Written by Erin Norton
All images courtesy of Ric Morchower
Hosted at TV Eye, just a few blocks away from me in Ridgewood, The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Extra Transsexual was mandatory attendance. For those who don’t know, I am a freaky high femme who has only seen The Rocky Horror Picture Show once before, and that was just a screening, not a full on performance. Last week, it was imperative that I expand my Rocky Horror experience from a miniscule screening in rural Vermont to a larger-scale live action show in NYC. A gay rite of passage, I feel.
Upon walking into the venue, I realized everyone went full out with their outfits with one person dressed as Freddie Mercury and another in full leather fetishwear. At least my sheer white t-shirt with a polka dot push up bra underneath would eventually serve me well, given I was standing in the splash zone…
As I got settled in the crowd with a whisky sour and the appropriate show props in hand, I met a lovely individual to my left who, after chit-chatting for some time, told me that they are on the committee for the annual NYC Dyke March. I felt such a warm rush of gratitude come over me as I stood there at the front of the crowd in the midst of so many cool, kind, and accomplished queer people.
Before the show began, the director, Malea Kimberly, came onto the stage to introduce the sponsors, all local, grassroots, and impactful, and to contextualize the night’s performance. Malea explained to the audience that we are more free than the cast of the original movie was 50 years ago, and we should keep that in mind as we give the performers our full attention and energy. She urged the audience to relish each moment and be sure to do the Time Warp just as those who came before us. The Time Warp is very integral to the movie, as it serves as a parody of other novelty dance songs such as The Twist or The Hop that existed in a more heteronormative world. The Time Warp is entirely queer and it is up to us as the audience to hit every move, as though we are honoring the queer community that came before us.
Finally, it was time to buckle in. The show’s entire cast was unbelievably sexy and talented, with the majority of the group being heavily and notably involved in the nightlife and general events scene of the NYC queer community. I even spotted some beloved and well known NYC queer people in the audience. Photographer Ric Morchower was next to me photographing the whole show and the creator of Girls Carrying Shit and Pinky, Halle Robbe, was one of the virgin sacrifices brought on stage during the 8pm show.
The whole experience was a culmination of the past and present. The creators of the event, Malea Kimberly and Dykes and Dolls’ Jer Block and Anna Campbell, did a beyond perfect job honoring the original, and reimagining what was potentially kept out of the original. Of course, the original movie was ahead of its time, but it can only be assumed that the production endured some kind of censorship depending on where you lived and who you were. It is true, today we have far more privilege and freedom to be queer, however we still have a long way to go. In the past year, the legalization of gay marriage has been questioned and anti-trans laws continue to be introduced and passed. Now more than ever, it’s integral to embrace community, especially when it comes to trans people and BIPOC individuals within the community. Rocky Horror, in all of its iterations, the live version and the original, have fostered queer connection and love. After all of these years,“ don’t dream it, be it” remains as a major encouragement. Be who you are!
The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Extra Transsexual was able to capture the essence of the original while taking it to new and even gayer heights. It meant the world to me to have this production be my first live action experience of this cult classic. Next time, I’ll have to make it to a midnight showing!
