocky himself was always going to be the Holy Grail for this production, so thank heavens for Zay Ryan, who ripples muscle from head to toe as the insane Frank N. Furter’s ultimate creation and backs it up with a voice every bit as strong as his barely clad body.
For a young performer who had never heard of Rocky Horror before he saw an audition appeal for a meathead with muscle, Ryan’s first appearance is greeted with some very over-the-top oohs and aahs and he’s hard to ignore every time he appears.
Honni Goulding is a natural as the narrator – clear, wry, occasionally wicked, she reacts beautifully to crowd participation with an arched eye or quick quip and keeps the story ticking along.
However, the surprise packet (although possibly not if you have seen her in Mamma Mia or Into the Woods) has to be Juliana de Quilettes as Columbia.
She simply steals her every scene. Her vocal range is amazing, her tap dancing entertaining and her dance moves and dose of delirium after being zapped by Riff Raff mark a dazzling display by a performer already making a name for herself on the Melbourne stage.
De Quilettes would be a director’s delight because her performance was so polished she might have come straight here to reprise her Broadway role as the same character. Simply flawless.
One other thing which sets Rocky apart is the live music.
Under the direction of conductor Chris McDonald, the seven-piece ensemble never drops a note and lifts each performer – there’s something special having live sound, not taped backgrounds, which adds some genuine pizazz.
Not to be forgotten are the hardworking Phantoms, who could just as easily have been called the Raunchettes... with fishnet stockings de rigueur and brazen bustiers everywhere you looked.
If the leads hadn’t drawn you in, Hayley Franklin, Ivy Jensen, Molli Johns, Bec Kellett, Taylah Logie, Darcy McLindon, Sarah Mott and Sue Windsor certainly will.
As always, much of the hard work is done behind the scenes of shows – costumes, sets, hair, makeup, lighting, backstage crew.
And you know they were a smashing success because you could soak up everything on stage and with a bit of a mind flip, you were into the time slip, and nothing can ever be the same.
- By Andrew Mole