Many of you may have read my article on the night that the Rocky Horror was shown live in cinemas across the UK and my visit to see the show live at the Scala Cinema in Prestatyn, with all the excitement of the evening and the atmosphere from not only the cinema audience but also that of the audience on screen at the Playhouse Theatre in London’s West End, then one thing would really be great to re-live the evening, to have Rocky Horror Show Live on DVD/Blu-ray.
After seeing the show live at the Scala I caught up with the manager of the Scala and had a chat about the night of the live show and the possibility of a DVD release.
A sell out success for the Scala the show that brought the community out in full costume and gave the local town a bit of glitz and glamour as the audience arrived and queued at our Cinema on the High St. The whole screen rose to their feet for the Timewarp- three times over and even joined in with the AP. A wonderful atmosphere that we hope to create again- if those customers could buy the show on DVD with proceeds to Amnesty also- what a massive seller that would be- a wonderful idea! – Nicci Williams (Scala Prestatyn Manager)
Many fans of the show believe the same that a DVD of the show should be released and a petition has been started to get the evenings recording on to a DVD for those that love Rocky Horror to enjoy the night all over again and those who may have missed it, to get the chance to see a stellar performance.
I caught up with Richard Dunn who has started a petition group on Facebook to get the show released to a wider audience and had a chat about Rocky Horror and the hope of seeing it on DVD in the very near future.
1. When did you first discover Rocky Horror?
My sister introduced me to it. She had the film soundtrack on tape and I remember listening to it in her car many times. Then when I was probably 15 years old I found “The Rocky Horror Show: The Whole Gory Story” CD in a bargain bin in a shop. I had to have it!
If you’ve not come across the recording it stars Tim McInnerny as Frank and is the 1990 London Cast. This has become my standard version of the show. I’ve probably listened to it hundreds of times over the years. I still like it because it contains the dialogue as well as the songs.
When I was 17/18 a friend finally introduced me to the film. So for me the film always feels slightly strange to me as Rocky does not talk and Once in a While was missing. I’m probably quite different from most fans as I’ve only watched the film a couple of dozen times. The stage version always feels more complete to me.
Then I entered a relationship and my partner was never interested in Rocky so I never got to see an actual show. A decade past and the relationship ended. I was at rock bottom and was building my life again from scratch. Then an old friend from my past got in touch quite by chance. He introduced me to many things, one being the theatre. Although Rocky was not the first musical I saw it was certainly the one that gave me the bug. It is still very special to me as it is not like any other theatrical experience.
After seeing Rocky 4 times at the London Playhouse Theatre in just over a week, I went to see Hamlet at the Barbican with Benedict Cumberbatch. It was very difficult to keep my mouth shut!
2. Who is your favourite Rocky Horror character?
Anybody who has seen my Rocky Horror outfit (sadly I only have one) will know that it is Frank! It’s always been Frank. He does what others dream. He is also a bad boy but charismatic with it.
It was because of David Bedella’s unique interpretation of Frank that I originally set up the Facebook petition in 2009. If you have never seen David’s Frank then it may help to know that his Frank is American. Because of this his interpretation is about as far removed from Tim Curry’s as it can be.
I know this is not to everybody’s liking but for me they are both equally valid interpretations. It took me some time to get used to the different pace of dialogue but it took me no time fall in love with how he sings Sweet Transvestite and I’m Going Home.
That was the main reason I set up the petition in the first place. There was an official YouTube clip of half of Sweet Transvestite and an audience recoding of I’m Going Home. I’ve always found it so sad that nothing more has ever officially been released; especially as he seems to have been doing Frank on and off for almost forever!
Also David is the first Frank where I can understand why so many people get seduced by his charm. I could never understand that part with Tim Curry, although I know many people do.
I was once at a Sing Along Rocky Horror event and a married straight guy was explaining to me, whilst at the urinals, how he would never sleep with a man – but he’d make an exception for Tim Curry dressed as Frank. Now tell me, what other show would lead to a conversation like that!?
