HISTORY
In 2017 The Denton High Drama Club adult shadowcast of Muskegon was born. We had monthly performances at our home theater the Harbor Cinema but they closed permanently in 2020 due to the Covid lockdown. Now we travel Western Michigan with a new name fitting the change, The Rocky Road Shadowcast. We’re an all volunteer cast and mostly cover the lower half of the West Michigan and East out around US-127. Venues performed to date include…
Harbor Cinema, Muskegon MI (closed)
Celebration! Cinema Plaza 1 & 2, Muskegon MI (closed)
Wealthy Theatre, Grand Rapids MI
The Sun Theatre, Williamston MI
The Playhouse at White Lake, Whitehall MI
Circle Theatre (outdoor performance), Grand Rapids MI
Saugatuck Woman’s Club, MI
Four Winds Casino New Buffalo MI
(50th Anniversary Show with original Brad, Mags, and Cola)
The Stage At The Corner, Muskegon MI
And we’ve been performing annually for the Wealthy Theatre in Grand Rapids since 2018.
An example of the show description…
“This screening of the Rated-R Rocky Horror Picture Show includes a (holiday theme) raucous Rated-R 30min Preshow including games, the Reading of the Rules, and The Virgin Pledge with audience. Then the movie starts while The Rocky Road Shadowcast pantomimes along! Approved Prop Bags and instructions are included with your tickets. No home prop bag items please. Audience participation encouraged! There will be audience members shouting risqué callbacks to the screen, singing, and costumes of cosplay, drag, holiday theme, and just plain looking hot are all encouraged. If there are a lot of costume participants then there will be a costume contest (including Pride and Halloween season shows)! Corsets, fishnet stockings, and heels, regardless of gender are always a hit! Respect your neighbor and enjoy the show! Some shows sell out so purchase in advance or at least confirm available seating. Arrive early to grab your seat, prop bag, hit the concessions, and to be in time for the Preshow!”
PROP BAGS
Our costs and stipends are funded by our prop bag sales, one of the hallmarks of the Rocky Horror experience of ‘audience participation’, venue friendly items tossed at key points in the movie into the air “up and back” so nothing and no one ever touches the screen. The $5 plus tax fee for prop bags would need to be added to the ticket price to sell enough to help cover cast cost and promoted as having each ticket including a prob bag. The venue would then reimburse prop bag sales to The Rocky Road Shadowcast immediately following the show. This way the venue provides the film but there’s no cost to the venue for The Rocky Road Shadowcast performance or preshow. Prop bags are venue friendly consisting of items like TP, cards, balloons, latex and powder free rubber gloves, sponges, and glowsticks (no ‘old school Rocky’ toast, rice, hotdogs, confetti, water, or flame). The cast helps with clean up after the show.
PROMOTING
Tours featuring original Rocky Horror Picture Show movie performers typically have their own ‘preshow’ and emcee will require special arrangements.
Some venues promote the show like any other movie, others also partner with local groups and radio station to celebrate a local event or as part of a fundraiser for some local cause, or even just to promote awareness where the charity can just set up a lobby information and donations table.
Also the venue could tie in the performance with a holiday or local fair/celebration promoting for audiences to dress to that theme or Rocky Horror theme. The cast will dress to the theme as well with a Rocky twist and will have an audience costume contest. Some holiday themes with a Rocky Horror twist include Pride Month in June, Independence Day in July, Hotter Than Hell or Killer Beach Party in August, Oktoberfest Sep/Oct, Halloween in October, Deer Hunter Widows & Widowers in November, a ‘Not Your Family’s Xmas’ in December, New Year Dec/Jan, Valentine’s Day in February, St Patrick’s Day in March, (dry) April Showers theme in April, and Flower Power in May.
We need a projection/theater room with available seating for about 200 or more. We don’t always expect a sold-out show especially if not on our big June and October show months or if a new venue for Rocky Road where area movie goers don’t know us. But if there’s a decent turnout we’d be interested in trying again the next year as well and try to build buzz and a following and cultivate an audience. So there’s no harm in at least trying us out.
We also recommend following with a non-shadowcast 2nd showing that same night which would also include prop bags, our emcee giving the intro and 15min routine with Rocky Reading of the Rules, and Virgin Pledge with audience. But no shadowcast to perform or help with clean up at end of 2nd show.
SCHEDULE
Shows are typically Fridays or Saturdays. Load-in is 2.5 hours before Doors Open either into theater or hallway/lobby but need theater access at least 30min before Doors, cast Call-Time 1 hour before Doors, recommend Doors Open 6pm, there’s sometimes a line (recommend general admission which encourages early arrivals and an on time start), recommend Show Start Time is advertised as 6:30pm (30min Post-Doors) since the Preshow starts at 6:30pm and lasting 30min, while the movie itself recommend Film Start Time 7pm with a 1h 38min Run Time, Film End Time and Bows 8:45pm, 8:45pm Photos With Cast, Tear Down and Clean Up 9pm-10pm. Setting Show Start Time is a little flexible with 30min before or after the preferred 6:30pm Show Start Time.
