Bournemouth Pavilion’s Rocky Horror Show is one of the best ever productions of Richard O’Brien’s mad, mad genius musical
It was supposed to run for just three weeks but 52 years on, it is bigger and bolder than ever. The Rocky Horror Show never grows old, as last night’s performance at Bournemouth Pavilion demonstrated.
Creator Richard O’Brien’s absolute genius mix of wit, pathos and wild, wild lunacy had the audience singing, dancing and howling with laughter.
If you’re a firm fan like me, (this was the 10th time I’ve seen the show), part of the fun of each new tour is seeing what the cast will bring to it, what twists the director has added and what other surprises may be in store.
This show delivered on all these and more and was one of the best versions I’ve ever seen – featuring a class cast with strong performances all round.
Excellent as Brad, the nerdy, stuffed shirt, bespectacled boyfriend of the virginal Janet, was Connor Carson. His brilliant acting was matched by a fantastic voice, as demonstrated by his rendition of “Dammit Janet” the opening song of the show which starts with the hapless duo’s car breaking down near the castle of transvestite alien queen Frank-N-Furter.
Frank-N-Furter reigns over a kingdom straight out of a Hollywood B movie with more than a nod to Sci-Fi. The larger than life role was played by Adam Strong, who was absolutely amazing. Strutting about the stage in stockings, suspenders and a basque he was a joy to watch. I’ve seen a few Frank- N- Furters in my time, including Jason Donovan, and Adam was up there with the best.
I was not surprised to learn that one of his previous stage appearances was in the Queen musical “We will Rock You” because he has a wonderful voice.
The story centres around Frank-N-Furter’s crazed obsession with creating the perfect creature with whom he can explore his deepest desires. Rocky is the result, a bronzed Adonis played by Morgan Jackson.
Along the way Frank-N-Furter also manages to corrupt Brad and Janet, played by Lauren Chia, aided by his faithful man servant Rif Raf, played by Job Greuter, and loyal helpers Magenta, Natasha Hoeberigs, and Columbia, Jayme-Lee Zanoncelli.
Keeping the audience up to speed with all the chaos as the Narrator was Nathan Caton who also delivered a stand out performance. He was sharp and wickedly funny – spewing out jokes about Trump, Elon Musk and even Gregg Wallace.
Director Christopher Luscombe said his aim with each new tour was to make it feel “freshly minted” and ensure the “current cast can really own it.”
He certainly achieved this with the latest production. The only disappointment was how few of the audience had dressed up, but I subsequently discovered many were what’s known as RHS virgins and had never seen the show before.
By the end, the whole theatre was on its feet doing the “Time Warp” and giving the cast three standing ovations. My bet is many will be back, in full splendour next time, to enjoy a show that is still one of the greatest in theatre history.
The show runs until 8th February. For more information and tickets visit: http://bournemouthpavilion.co.uk