Stephanie Hsu
as Janet
Overall9AActing 9ASinging 9ADancing 9A
Stephanie Hsu was truly great, with an outstanding voice and hilarious acting.
OverallTony nomination: Best Revival of a Musical6B
The Rocky Horror Show
Studio 54
This show was not as great as the sum of its parts. Stephanie Hsu was particularly great, but overall it just felt more an amateur production rather than a full broadway spectacle, though that might have been what they were going for.
Score breakdown
Book6BLyrics6BMusic7BDirection6BSetTony nomination: Best Scenic Design of a Musical5CCostumeTony nomination: Best Costume Design of a Musical6BChoreoTony nomination: Best Choreography6BLightingTony nomination: Best Lighting Design of a Musical6BSoundTony nomination: Best Sound Design of a Musical6B
Performer notes
Amber Gray
as Riff Raff
Overall7BActing 7BSinging 7BDancing 7B
Amber Gray was out when I saw Hadestown a few years ago, so I finally got to see her here. Not quite the same type of performance to judge on, but happy to hear her unique voice here, too.
Andrew Durand
as Brad
Overall7BActing 7BSinging 7BDancing 7B
Josh Rivera
as Rocky
Overall7BActing 8ASinging 7BDancing 8A
Rachel Dratch
as Narrator
Overall7BActing 7BSinging 5CDancing 5C
I was very excited to see Rachel Dratch, and she's unquestionably very funny. I'm not certain she was the right fit for the Narrator, though.
About the show
THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW (LIVE ON STAGE!) is a magical phenomenon unlike anything ever before seen on stage. Borrowing largely from horror conventions, the stage musical begins as an innocent young couple is stranded at the home of a mad scientist who is building the perfect man. The castle is filled with a most bizarre group of characters who worship their master, Dr. Frank-N-Furter, played magnificently by a fabulously sexy man, in leather jacket, pearls, fishnet stockings, and heavy makeup. Brad and Janet are forced to examine their own sexuality as the voluptuous doctor releases the hidden desires in each of them. Based on the stage musical by Richard O’Brien, the stage show comes alive with unforgettable song-and-dance numbers that have come to represent the sexual liberation of the 1970s. The outstanding costuming and makeup, the terrific acting by a talented All-Star Cast and the memorable songs ('Time Warp,' 'Sweet Transvestite') help make THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW one of the most bizarrely entertaining and satisfying musicals ever made.