This brought back happy memories of staying up all night with my friend Amy to write out a full script of the RHPS VHS. We were obsessed - or, I concede, having read your post - amateur obsessives. When I finally got to see it live, it was a deliriously, joyful experience. My Magenta costume was 👌👌👌. I’m genuinely surprised my mum let me leave the house. I’m going now to show it to my 11yo son (the film, not the costume).
My thing is the film. Tim, Richard, Nell, Pat… I’m so obsessed with the last 3 that I am also INSANE about Shock Treatment… but that’s another post altogether…
I do love dressing up for Rocky Horror even if my costume is nowhere near your standards. At the Edinburgh fringe a couple of years ago my friend and I got all dressed up for a RH tribute show promising prizes for the best outfit. On arriving we were two of six people, no one else in costume, in a huge theatre and eventually worked out the prizes were the free condoms thrown into the audience!
Your point on group dynamics is interesting - it does seem no matter how benign the group these things always emerge and people seem to loose all context about what the original purpose was.
My experiences of shadowcasting (including the negatives), are very similar, including the desire to 'get' the character. I think that the shadowcasting breaks down into two basic sets (and you describe the first perfectly): one of which is the desire to recreate the actions of the character onscreen to the point where the audience cannot tell the difference between the screen character and the cast member.
The other is to embody the spirit of the character and recreate them in front of the screen; not necessarily with 100% screen accuracy, but not just larking about in front of the screen: the audience could still be fooled into thinking that this was the character made flesh. My approach was generally a combo: an attempt to get the songs screen accurate and then be in-character for the rest.
As for the why, for me personally, I suspect my autism, with obsessive attention and 'masking', has a lot to do with the practical side of it. I also found kinship and a husband through the Rocky fandom family over many years (I was a Janet who met her Brad at a Rocky convention in LA and married him at Oakley Court, where it was filmed).
I am not sure what my life would have been without Rocky, but I know that it would be monumentally poorer and that I would've missed so many wonderful people and experiences along the way.
I was Magenta for about five years on a small playhouse stage on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. My friends and I started in high school and continued through college. Our Rocky and Meatloaf became professional actors. I had made the perfect little black dress for it, sadly I don't have good pics. I didn't need a wig, it was the 80s! LOL, my hair still looks like that. My love of cosplay continues through renaissance faires and steampunk. Rocky Horror will always be with me; I married our Brad.
This might seem trite, but your description of what you’re doing in perfecting shadowcasting (hadn’t heard of it before 😬 but understand it from your description) is method acting. Becoming the character, living as the character, thinking as the character.
I actually studied The Method at the Strasberg Studio! I never used Method techniques when shadowcasting- maybe some relaxation techniques at times, but never any sensory stuff (etc). Shadowcasting isn’t acting- it’s its own thing…
RHPS ran continuously at a theater in Berkeley, Ca. on University Ave for a very long time. Catching the Saturday midnight show with all the actors dressed up and up on the stage acting out the parts as the movie played was always a treat.
I so enjoyed reading about your dedication to your craft and art! Always wanting to improve yourself and achieving perfection in the role is what makes the world a better place. Stay glorious.
As an early fan of RHPS, I’d go along with friends on most weekends. We grew up in the grit of 80’s New York City, so of course it was the 8ths. Street Playhouse. Many times I played Magenta. But, dressing up as Frankie was my favorite part! I can’t say enough what that time in history meant for us. It was one of the first things I did publicly with creativity and I wouldn’t change that for the world. I ended up becoming a Visual Artist after having studied and worked in the rag trade for many years.
Gia: I’m very happy you shared these experiences with us. I became as excited as a child when I found the excerpt in my newsletter! Also, my youngest granddaughter is also named Gia. Perhaps someday when they’re older, I can share all of my escapades with them.
This brought back happy memories of staying up all night with my friend Amy to write out a full script of the RHPS VHS. We were obsessed - or, I concede, having read your post - amateur obsessives. When I finally got to see it live, it was a deliriously, joyful experience. My Magenta costume was 👌👌👌. I’m genuinely surprised my mum let me leave the house. I’m going now to show it to my 11yo son (the film, not the costume).
