Ask not what your Transylvanians can do for you...
...but what you can do for your Transylvanians.
It is a dark day for counter-culture movements in Sydney - the Sword of Damocles is hanging over the head of one of the most unique cinema experiences in the world. The Rocky Horror Picture Show with Audience Participation is facing possible closure. Greater Union have given us until the end of January to get audience numbers up or they will no longer be able to play host to our rice-throwing, double-entendre-yelling antics.
For those of you who have been living like Brad and Janet in Denton-esque cultural isolation, you may ask: What on Earth is Rocky Horror Picture Show with Audience Participation?
Well, it's kind of hard to explain; but not as hard to explain as the enduring appeal of what even many of it's biggest fans admit is a pretty crap movie.
Years ago, before iPods, before mobile phones, even before Donkey Kong (don't pretend you don't remember!) A man wrote a musical, just a typical tale of boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl-to-insane-cross-dressing-scientist's-monster, boy-and-girl-do-the-time-warp-again. It was such a success, such a credit to his genius, such a triumph of his will, that it was eventually made into a Hollywood movie. The movie played to bewildered audiences across America who promptly forgot about it. Apart, that is, from the chosen ones who saw past it's cheap props and cheesy dialogue to embrace it's ethos of giving yourself over to absolute pleasure. The lucky few who understood what it truly means to "Don't dream it: Be it". They were the ones who loved the movie so much that they would watch it every Friday night at midnight, who would go to the cinema dressed as their favourite characters, who even began acting it out if front of the screen. Thus began one of the craziest cult followings of any movie ever. If you haven't seen Rocky with Audience Participation, you haven't seen Rocky! All over the world, and for the last 16 years in Sydney in particular, the Friday night insanity begins every time those giant red lips fill the screen, and audiences throw rice during weddings, shoot water pistols during rainy scenes, dance in the aisles and shout sexual innuendo and jokes between the dialogue.
Make no mistake: it would be a terrible shame if this phenomenon ended before you had your share of fun in the dark. So I am calling in all favours. Even if you owe me none. Even if I still owe you favours. This is a favour to yourself, to your city. I'm asking everyone I know to come down to Rocky and help us keep it going. Not only that, I'm asking everyone I know to ask everyone they know. Bring your friends. Bring your science teacher. Bring that guy whose number you pretended to have lost last time you awkwardly bumped into him on the street. Bring that girl at work that you secretly like but who keeps calling you "Gerald".
Here are the details:
George St Cinemas, Sydney. Just down from Town Hall Station
This Friday, 28 Dec.
Friday, 11 Jan,
or Friday, 25 Jan.
From about 10.30 pm
I would love to see you there.
Regards,
Gerald.
...I mean Corvus.
It is a dark day for counter-culture movements in Sydney - the Sword of Damocles is hanging over the head of one of the most unique cinema experiences in the world. The Rocky Horror Picture Show with Audience Participation is facing possible closure. Greater Union have given us until the end of January to get audience numbers up or they will no longer be able to play host to our rice-throwing, double-entendre-yelling antics.
For those of you who have been living like Brad and Janet in Denton-esque cultural isolation, you may ask: What on Earth is Rocky Horror Picture Show with Audience Participation?
Well, it's kind of hard to explain; but not as hard to explain as the enduring appeal of what even many of it's biggest fans admit is a pretty crap movie.
Years ago, before iPods, before mobile phones, even before Donkey Kong (don't pretend you don't remember!) A man wrote a musical, just a typical tale of boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl-to-insane-cross-dressing-scientist's-monster, boy-and-girl-do-the-time-warp-again. It was such a success, such a credit to his genius, such a triumph of his will, that it was eventually made into a Hollywood movie. The movie played to bewildered audiences across America who promptly forgot about it. Apart, that is, from the chosen ones who saw past it's cheap props and cheesy dialogue to embrace it's ethos of giving yourself over to absolute pleasure. The lucky few who understood what it truly means to "Don't dream it: Be it". They were the ones who loved the movie so much that they would watch it every Friday night at midnight, who would go to the cinema dressed as their favourite characters, who even began acting it out if front of the screen. Thus began one of the craziest cult followings of any movie ever. If you haven't seen Rocky with Audience Participation, you haven't seen Rocky! All over the world, and for the last 16 years in Sydney in particular, the Friday night insanity begins every time those giant red lips fill the screen, and audiences throw rice during weddings, shoot water pistols during rainy scenes, dance in the aisles and shout sexual innuendo and jokes between the dialogue.
Make no mistake: it would be a terrible shame if this phenomenon ended before you had your share of fun in the dark. So I am calling in all favours. Even if you owe me none. Even if I still owe you favours. This is a favour to yourself, to your city. I'm asking everyone I know to come down to Rocky and help us keep it going. Not only that, I'm asking everyone I know to ask everyone they know. Bring your friends. Bring your science teacher. Bring that guy whose number you pretended to have lost last time you awkwardly bumped into him on the street. Bring that girl at work that you secretly like but who keeps calling you "Gerald".
Here are the details:
George St Cinemas, Sydney. Just down from Town Hall Station
This Friday, 28 Dec.
Friday, 11 Jan,
or Friday, 25 Jan.
From about 10.30 pm
I would love to see you there.
Regards,
Gerald.
...I mean Corvus.