Limitations and Possibilities of a Production

The Rocky Horror Show is the predecessor of the more widely known The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the former being a musical that debuted in 1973 and the latter being a film that debuted in 1975. Audience participation has become synonymous with the title, and when one attends either, he must expect to hear the audience shouting at the actors, as well as be prepared to dodge squirt guns and toilet paper. Unique and eccentric, Rocky Horror has been drawing small but steady audiences for over thirty years because of the freedom it gives to people who "give themselves over to absolute pleasure" and embrace Frank N. Furter's motto of "don't dream it – be it." This thesis focuses on the production of the musical and how to manage potential audience concerns over the content in the play. I argue that the audience participation activities as well as certain staging techniques work as distracters from the events taking place in the actual play, alleviating potential anxiety caused by the issues of gender and sexuality in the text. The first chapter examines the challenges that a production of The Rocky Horror Show might face, focusing mainly on the issues of gender and sexuality found in the text. The second chapter looks at how transgressive the show can be. Specifically, it examines how the evolution of the cult audience created the audience participation factors that are now synonymous with the film. I also suggest how these extra-textual elements add to contemporary stage productions of the show and analyze how various audiences reacted to the stage show. The third chapter is a case study of Florida State University's 2008 production of The Rocky Horror Show with the specific goal of assessing how the challenges outlined in the first chapter affected FSU audiences. The chapter begins by addressing the production team's strategies and compromises for success. I then examine interviews that I conducted with attendees of various performances of the production, both first-timers and veterans of Rocky Horror, as well as my own audience observations. Overall, it is my hope that this thesis will serve as a resource to aid future production teams desiring to create a successful production of The Rocky Horror Show.