That said, with this current cast the choice of Frank isn’t as obvious, mainly because they all seem to bring out new depths to the characters.
Sophie Linder-Lee brings a whole new depth to Columbia and I feel a real empathy with her that I’ve never felt before.
Kristian Lavacombe is a sheer joy to watch as Riff Raff and I don’t think his performance will ever be bettered.
This sentiment seems to echo all of the cast. They are all so good and they gel so well together. This production is just so good that it would be a travesty if it never made it available to buy!
3. The Rocky Horror Live Cinema broadcast has made £600,000 across the 600 cinemas in the UK, what do you think makes the show so popular with fans?
You do know that I’m not The Richard, as in the real definitive article!? I think he could, and has done on many occasion, answer this question much better than I!
So what can I add? Well, as a mere audience member, it is not like any other show you will ever see. You get to shout and no two performances are ever the same.
It awakens something within me, like an itch that I can never quite scratch. I get to the end of the evening and I just want to rewind and start it again.
I can only think of one other play where I felt that so strongly. It was a production of A Midsummer Nights Dream at The Barbican where they used puppets by the company that was involved in Warhorse.
But getting back to Rocky, there is also the fact that everyone is so friendly; it’s like a big Rocky family and people chat and compare costumes and stories. It’s like the antidote to the average West End musical!
4. Tell us more about your petition to get the broadcasted show released on DVD?
As I said before the petition originally started in 2009 after seeing David as Frank for the first time. But even before seeing David in the theatre I had been watching a video on YouTube of the first part of Sweet Transvestite. And when I say watching I mean again, and again, and again. I was hooked. I started the petition because I just could not understand why there was no current cast CD.
By the end of the tour, a year later, we had got over 1,200 people in the group, but it seemed that ATG wasn’t keen as there were so many different recordings already. It seemed like the end of the road.
I did run into David on the tube whilst he was in the musical Chicago and he confirmed to me he wouldn’t be back as Frank. I knew that it my heart already and I could completely understand that he would want new challenges – otherwise he’d end up as the Ken Barlow of the West End!
And that seemed to be it. The Facebook page effectively was shut down and I moved on.
But then we got a break! (have a KitKat) David would be back for a week (or two) in London and it would be broadcast across the UK. This was a game changer as it meant there would have to be a recording as it was to be broadcast to cinemas.
People who are more knowledgeable of Rocky than myself will tell you it isn’t that easy, because the movie rights are not owned by the same people as the stage rights. At this point it gets complicated but for me it’s nothing that couldn’t be negotiated between adults.
So the petition is here to show that a DVD is something that the fans really want and also could benefit Amnesty International too. This production is equally as good as the film and I think more people should be able to see how Rocky has matured over the 43 years. And without having to resort to Botox!
5. How can people help share the petition to get the show on DVD and are you using any Twitter hash tags to get the word out?
The Facebook group can be found here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/176396968438/
It’s turned into a great place for people to ask questions about the live show and share ideas about how to make this a reality. One great idea that has come out of this is the online e-petition which can be found here:
We have a couple of hashtags knocking around the Twittersphere, the obvious #RockyHorrorLiveDVD and the sublime #dontdreamitDVDit. People are also creating various imagery to help with the campaign, with one dedicated group member creating a set of DVD cover mock-ups!
It’s been such a fun journey so far I’m sure together we can achieve this!
Great info there from Richard and what an interview.
If you did see the fantastic Rocky Horror Show at the theatre or even at one of the 600 cinema screens across the country and would love to see it on DVD/Blu-ray then help get Rocky Horror Live released by signing the petition that has been set up by Nikki Golder.
Many thanks to Richard Dunn for kindly taking part in this interview and we do hope that it has opened your eyes up to the amazing world of Rocky Horror, just remember Don’t Dream It, Be It.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
