Review: THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW at Monumental Theatre

When The Rocky Horror Show landed on this planet in London's West End in 1973 and then all over America as a 1975 film, it was waaaay ahead of its time. Today, the kinky and silly tale of how the “sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania” introduces sexual variety to a couple of straight twenty-somethings seems quaint in a world where teenagers dress in underwear to ride the subway and the president of the United States brags about grabbing women by the crotch. Monumental Theatre has ably mounted Richard O'Brien's rock and roll musical with a superior 5-piece combo, outstanding lighting and choreography, and several strong performances. It's a welcome two-hour (and very R-rated) break from war, politics, global warming, and the economy.

As Frank N. Furter, part mad scientist, part drag queen, part dominatrix, Christian Montgomery fills his fishnets with equal parts strutting, pathos, sexual energy, and an enormous baritone. O'Brien's book demands the most from this character; he's got to satirize B-movies and boring sex while upholding individualism and sensuality. Montgomery's got all that surrounded. O'Brien's songs for Frank are musical jests which juxtapose rock and roll back up in the band (balanced and never too loud, directed by Marika Contouris) with Broadway vocal style; no problem there either for the talented Montgomery.

Cera Baker serves as the show's Usherette (Narrator). She's a top-notch singer and also has the necessary job of breaking the 4th wall to coach the audience on the etiquette (etiquette!!) of the participatory elements of the production. (Food is now toast; boil the rice.) Alas, she didn't counsel the audience not to scream so loudly while actors are singing that the performers cannot be heard. So people, don't do that.

Jackson Miller sings the plaintive and sexy “Sword of Damocles.” As Rocky, the “monster” created as a sex toy by Frank, he must be a splendid physical specimen; Jackson, whose dancing is more like the offspring of a body builder and a contestant on RuPaul than, um, dance, is always fun to watch. And he later excellently partners Clari Swaggard, whose Janet, with her newfound appetite for sex, is attracted to Rocky. Her rendition of “Toucha Toucha Toucha Touch Me” nearly stops the show, and later she manages a duck walk amid one of Choreographer Ahmad Maaty's glorious ensemble numbers.

Not all the other featured performers are as strong as these four which makes for a somewhat uneven evening. Venus Gulbranson's lighting design adds dimension to the mostly bare stage. Making full use of color, Dance Place's ample side lights, Vari-Lite rain, and spotlights into the house's center aisle (which directors Mavrikes and Windsor often use as additional stage area, not always to the advantage of the actors whose faces cannot at these times be seen by ¾ of the audience), Gulbranson's lights sometimes seem like a welcome, additional cast member.

Maaty has a strong ensemble to support the action, and his work looks great on everyone. Whether it was Maaty's or co-directors Jimmy Mavrikes' and Michael Windsor's decision to create original material for the Time Warp cannot be known. It's just a jump to the left, folks; imagine Sam suddenly performing “The Yellow Submarine” instead of “As Time Goes By.” Audience and cast restored order (and choreography) during curtain calls; without an insa-a-ane pelvic thrust, The Rocky Horror Show lacks the dominant part of ITS sexual identity.

The Rocky Horror Show runs through September 6 at DC Dance Place, 3225 8th Street NE, Washington DC 20017 , a short walk from the Brookland Metro station.

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