Le monde des musicals

Musical (1973)

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Musique: Richard O'Brien •
Paroles: Richard O'Brien •
Livret: Richard O'Brien •
Production à la création:

Tout commence au début des années 1970 ; à Londres, la comédie musicale Jesus Christ Superstar de Andrew Lloyd Webber et Tim Rice connaît un grand succès. Un soir, un des figurants est renvoyé: il s'agit de Richard O'Brien. Ayant une femme et un enfant, et disposant de pas mal de temps libre, il décide d'écrire sa propre comédie musicale. Il se base sur ses goûts et ses souvenirs d'adolescents, et décide d'écrire une riposte aux grands spectacles qui se jouaient alors sur la scène londonienne en prenant comme thèmes majeurs de cet « anti-spectacle » le sexe, les films de série B et le rock and roll.

Le jour de la première, le 19 juin 1973, il pleut et seules quelques dizaines de spectateurs sont là pour voir Richard O'Brien et Tim Curry, qui interprètent respectivement les rôles de Riff Raff et de Frank-n-Furter. L'année suivante, le spectacle est le "Meilleur Spectacle de l'année 1974".

Malgré un relatif échec à Broadway, la pièce se jouera sans interruption à Londres jusqu'en 1980. Elle est toujours jouée aujourd'hui à travers le monde, de deux façons différentes: soit intégralement interprétée par des acteurs sur scène, soit avec projection du film agrémenté d'acteurs apparaissant devant l'écran pour rejouer certaines scènes cultes ou interagir avec les images. Cette dernière forme de prestation impliquant le public a contribué à faire du Rocky Horror Show un spectacle culte.

Brad et Janet, deux amoureux, veulent revoir leur ancien professeur de sciences avant de se marier. Ils partent donc en voiture, un soir, mais le pneu de leur voiture explose mystérieusement à quelques mètres d'un château étrange... Brad et Janet vont alors aller demander de l'aide aux habitants du château, tous plus étranges les uns que les autres... C'est ainsi que Brad et Janet rencontrent le docteur Frank-N-Furter, un travesti bisexuel venu de la planète Transexual de la galaxie Transylvania, créateur d'un homme parfait, plein de muscles mais sans un gramme de cervelle et sachant à peine marcher, nommé Rocky.

Acte I
The Usherette in a derelict cinema introduces tonight's film in a song ("Science Fiction/Double Feature"), with masked Phantoms providing the backing vocals.

After attending the wedding of Ralph Hapshatt and Betty Munroe, Brad Majors confesses his love to Janet Weiss ("Dammit Janet") and the two become engaged. The Narrator appears and explains that Brad and Janet are leaving Denton to visit Dr. Everett Scott, their former science tutor, while driving into a rainstorm. During the trip, their car has a flat tire and they are forced to walk through the rain to seek a telephone in an old castle ("Over at the Frankenstein Place").

The Narrator explains that Brad and Janet are feeling "apprehensive and uneasy," but must accept any help that they are offered. As Brad and Janet arrive, Riff Raff, the hunchbacked handyman, greets them, and his sister Magenta, the maid, appears. Riff Raff, Magenta and Columbia (a groupie) speak briefly of an unlucky delivery boy named Eddie before performing the show's signature dance number ("Time Warp"*). Brad and Janet try to leave at this point, but are stopped when Dr. Frank N. Furter, a pansexual, cross-dressing mad scientist, arrives. He introduces himself as "a sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania" and invites Brad and Janet up to his laboratory ("Sweet Transvestite"). As he goes up, Brad and Janet are stripped to their underwear to dry off.

Brad and Janet enter the laboratory, where Frank N. Furter gives them laboratory coats to wear. Frank announces that he has discovered the secret to life itself. He unveils his creation, a blonde, well-built man named Rocky Horror, who is brought to life. As his bandages are removed, Rocky worries about his predicament ("The Sword of Damocles"). Frank admires Rocky's physique by singing a tribute to muscle builders ("Charles Atlas Song"/"I Can Make You a Man"**). A Coca-Cola freezer in the laboratory opens to reveal Frank and Columbia's former lover, Eddie, a biker covered in surgical scars. Eddie — now rendered a zombie after having part of his brain removed by Frank — contemplates his new existence and recalls his former life ("Hot Patootie – Bless My Soul"). Frank panics, forces Eddie back into the freezer and hacks him to death. Frank tells Rocky — the recipient of the other half of Eddie's brain — that he prefers him over Eddie ("Charles Atlas Song (Reprise)"/"I Can Make You a Man (Reprise)"**). Brad and Janet are then ushered to separate bedrooms for the night.