If also opting for a non-shadowcast 2nd showing recommend Doors Open 10pm, promote Show Time 10:15pm, Emcee Routine 10:15pm-10:30pm, Film Start Time 10:30pm.
EMCEE
We provide our own emcee and can either give our standard intro including welcome from venue, or if there are additional groups involved the venue can provide the info in advance for our emcee to announce, or our emcee can introduce a venue representative, or if a local radio DJ they usually take the lead to provide their own information and when done they introduce The Rocky Road Shadowcast emcees. We usually have 2 emcees, Sweet Pea is the The Rocky Road Shadowcast producer and The Marvelous Frank-en-thusiast is the host from the trivia game Frank-QUIZ-stein and also the YouTube movie critic The Frank-en-Files by The Uncanny Productions.
ACCESS & CUES
We need available audience seating for about 200 or more. Reserved 4 front row center seats for use by Rocky Road. A backstage changing room that can hold about 10 performers at a time (although cramped is ok), if not available then an exit hallway alongside the screen, if not available then an office or we can set up 10 foot square curtain changing room (supplied by Rocky Road) on wall in lobby or a hallway.
Load-in is 2.5 hours before Doors Open either into theater or hallway/lobby but need theater access at least 30min before Doors.
2 stage mics if available, if not we’ll use our own mics and amplifiers. Once the movie starts we don’t need mics till the end to introduce cast.
Use of spotlight if available.
Our 30min flash drive with music videos for projection system started when doors open at typical movie volume. Allow the 30min selection to repeat until this cue from emcee to stop saying over mic, “It’s astounding, time is fleeting, madness takes its toll. But it’s the pelvic thrust that really drives you insane. Let’s do the Time Warp again!”
If there is still a line or the lobby is full we will hold the preshow till most are seated and simply start later. The preshow is one of the hallmarks of The Rocky Road Shadowcast and we can’t skip or shorten it so it’s helpful to process audience members as early as possible.
There may be additional tracks on flash drive for some acts during preshow if so additional cue instructions will be provided for projectionist. The cue to start the movie will the Rocky Cheer, “Give me an R, give me an O, give me a C, give me a K, give me a Y. What’s that spell? Rocky! I can’t hear you. Rocky!! One more time. Rocky!!! Start the movie!”
MISC
Some older movie copies have a menu option for either US or the UK, although counter intuitive use the UK option (US version cuts out the last song of the movie).
RESERVATIONS
The Rocky Road Shadowcast principle contact is also the producer and emcee Michael Baribeau (Bear-ruh-boh), stage name Sweet Pea, who’s been with the cast since the beginning and has 20 years stage experience. Use the contact email and be sure to include interested dates and times.
contact@TheRockyRoadShadowcast.com
FYI The June Pride and October Halloween month weekends tend to get reserved early and fast.
We try to plan shows several months in advance allowing for the venue time to promote it but if necessary can work to schedule sooner.
Tentative reservations made 2 months or more in advance can hold a date for 2 weeks. Less than 2 months in advance can hold a tentative date for 3 days. After hold period the date may remain available just no longer on hold so lock in the reservation asap. The less advanced notice the more difficult it is to have a cast available for that date. Established annual client venues have reservation preference.
Setting Show Start Time isn’t very flexible with only a window of 30min before or after preferred 6:30pm. Show Start Time provides the cast, some who come from all over the state, to leave their day jobs early that day, and give enough time for post-show photos, help with venue clean up, costume changes, and packing up props so their drives back home aren’t too late.
We’ve never had to cancel a show. If there’s an illness a performer is replaced with another of our volunteers or we use an audience volunteer for a few minutes then use another, all part of the Rocky Horror ‘audience participation’ for a spontaneous fun experience.
GUIDING PRINCIPLE
The Rocky Road Shadowcast has members of all persuasions and while The Rocky Horror Picture Show movie is entertainment for many it has also been a sanctuary of belonging and support for those who have felt prejudice and oppression by society, for body type, race, ethnicities, gender and sexuality, particularly those belonging to the LGBTQ+ community. Since the 1970’s the Rocky Horror shows have been recognized as a place for people, to CELEBRATE their gender and sexuality! And for feelings of body positivity, self-esteem, inclusion, and equality! The Rocky Road Shadowcast would like to thank participating venues and their partners for this opportunity for us all to come together, to celebrate who we are, and to ROCKY HORROR HARD!
*The Rocky Road Shadowcast is an LGBTQ+, Body Positivity, all races and ethnicities supporter.