My thing is the film. Tim, Richard, Nell, Pat… I’m so obsessed with the last 3 that I am also INSANE about Shock Treatment… but that’s another post altogether…
Looking up Shock Treatment now and, yes, the film is definitive.
Here’s a Shocky costume post: https://aregularfrankiefan.wordpress.com/2016/04/17/you-need-a-bit-of-oooooo/
I do love dressing up for Rocky Horror even if my costume is nowhere near your standards. At the Edinburgh fringe a couple of years ago my friend and I got all dressed up for a RH tribute show promising prizes for the best outfit. On arriving we were two of six people, no one else in costume, in a huge theatre and eventually worked out the prizes were the free condoms thrown into the audience!
Your point on group dynamics is interesting - it does seem no matter how benign the group these things always emerge and people seem to loose all context about what the original purpose was.
My experiences of shadowcasting (including the negatives), are very similar, including the desire to 'get' the character. I think that the shadowcasting breaks down into two basic sets (and you describe the first perfectly): one of which is the desire to recreate the actions of the character onscreen to the point where the audience cannot tell the difference between the screen character and the cast member.
The other is to embody the spirit of the character and recreate them in front of the screen; not necessarily with 100% screen accuracy, but not just larking about in front of the screen: the audience could still be fooled into thinking that this was the character made flesh. My approach was generally a combo: an attempt to get the songs screen accurate and then be in-character for the rest.
As for the why, for me personally, I suspect my autism, with obsessive attention and 'masking', has a lot to do with the practical side of it. I also found kinship and a husband through the Rocky fandom family over many years (I was a Janet who met her Brad at a Rocky convention in LA and married him at Oakley Court, where it was filmed).
I am not sure what my life would have been without Rocky, but I know that it would be monumentally poorer and that I would've missed so many wonderful people and experiences along the way.
I married our Brad as well. (I was Magenta)
I’m touched by your beautiful and best “find” in the RHPS world. So sweet that you got your Brad. Best wishes and infinitely wonderful memories!
My eldest granddaughter is very Goth all piercings tattooed to the hilt .She has invented herself
she is amazing in her attention to details of who she wants to be and who she is.
I think you are pretty amazing as well.
I was Magenta for about five years on a small playhouse stage on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. My friends and I started in high school and continued through college. Our Rocky and Meatloaf became professional actors. I had made the perfect little black dress for it, sadly I don't have good pics. I didn't need a wig, it was the 80s! LOL, my hair still looks like that. My love of cosplay continues through renaissance faires and steampunk. Rocky Horror will always be with me; I married our Brad.
So great! I’m loving the discussion, as well.
This might seem trite, but your description of what you’re doing in perfecting shadowcasting (hadn’t heard of it before 😬 but understand it from your description) is method acting. Becoming the character, living as the character, thinking as the character.
I actually studied The Method at the Strasberg Studio! I never used Method techniques when shadowcasting- maybe some relaxation techniques at times, but never any sensory stuff (etc). Shadowcasting isn’t acting- it’s its own thing…
RHPS ran continuously at a theater in Berkeley, Ca. on University Ave for a very long time. Catching the Saturday midnight show with all the actors dressed up and up on the stage acting out the parts as the movie played was always a treat.
I so enjoyed reading about your dedication to your craft and art! Always wanting to improve yourself and achieving perfection in the role is what makes the world a better place. Stay glorious.
As an early fan of RHPS, I’d go along with friends on most weekends. We grew up in the grit of 80’s New York City, so of course it was the 8ths. Street Playhouse. Many times I played Magenta. But, dressing up as Frankie was my favorite part! I can’t say enough what that time in history meant for us. It was one of the first things I did publicly with creativity and I wouldn’t change that for the world. I ended up becoming a Visual Artist after having studied and worked in the rag trade for many years.
Gia: I’m very happy you shared these experiences with us. I became as excited as a child when I found the excerpt in my newsletter! Also, my youngest granddaughter is also named Gia. Perhaps someday when they’re older, I can share all of my escapades with them.