As a teen and young adult I heard about The Rocky Horror Picture show. Most folks used words like "fun" "interactive" & "hilarious." It was usually showing at The Loft Theatre on Speedway....although not ever far from where I lived in Tucson, I never experienced the show.
On the afternoon of October 1, Naysia and I were in search of something to do. I did a generic Google search of events and was undoubtedly looking for fun that was free. I threw a few suggestions out and we could not agree. Naysia logged onto her Facebook events page and found the Roxie Theatre live production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. An hour into a search battle, I succumbed to her idea and went to Roxie's website.
If you've ever bought tickets online for an unfamiliar venue you know the struggle. I found the Roxie Theatre site map and lamented over seat availability vs. pricing. How close will we be to the stage? Will there be 2 seats together? Will they be on the end? Knowing my spending money was being depleted regularly, I also questioned whether or not purchasing tickets would be worth it. Several hours, fifty bucks and seven miles later we pulled into the Roxie parking lot.
We
entered the very intimate theatre excitedly nervous for what was about
to take place. The theatre described itself as 360 degrees and it was
that exactly. The seats surrounded the rectangular shaped stage. Our
seats were on the end of the second row. The crowd was
quite....eclectic. Men and women of all shapes, sizes and colors began
to fill the room. The dressing of attendees was an equally wide array.
Business, casual, half naked, and men dressed in women's clothing. As
Naysia and I gazed around I reminded her (and myself) that our job is
not to judge but to love.
Before the show started we listened to the folks nearby. There were many who had seen the show several times and others who, like us, were seeing it the first time. The gentleman directly behind us was clearly a lifelong fan and told all us newcomers we were going to love it. The lights dimmed and the show began.
Often, when I'm diving into something new, I do a little research beforehand. I purposely decided not to for this show. Naysia and I tried to follow the songs, dance and props. We laughed at the interaction between the guests and performers and couldn't help but sing along to "The Time Warp".
Most impressive was the announcement at the end. The young lady (or was it a man) that played Janet was a last minute fill in. S/he learned the role in 5 hours! We ended our night at a Jack in the Box drive thru and IMDB review of the original film for much needed clarification. Little did we know we'd soon be 'Time Warping' again.
Fast forward three weeks. Once again we were looking for a way to spend our weekend exploring the city. This time I made the executive decision and we landed at Trinity University for what was advertised as a free Drag Show and a fundraiser in support of the San Antonio AIDS foundation. I envisioned having great fun among RuPaul, Pandora Boxxx and Yara Sofia.
This was our first time to Trinity University. We walked into the enormous Mabee Dining Hall, confused. I couldn't tell where we were supposed to be. There was no advertisement. It smelled like french fries and teen spirit. There were students everywhere eating, talking, and staring at their fancy gadgets. I immediately felt very old, like I should've been behind the buffet line wearing a hair net, serving up peas and mashed potatoes. Naysia, on the other hand, felt right at home. I was on the verge of suggesting we leave when we saw balloons and a stage in the distance.
About 10 rows from the stage we found two seats on the end and planted ourselves there. The show was supposed to start at 7, but didn't. We watched as students nervously prepared the music, prop placement, food tables and AIDS info booth. We moved over a couple of seats to make room for a group of 3--who, soon after saw their friends and relocated. Immediately after a lone young woman sat on the end. I thought Naysia would talk to her if I wasn't there. I encouraged Naysia to reach out and I found somewhere else to sit. As I planted myself in the back of the room I could see Naysia and her new friend, Jada, talking.
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| Getting into Formation |
The show got started and it was hilarious! There were small skits, games related to safe sex practices, and several performances. Girls dressed as boys and vice versa. The crowd erupted when an unsuspecting split took place and we all cheered as 3 young men danced to Beyonce. And this time we were well prepared as a large troupe performed a scene from Rocky Horror and we all did the Time Warp again.
The evening was a success for us! We had fun, Naysia made a friend, and we learned something new. We wrapped it all up with a downtown parking garage photo shoot, fries and a drink at Johnny Rockets and blessing a homeless brother with dinner.
That night as I stood on the 7th level of the parking garage and looked out over downtown San Antonio my heart swelled with appreciation for the life we're living.
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| Downtown SA |
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