Stage Right: Basque-ing in Glory

Hi everyone, I hope you're all well and enjoying the lovely sunny weather we're having so far this May. At the moment I feel like I'm running round like a headless chicken as I've got school placement last week and this week plus two essays to hand in before the end of the month. However, in amongst all this I managed to take a quick stop off at a theatre last Friday...well we've all got to have a bit of fun at some point and this time it was Rocky Horror.

I saw this tour once before in Grimsby and really enjoyed it at the time but I was even more excited about this visit as it was a 10pm standing show...and I was not disappointed!

At 7pm my mum and I set off from our home in little, old Lincolnshire to Cambridge. We'd wanted to leave quite early as it was a bank holiday so we thought the roads would be manic...well apparently no one wants to drive from Lincolnshire to Cambridge on a bank holiday Friday so an hour and a half later we were there, which meant we had time for a quick drink in the restaurant opposite the theatre. Oh did I mention we only went in as Oliver Thornton (who plays Frank) was sat eating his dinner in the window? I have to say I was very good and refrained from fan girl-ing (no one wants a mad fan interrupting their dinner) even when he was stood less than 30cm from us! Other than the eye candy, the restaurant (Carluccio's) was very good; I can't vouch for the food as we didn't have any but the deserts looked gorgeous and the large, pink meringue was incredibly tasty!

After our meringue and drinks it was time for me to get changed into my costume (driving in a basque is very uncomfortable) so mum and I popped into one of the loos in the restaurant (I needed a little bit of help getting into the basque...didn't want it falling off now did I?) and there I was, all ready for Rocky.

We still had an hour to wait before the show but we decided to do this in the theatre foyer as I was meeting up with an old school friend, Philippa (and yes I mean old as in it was my old school and NOT that my friend was old :p). However, Philippa ended up being a bit delayed...due to a misplaced basque...so we ended up meeting up in the interval and having a good old catch up then.

So what was the show like then? Well, I don't think I have ever been to a show with such an intense atmosphere. Rocky Horror is known for being a show that you can shout out in and sing along but on this occasion people were shouting out on every line...it must have been really difficult for the cast but it so made it from the audience perspective and Oliver's comment 'If I wanted to hear from an arsehole, I'd fart' when he was interrupted mid song, was hilarious. The only way to describe the feeling is electric...it was just super!

I have to say though that the view wasn't the best, especially as we were stood a few rows back and behind one of those really annoying couple who can't decide if they want to watch the show or eat each other...but then it was a standing show so you can't expect a perfect view anyway so I wasn't too fussed.

And then we come to the cast, well as I said in my last review of Rocky Horror (click here to see) the whole cast is superb. So what can I add this time...

Well Philip Franks (The Narrator) was about a hundred times better than before (and he was very good then). He was absolutely fantastic at delivering witty remarks back to the audience's shoutings out and was just hilarious! I cannot get over how funny he was.

Joel Montague (Eddie/Dr Scott) was just perfect in Hot Patootie and his portrayal of Dr Scott was amazing. I'm not quite sure what it was about him that made me sit up and go wow (well stand a little taller...standing show and all) but I certainly did.

Another moment to watch out for is when Ceris Hine (Colombia) gets gassed at the end...please just go to see her reaction as it has to be one of the funniest things I've ever seen!

Kristian Lavercombe is just to die for as Riff Raff; his acting is brilliant but it's his voice that really does it for me...yet again I'm not quite sure why but please go just to listen...he just sounds how an alien should sound.

And finally, there's Oliver Thornton (Frank)...well if I haven't tempted you already then you need to go just to see this guy's legs...it should be illegal for a man to have the best legs on the planet but well he does. Oh and it doesn't stop there as he's a stunning performer as well. I just cannot find any flaws about this guy...sigh!

So after being blown away by this stella cast I headed out to the stage door where Philippa, I and both our mums had a good chat while waiting for the cast to come out. There wasn't too many other people there so when the cast came out there was quite a pleasant atmosphere with everyone taking their turn and waiting patiently rather than the mad crush you get at some stage doors. I was really pleased as Joel (Eddie/Dr Scott) noticed my phone case (which is an homage to Priscilla and Oliver Thornton) and said that I had to show it to Oliver, who said he loved it even if he was a little bit shocked at the fact there are a few semi-naked pictures of him on it ;).

It was then time to head off home (it was 1am at this point) so Philippa and I said our goodbyes and my mum and I set off home to our beds, which we finally reached at 3am!

To finish with I'll leave you with a few pictures from my trip...