39: Act on Passions: Don’t dream it, be it

After being Columbia for a whole year, I realized that our only Riff Raff was going to be studying abroad and that we needed a new person to play him. I decided to step up to the plate. Being Riff Raff was a whole different animal. Columbia is bright and cheery and confident throughout the movie. Riff Raff is mopey, a bit strung out and angry. It took a few shows to get used to it, but I eventually settled into the character, with my own twist.

Women rarely play Riff Raff in Rocky Horror Picture Show shadow casts. It is a traditionally male played character. I wanted to girl it up a bit! This was a big moment because it took the confidence in the rest of the cast in me to trust that I could do it and still be an effective Riff Raff. Thankfully they did!

For reference, here is our old, male Riff Raff and me as Columbia

And here is me as the new Riff Raff, complete with a sequin bra

Not the best photo face, but it shows off my feminine cut jacket and shirt and sequined bra. I also do my makeup in pinks and purples, except for those deep cut cheekbones, of course!

From taking on this second character, I must have proved something to the managers, because they asked me to be the manager of the transies. It is my responsibility to teach all of the new transies the Time Warp and what they should wear for the show. It is a huge responsibility because it is the part the audience generally come in already knowing. They know what to expect for this! They have real expectations that I have to meet with my transies! The good part is that I am incredibly proud of my transies! They are willing to learn and willing to change when I ask.

I am also in charge of running the merch table, at least for the last few months and until our merch queen returns after having her baby. This is also the cast managers putting a lot of trust in me to run the table and large amounts of cash, really, our only income.

It’s really a wonderful feeling to have people put that much trust into you. I hope I do not disappoint them, and take their points to improve at every turn.

For funzies, here is a picture from the end of the show when I’m Riff Raff

 

 

38: Act on Passions: It seemed a fairly ordinary night

I got started in Rocky Horror a year and a half ago after only seeing the movie twice beforehand. I started as a props person, which was a great place to start. I had to learn every part of the movie and the order it went in, so I could have the props set out and ready for the face characters to use. It’s a lot like being a behind the scenes, tech person for theater. I started with a large group of people on Halloween weekend and I was the only one to stick around for the next month.

After earning my wings as a props person, I moved up to being a transie, a party goer and member of the planet Transexual, where Riff Raff, Magenta, and Frank are from (post 37 has the whole plot written out if you’re confused). Transies still set up props for the majority of the show, but also get the fun of dancing the Time Warp, which is the one song everyone seems to know from Rocky Horror Picture Show.

By February, I was more comfortable with the show. I knew every scene in order and the props it needed. I told the manager that I wanted to start playing Columbia, so I spent a month making my own costume. I hand sewed a ton of sequins to a tank top and a corset, and ribbons to pair of shorts. I collected the perfect socks, fishnets, pajamas and shoes. I was ready!

I was ready. I knew my lines. But I was so nervous! I would be on stage in my underwear. With a whole audience watching me, with a screen behind me. I couldn’t watch it while I was performing, so I had to know everything that was going on on the screen by what was said. The first show, I was really nervous. After the second show, I was getting better. I improved every show, watching it several times before the show every month and practicing in my house.

The strangest part was that I started to get past the whole, being in my underwear, thing. I’m not sure what changed exactly. Maybe I got more confident in that I was screen accurate. Maybe I just stopped caring what the audience thought about my body.

I think that this is probably the best thing I have learned from doing Rocky Horror Picture Show. I became more confident in myself. I could be in front of an audience. And not even just that, I could be in a corset and thigh highs in front of an audience! I didn’t care what they thought about my body or my acting or me in general. They could all be sitting there thinking “What a walrus of a human being that is” and I wouldn’t care!

This has translated to me being more confident in my day to day life. My fashion choices grew. I cut off all my hair, because I look damn good with short hair. If I meet someone and they don’t like me, that doesn’t bother me. They can go away. I have confidence in my job too. If my makeup is a bit off one day, who the hell cares? I can talk to just about anyone I meet.