REVIEW: Rocky Horror Show - Liverpool Empire Theatre

The world's favourite rock 'n' roll musical was welcomed back with open arms last night at Liverpool Empire Theatre. After 40 years of worldwide productions, Richard O'Brien's cult show  exploded on the stage much to the delight of the opening night's audience.

I'm quite a novice when it comes to Rocky Horror and having only seen it once before, I was intrigued to see the reception that the show would receive. Let me tell you, from the opening number, the quality of performance was second to none and the customary level of crowd participation, engagement and heckling of the cast was side splitting, hilarious and a whole lot of fun. The cast did so well to keep their composure as the passionate audience shouted out adlibs.

Directed by Christopher Luscombe, the show was captivating from the first number. Kay Murphy who plays the usherette welcomes us to the Rocky horror picture show. It was great to see so  many audience members dressed up as some of the Principal characters and the energy within the room as the crowd got up on their feet and danced "The TimeWarp" was electric. This was audience participation in full effect.

Diana Vickers plays Janet alongside Ben Freeman who plays her fiance. The squeaky clean duo go on to meet Dr Frank 'n' Furter when their car breaks down. What ensues is a wild unforgettable adventure which is hilarious, extremely crude and highly entertaining.

Liam Tamne who plays Frank 'n' Furter is absolutely stunning and steals the show in my opinion. He grabs this role by the horns and completely immersing himself into the character of the "Sweet transvestite from Transylvania" I just loved his energy, his finesse, his command of the stage. His vocals were exceptional as was his ability to create humour just by his body language. There simply are not enough superlatives to describe the high quality of his delivery.

The interval takes place quite quickly, I'm sure to give the cast a break from the high level energy of the performances in the first half of the musical. The second half continues with the same pace and high quality of acting and vocal delivery.

Other cast members who caught my attention were Steve Punt who played the narrator, he was so professional and how he kept his composure during the audience's taunts I don't know. Kristian Lavercombe who played Riff Raff was extraordinary and entirely convincing in his role. Diana Vickers was superb as was Ben Freeman. They worked extremely well together

A super 5 shiny gold stars from me for this wonderful performance of Rocky Horror. I particularly enjoyed it because it was on home ground here in Liverpool.The age guidance is 12+  That said, I'm so glad that I left my 13 year old at home as it was extremely risque as expected. I'd say that 12 is a little low for the age guidance.

It's bold, it's brash, it's an absolute ball. Go and see it and get involved with the party. It's a definite mood enhancer for these wintry nights. Prepare to be "lost in time, lost in space and meaning" as you enjoy the ride that is the Rocky Horror Show. You are sure to leave feeling like a superhero and it will without doubt be the quickest and most entertaining 2 hours of your life. The show runs until Saturday 6th February and tickets can be bought here

Stunning, Stupendous, Suspenders and all !

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