How does one make the very campy, intentionally inane 1973 minted musical "Rocky Horror Show" feel fresh and current? Indeed, the last few "Rocky Horror" stage productions I have seen, including its last Broadway revival in 2000, left me feeling that the show was becoming a bit stale. Who would have thought it would take the close minded, right wing, holier than thou Texas GOP state legislators to give the show a new reason for being? Certainly not me, but in passing the clearly unconstitutional (and thankfully temporarily suspended by the Federal Courts), sexual suggestion banning SB12, those legislators have inadvertently given new life to this musical. That is abundantly clear in Dallas Theater Center's fearless, joyfully campy, entertaining, blissful "Rocky Horror" production that is skewering the prim spirit of SB12 on a nightly basis at Dallas' Kalita Theater.
Director Blake Hackler has skillfully assembled the cast and show elements, all while embracing, as he states in his program notes, "the absurd and the outrageous." Two performances among the hard working cast stand out as key anchors of this production. First, David Lungo's standup fueled Narrator elicits hysterical audience laughter, with several allusions to the political undercurrents unleashed by SB12 and its ilk being among his funniest exchanges. He holds this otherwise unwieldy show together. And then there is my favorite Frank N' Furter of all time- L.Walter, who is fierce, funny and frolicsome, and commands complete attention every moment he is on stage.
Some of the production's musical numbers could have been tighter in execution, although I caught the show early in its run and I suspect it will gain some precision in the course of its month long engagement. And to be fair, precision is not essential to making an entertaining "Rocky Horror."
Indeed, I had a great time watching this "Rocky Horror," and I appreciated its ability to make the show feel timeless. However, I left the theater spooked in one significant way- namely, this production highlighted that if SB12 or similar laws were to go into effect one day, the harmless joy that I witnessed on stage might land its participants in jail. That threat has not gone away, making this production of "Rocky Horror" nothing less than an urgent call to action to ensure this never happens.
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