This is Life as a Show Director in Oneonta, New York
It's Thursday morning, and rehearsal was on Tuesday. Inevitably, I still feel like a zombie. The days after rehearsing always feels like a hangover, yet zero booze was involved. Putting on a show of any kind is hard work, and not only requires true grit and patience, but also a crack team of leaders and a dedicated cast.
I'll never refer to myself as a theater director. That's best left to the folks associated with Orpheus, Catskill Community Players, BDP, et al. My yearly show, while it may be theater adjacent, is best defined as an immersive punk rock performance art. The show in question is the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and our company's name is Inside Insanity.
I began my descent into Rocky Horror 30 years ago. In the mid 90s, every city and town with a theater had a weekly Rocky show. All featured shadow casts, or performers that acted out the film in front of the screen while it is playing. This goes back to the midnight showings of the film just after its 1975 release when people would show up in costume. Later, audience participation lines and callbacks as well as thrown props were added to the mix.
Rocky was where we went back then to be with other people who were outcasts, maligned, or cast aside. There were no mass internet forums where we could come together. Rocky was it. I started going weekly, and decades later, Rocky is still a part of my life.
Way back in the day, when it came to Rocky Horror, there was no such thing as articulated structure. If you showed up regularly, kind of looked the part, and were cool, you were plucked out of the audience and thrown to the wolves on stage. This happened to me circa 1996 or so when I played the part of Eddie for the first time in Pearl River, New York. I never dreamed I'd grow up to co-direct my own show and have a cast to go with it.
When Millenials/Gen Z entered the chat, that all seemed to change. Now we have auditions, rehearsals, stage plots, choreography, and organization overall. The show elders and OGs I speak with look at me like I have three heads when I mention this. Our producer Walt's wife Jen, who did Rocky long before I started, looks at us like we have three heads when we talk rehearsal.
But it's not all bad. I've learned to adapt, and while I can put on this show with my eyes closed, the cast is mostly local seasoned performers, and they've all patiently helped me to evolve as a director. I've gone from directing with two left feet to almost sounding like Oliver Putman of Only Murders in the Building Fame. The journey hasn't been without bumps and bruises, it just all seems to work out due to the dedication of the cast, backstage crew, and our production team.
We'll be presenting two shows, one at the Wieting Theatre in Worcester on October 19th at 7pm, and one at the Foothills Performing Arts Center in Oneonta on October 26th as part of Shock-Toberfest. Stay tuned for part two of this article tomorrow with full details about the shows.
Stay sane inside insanity!