Acte II
The Narrator foreshadows that Brad and Janet may be quite unsafe. Janet enjoys Brad's advances in her darkened bedroom before realizing that it is in fact Frank in disguise. He convinces Janet that pleasure is no crime, and after she asks him to promise not to tell Brad, they resume their lovemaking. The scene changes to Brad's darkened bedroom, where Brad makes love to Janet before discovering that, once again, it is Frank in disguise. Frank promises not to tell Janet, but as they resume, Riff Raff interrupts on the television monitor with the message that Rocky has escaped. Janet searches for Brad in the laboratory and discovers Rocky hiding there. Checking the television monitor, Janet sees Brad in bed with Frank and seduces Rocky ("Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me"). While searching the television monitor for Rocky, the rest of the group discovers that Janet has slept with him and Brad becomes hurt and angry ("Once in a While"). Riff Raff then notifies Frank that there is another visitor entering the castle: Doctor Everett Scott, the paraplegic science tutor whom Brad and Janet intended to visit.

Doctor Scott is pushed into the laboratory by Columbia where Frank accuses him and Brad of trying to investigate his castle, knowing that Doctor Scott has connections with the FBI. Doctor Scott assures him that he has come in search of Eddie, who is revealed to be his nephew ("Eddie's Teddy"). Frank displays Eddie's corpse to the group and then uses a device to electronically restrain the three visitors and a rebellious Rocky to the floor ("Planet Schmanet Janet"); the inhabitants of the castle are revealed to be space aliens led by Frank, who abandoned their original mission in order to engage in kinky sex with earthlings and work on Rocky. Magenta insists that they return to their home planet now that they have been found out; Frank refuses and, instead, declares his intentions to put on a "floor show."

Under Frank's influence, Columbia, Rocky, Brad, and Janet perform song and dance routines while clad in lingerie ("Rose Tint My World"). After, Frank entices them to lose all inhibition and give in to their basest carnal instincts, resulting in everyone's beginning to engage in orgiastic sex ("Don't Dream It – Be It") before they are interrupted by Frank, who leads them into the concluding number of the floor show ("Wild and Untamed Thing"). The show comes to an abrupt end when Riff Raff and Magenta enter, wearing spacesuits and carrying ray guns. Riff Raff declares that he is usurping Frank's authority and taking them all back to their home planet. Frank makes a final plea for sympathy from Riff Raff, trying to make him understand his desire to spend the rest of his life having sex with earthlings ("I'm Going Home"). Riff Raff is unmoved and guns down Columbia, Frank and Rocky before ordering Brad, Janet and Doctor Scott to leave.

As the trio evacuates the castle, Riff Raff and Magenta express their excitement to return to their world and do the "Time Warp" again with their fellow Transylvanians ("Spaceship"). Brad and Janet watch as the castle blasts off into outer space, confused about the implications of their sexual escapades ("Super Heroes"). To conclude his tale, the Narrator says "and crawling on the planet's face, insects called the human race, lost in time, and lost in space – and meaning." As the show ends, The Usherette returns to recount the night's events ("Science Fiction/Double Feature (Reprise)").

* In the original London and Los Angeles productions, "Sweet Transvestite" came before "Time Warp". This was changed for the film version and was subsequently updated for the stage version when Richard O'Brien revised the script for the 1990 West End revival.
* "Charles Atlas Song" was replaced by a reworked version of the song, "I Can Make You a Man", for the film version. Richard O'Brien's revision of the script in 1990 featured a hybrid of the two songs under the title "I Can Make You a Man", in the 1999 revised script this song was replaced by the film version which continues to be used in all major productions. The reprise remains unchanged except for the title.

As an out-of-work actor, Richard O'Brien wrote The Rocky Horror Show to keep himself busy on winter evenings. Since his youth, O'Brien had developed a passion for science fiction and B horror movies; he wanted to combine elements of the unintentional humour of B horror movies, portentous dialogue of schlock-horror, Steve Reeves muscle flicks and fifties rock and roll into The Rocky Horror Show. A major theme running throughout the musical is transvestitism, which according to O'Brien was not originally meant to be as prominent as it would end up being.
O'Brien took a small amount of his unfinished Rocky Horror to director Jim Sharman, who decided he wanted to direct it at the small experimental space Upstairs at the Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, Chelsea which was used as a project space for new work. Sharman had received some success with the original Australian production of Jesus Christ Superstar during which he met O'Brien, who had played King Herod for just one performance. Sharman brought in fellow Australians Nell Campbell and long-time scenic designer Brian Thomson to the production.
The original creative team was then rounded out by costume designer Sue Blane and musical director Richard Hartley, although Pete Moss would later take over as musical director. 'Veteran' of the new generation of stage producers Michael White was also brought in to produce Rocky Horror. As the musical went into rehearsal, the working title for it became It Came from Denton High, but it was changed just before previews at the suggestion of Sharman to The Rocky Horror Show.

