The Rocky Horror Show

The only thing more fun than what was going on on-stage Tuesday night at the Wyly Theater was what was going on in the audience. "The Rocky Horror Show" was on stage in delicious full-bloom. The audience was filled with the most marvelous mix of Dallas' old money tittering at what they were seeing and young people dressed in costume standing in the aisles and doing the Time Warp again.

The Dallas Theater Center is known for its inventive productions and this one is no exception. The incredibly clever set consisted of scaffolding in the center of the stage with the band sitting inside it. The cast climbed up and down the staircases on either side to access the "laboratory" on top. Sheets were thrown over the audience to turn entire sections of the theater into a bed where the characters got into all kinds of no good.

For the uninitiated out there, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is a film that developed a most incredible cult following, because of its equal parts inviting and outlandish characters and plot. Two sweet kids break down on the road, seek help at a castle where all sorts of strange and a sundry things are taking place, including an experiment of the Frankenstein sort with a self-proclaimed "sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania" at helm.

Dallas Theater Center brought the story to the stage in Dallas and was not shy about paying homage to this cult classic. First things first, even without the costumes, which were marvelously outrageous, and the set, which was as simple as it was perfect, the cast of this show could not have been any more brilliant.

The masters at work included Morgan Mabry Mason as Janet; Alex Organ as Brad; J. Brent Alford as the Narrator; Chamblee Ferguson as Riff Raff, Walter Lee as Columbia; Julie Johnson as Magenta and an Usherette, Dan Domenech as Frank-N-Furter; Justin Labosco as Rocky; and Liz Mikel as Eddie and Dr. Scott.

What makes this show work is that as wild as the characters are, they are played as real and true as any character this over the top possibly could be. Somehow you don't question for a second that this motley crew lives in this crazy castle doing these outlandish things when these two squares ring the bell for help with their broken down car and then murder and mayhem ensues.

All perfectly reasonable in the "Rocky Horror" world, because it's a nod to the B horror movies from back in the day where drama and gore and completely implausible plot lines were de rigueur. The difference is that those were all camp and no substance. This is plenty of camp. But there is somehow also a story about being yourself and letting your freak flag fly and discovering your sexuality and casting all doubts and naysayers aside.

It would be unfair to leave out the musicians in a discussion about this show. The five member groups made up of Chris McQueen on lead guitar, Daniel Garcia on bass guitar, Cade Sadler on drums, Kwinton Gray, and Ben Bohorquez on saxophone. They literally put on the best possible rock concert slash freak show that an audience could ask for.

This is a show to see and to love. It is hilarious. It's wild. It's a nod to the past. It further proves that the Dallas Theater Center can take anything, even the most twisted show, and give it more of a twist.

With the giant screens and the stoic faced videographer following the cast around on-stage and the penis shaped confetti cannon and the giant glittery strap-on that gets waved around like the American flag on the Fourth of July, this show will make you remember what it means to have a good time at the theater.

"The Rocky Horror Show" runs through October 19 at Wyly Theatre, 2400 Flora St. For information or tickets, call 214-880-0202 or visit https://www.dallastheatercenter.org/.