Rocky, A Horror Show is the latest contribution to the Wardrobe Theatre’s Yuletide tradition of turning two very different kinds of entertainment into unlikely bedfellows. Last year they combined a sweet fairy tale with a gory tale of gangland violence in Goldilock, Stock & Three Smoking Bears. This year they are taking the Mickey out of Sylvester Stallone’s boxing epic of 1976, Rocky, and Richard O’Brien’s cult musical of 1973, The Rocky Horror Show. Given that the latter is itself a pastiche of cheesy low-budget sci-fi and horror movies, this show piles parody upon parody.
The gender-bending of The Rocky Horror Show is taken to a joyful extreme, with four of the key roles played by actors of the ‘wrong’ sex. James Newton is Rocky’s timorous and frumpy girlfriend, Adrian, forever destined to play second-fiddle to Rocky’s ambition to be world champion. This is a very comic portrayal of a human doormat, but Newton gives her just enough spirit to elicit our sympathy. He also plays Mickey, the exasperated boxing coach struggling to motivate his physically able but decidedly dim pupil. Emma Keaveney-Roys is Rocky’s best friend Pauley, a sexist throwback with a Trump-like view of women. Pauley’s song, ‘Women like it when you call them girls!’ is a wickedly funny highlight. Pauley’s ignorance about women is matched only by his failure to understand his true feelings for Rocky.
There are some delicious moments of homoerotic comedy when Pauley is very nearly carried away by Rocky’s physical charms. Keaveney-Roys also plays Riff Reff, the ghoulish supervisor of the ice-rink where Rocky takes Adrian on a date. Movement director Linzy Nakorn has created a wonderfully choreographed scene here, with Riff Reff gliding ominously about in the background as Rocky and Adrian skate back and forth, accompanied by some impressively well-timed sound effects. As if playing both Pauley and Riff Reff was not a sufficient exploitation of her considerable comic talents, Keaveney-Roys also has a brief but hysterically silly scene as Rocky’s world-weary pet turtle. Harry Humberstone is Apollo, Rocky’s heavyweight opponent. Eye-wateringly under-dressed, Humberstone’s OTT performance channels every glittery glam-rock cliché, reminding us that the 1970s was the decade that taste forgot.
Much of the humour in this show puts the ‘X’ into Xmas, and when Apollo gets it on with Adrian very little is left to the imagination. Amid all the mayhem, silliness and downright smut there needs to be a relatively solid core, and Katy Sobey carries off the central role of Rocky with aplomb. Though she wears a Stallone-like wig, she has wisely chosen not to overdo the impersonation, which could have become wearying. Her Rocky is an appealing character, with considerably more charm than the original.
Rocky, A Horror Show was devised by the company, but it has far more clarity and sense of its own style than many such shows, which is doubtless a credit to the skilled direction given by Tom Brennan. Tom Crosley-Thorne’s musical numbers are good too, particularly when he has lampooned over-wrought power ballads. Who would have thought that Strensham Services could feature in a song of unrequited love? The final confrontation between Apollo and Rocky flags a little, and perhaps there is one plot twist too many, but otherwise this is a well-sustained, energetic show. I will not forget the surreal scene in the meat factory in a hurry. If you want a foretaste of the music you can download tracks at thewardrobetheatre.bandcamp.com, but I strongly recommend that you simply buy a ticket. Rocky, A Horror Show is good fun – a knockout! ★★★★☆ Mike Whitton 10th December 2016