After two previews, the show premiered – without an interval – at the Royal Court's 63-seat Theatre Upstairs on 19 June 1973 and ran until 20 July 1973. The cast included Tim Curry, Patricia Quinn, Nell Campbell (billed as Little Nell), Julie Covington and Richard O'Brien, who made the production, which was all-out camp, a creative triumph and a critical and commercial success. Record producer Jonathan King saw it on the second night and signed the cast to make the original cast recording over a long weekend that was rushed out on his U.K. Records label. King was involved heavily in the initial promotion for the show as well as being the other backer of it financially with White.

The impact at the Royal Court Upstairs allowed the production be transferred to the 230-seat Chelsea Classic Cinema, a few blocks down on Kings Road from 14 August 1973 to 20 October 1973. Rocky Horror found a quasi-permanent home at the 500-seat King's Road Theatre (another cinema house) even further down Kings Road from 3 November 1973. The show received critical praise and won the 1973 Evening Standard Award for Best Musical.

It ended its run at the King's Road Theatre on 31 March 1979 before transferring to the Comedy Theatre (now the Harold Pinter Theatre) to begin performances on 6 April 1979. There, Rocky Horror required some restaging as it was the first theatre that the musical had played at with a traditional proscenium arch stage. For the first time, the musical was also broken into two acts with an interval. It finished its run there on 13 September 1980.

American premiere
Lou Adler had made millions with risky ventures such as Monterey Pop. His record label, "Ode Records" was becoming known for harvesting experimental talent. In late winter of 1973, Adler attended a performance of the show with Britt Ekland and acting on impulse and seeing a hit, he met backstage with producers and within 36 hours had secured the American theatrical rights.
The show premiered at the Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles on March 24, 1974, running for nine months. The cast was all new except for Tim Curry. The show played to a full house and a deal was made with 20th Century Fox for a film. Fox executive Gordon Stulberg saw the show at the Roxy and agreed to invest 1 million dollars for a film project. Adler's attempt to turn his club into a playhouse was successful. The singer Meat Loaf remembers different celebrities that would come to the show as well as his meeting Elvis Presley at a performance. Senator Al Franken was a young lighting apprentice brought in by Sid Strong. He recalls Adler had the show mounted by producer Brian Avnet and that both Curry and O'Brien were brought in from the UK.

Original Sydney production
Harry M. Miller produced the original Sydney production of Rocky Horror, which opened on 15 April 1974, running for almost two years in the New Arts Cinema (formerly The Astor, later The Valhalla and now an office building) in Glebe. It starred Reg Livermore, Jane Harders, Kate Fitzpatrick, Arthur Dignam, Sal Sharah, John Paramor, Graham Matters, Bob Hudson and Maureen Elkner.

Original Broadway production
In early 1975 Lou Adler closed the show at the Roxy Theater after a ten-month run. This gave actors time to return to the UK for filming of the movie version. Adler planned to open on Broadway just before the release of the film. It was anticipated that this production would be as successful as Jesus Christ Superstar and serve as a public vehicle for the film version. It was unsuccessful and closed after 45 performances.

San Francisco
The third U.S. production opened at the Montgomery Playhouse in San Francisco on February 3, 1976 and played 103 performances, closing on May 30. The San Francisco production was directed by A. Michael Amarino, with Musical Direction and Arrangements by Michael Reno. The production had a new cast and starred David James as Dr. Frank N. Furter. The opening night cast included Roslyn Roseman as Usherette / Magenta, Needa Greene as Janet Weiss, Robert Reynolds as Brad Majors, Richard Gee as the Narrator, Buddy King as Riff-Raff, Paula Desmond as Columbia, Bob Dulaney as Rocky Horror, and Emil Borelli as Eddie / Dr. Everett Scott, with back-up vocals by Vikki D'Orazi, William J. Tacke and Kelly St. John.

West End
The Rocky Horror Show transferred to the 820-seat Comedy Theatre on Panton Street in the West End, running from 6 April 1979 until 13 September 1980, closing the play's initial run of 2,960 performances. After occasional productions in the early 1980s, the play was revived for the Theatre Royal Hanley tour in 1984 and still is performed regularly in the U.K.

Acte I
Science Fiction / Double Feature
Dammit, Janet!
Over at the Frankenstein Place
The Time Warp
Sweet Transvestite
The Sword of Damocles
I Can Make You a Man
Hot Patootie / Bless My Soul
I Can Make You a Man (reprise)

Acte II
Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me
Once in a While
Eddie's Teddy
Planet Schmanet Janet
Rose Tint My World
Don't Dream It, Be It
Wild and Untamed Thing
I'm Going Home
Super Heroes
Science Fiction / Double Feature (reprise)

Aucun dossier informatif complémentaire concernant Rocky Horror Show (The)

Aucun dossier informatif complémentaire concernant Rocky Horror Show (The)