Barely Legal in the Press!

Modesto Bee Article: November 5, 2010

Modesto gets Live with 'Rocky Horror'

Cult-film classic 'Rocky Horror Picture Show' gets the live treatment in a special event at the Fat Cat




Jen Allsup has been a huge fan of the cult film classic "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" since age 15, when she first saw a rowdy screening with audience participation in San Francisco.

Now 39, she is presenting a live staging with the movie tonight at the Fat Cat Music House & Lounge in Modesto. She has booked the Bay Area troupe Barely Legal to mimic the show in costume as the film plays in the background.

Audience members also are encouraged to dress up as their favorite character and can buy $2 prop bags with toast, toilet paper, playing cards and noisemakers they can take out at key points in the movie.

Barely Legal will perform "Rocky Horror Picture Show" in front of the film at Fat Cat Nov. 5.

"It has been forever since it has been here live," Allsup said. "I'm so excited."

The Modesto event begins at 10 p.m. with performances by Modesto bands Wicked Hickie and Nothing But Losers, with "Rocky Horror" starting at midnight.

Released in 1975, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is a musical sci-fi parody about a newly engaged couple who get lost on a rainy night and find their way into a spooky mansion.

There, they meet some eccentric characters, including Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a "sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania."

The film starred Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, Barry Bostwick and Meat Loaf.

The movie has never gone away and is still shown around the country at midnight. The 35th anniversary of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" has been celebrated this year, including a star-studded event last week in Los Angeles with actors such as Evan Rachel Wood, Danny DeVito and Ricki Lake performing the film live in a benefit show. Also last week, the hit Fox TV show "Glee" paid tribute to the film.

Formed in 1995, Barely Legal performed "Rocky Horror" every Saturday night at the Parkway Cinema in Oakland until it closed a couple of years ago. Since then, the all-volunteer group has taken the show on the road, performing the second Saturday of the month in Albany and the last Saturday of the month in San Jose, with special events mixed in.

"It appeals to anybody who has ever had any insecurity," said Queen B, a director and performer in the show. "You can go somewhere and everybody's accepting of whatever, as long as it's not harmful to someone else. ... You can holler lines in a theater without it being a problem."

People also really love the catchy music and the theme of the movie: "Don't Dream It, Be It," she said.

Queen B said the show gives people permission to show a different side of themselves than they do in everyday life. While the Modesto show is 21 and older, the company often performs all-ages productions.

"We like to think we're giving young adults a thing to do where they can feel freaky but be safe," she said. "They're out late at night but they're not causing anybody harm or themselves harm. It's really not as dangerous or scary as it seems on the surface."






Email or join our Mailing List.

©2011 BL Productions