Audio Story By: Franchette O'Neal
Statesboro locals enjoyed a night of oddity where they can express themselves without judgement at The Rocky Horror Picture Show in Georgia Southern University on Oct. 25.
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The Rocky Horror Picture Show, based on a film about a transvestite named Frank who wanted to create the perfect man for him, entertained a full crowd with at the Russell Union Theater. Performers, dressed in underwear, fishnets and extravagant makeup, re-enacted the film and invited audiences to join in the performance itself.
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Taylor Murray, a senior international studies student, came to the show for the first time after hearing about it from a friend. “I thought it was interesting because it was interactive and that you had the film playing in the background with the cast members,” Murray said.
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Despite the changes in venue and production, 300 people showed up and packed the theater for the one-night show. Director Morgan Carr, a graphic design junior, said that because they have separated the shadowcast from the live stage version that the Averitt Center for the Arts held, they collaborated with Theatre South, a GSU theater group, and GSU’s Gay-Straight Alliance for new members. The two
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groups also helped secure the venue for the show.
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Carr said that the changes the cast and crew were going through attracted her to step up as the director for this year’s show. “It seemed like a fun time to just try something new, so we put [the production] back into student hands and I was super excited to get the chance [to direct],” Carr said.
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These changes also gave David Singleton, a communication studies major, the opportunity to play the Corset Frank, one of the three Franks in the shadowcast. Similar to Carr, Singleton said that he had always watched the film, but it was his first time being an actor for a live show. He described the experience as feeling like “a rockstar.”
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“As an actor, you want to always find something challenging and being Frank was really challenging so doing something different gave me a lot of confidence,” Singleton said.
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Rocky Horror continues to provide a haven for the LGBTQ community and others in the conservative town of Statesboro while entertaining everyone. Carr said, “We want everybody to know that no matter how different the world may deem you, you’re still welcome with us.”