Have you ever heard a song where everyone seems to know the words except you? That was me last night.

Opening night of The Rocky Horror Show brought out all its die-hard fans, who knew exactly which cues to call back and, though I’m sure it varies a little each night, exactly what to shout out.

Outside of pantomime, I’ve never been to a show where heckling isn’t just tolerated but actively encouraged. That’s The Rocky Horror Show though, provocative, anarchic and outrageous by design.

We open with newly engaged, all-American, white-picket-fence couple Janet and Brad, played excellently by Haley Flaherty and James Bisp, navigating a flat tyre on an increasingly spooky drive. They’re greeted by a mischievous Riff Raff, played by understudy Jesse Chidera, and soon find themselves in a castle, desperately trying to get a phone signal while being constantly distracted by a menagerie of taxidermy and fishnets.

I lost track of the plot somewhere around The Time Warp, but judging by the crowd, no one was there for the narrative anyway.

Jason Donovan was sadly unable to perform, but he was hardly missed. His replacement, Stephen Webb (a Rocky Horror veteran in his own right), strutted onto the stage to huge applause. I found myself as mesmerised as Brad and Janet, as Webb completely owned the stage, ushering us from one ludicrous scene to the next in a whirlwind of sequins, fishnets and obscenities.

The show feels very much of its time, and while some of that is part of the charm, certain elements could do with an injection of 21st-century awareness. The seduction of both Brad and Janet by Dr Frank-N-Furter is clearly a middle finger to heteronormative conservatism, but it could’ve been rethought to feel less “Carry On” and more considered. It was designed to shock 1970s audiences into sexual liberation, but today it mostly just feels uncomfortable.

A real highlight was the narration delivered by comedian Nathan Caton, whose storytelling interludes (I guess everyone else was as lost on plot as I was) drew the biggest call-backs of the night, matched line for line by his own asides. 

And though Brad and Janet are gloriously cartoonish, their vocal range and tightly matched harmonies combined with the tight ensemble of the orchestra meant the music often stole the show. 

This is ultimately a story of sexual awakening, where gender fluidity is celebrated and everyone is accepted. But given that inclusivity is its whole point, I’d challenge the director to think harder about how to keep my generation feeling included too.