Rocky Horror Picture Show Sing-a-Long

Yesterday evening, Hexagon in Reading, Berkshire. The crowd in the foyer looks slightly unsual for such an establishment. No black-ties / evening dresses tonight. Wherever you look you are immediately surrounded by fancy corsets, fishnets, wigs, sparkly hats and a lot of naked human (or so you'd hope) flesh. The reason - Rocky Horror Picture Show Sing-a-Long has come to town!

Apparently it all started with Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, one of my favourite all time classic musicals. It seems whenever I'm not paying attention I start humming Going courting as I sort the books in Oxfam, or plot correlations in Excel. Back then sheet music was distributed to the participa

nt so they could chip in and s

ing along with the film. After the initial success in Inverness the idea was taken further and in 1999 the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival featured the same musical to celebrate the opening of the new cinema in London - Prince Charles in Leicester Square, which is the home for the sing-a-long production to this day. Initially there were just a number of screenings, but soon the demand was so huge that the number of shows had to be increased and new musicals converted into a Sing-a-Long versions. This is how Sound of Music was first introduced. The fame of the shows grew not only in UK but in mainland Europe as well. In the past decade the Sing-a-Long shows included such renowned musicals as: Fiddler on the Roof, Grease, Moulin Rouge, Wizard of Oz, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dream and of course Rocky Horror Picture Show.

For me it was the second time I've seen it, the first time going all the way down to the Prince Charles cinema in London. And it was an extraordinary experience. So when RHPS came to Reading, there was no second-guessing - I had to go! Together with my friends from the Saturday shift in OXFAM Bookshop we've dressed and went up the stage for the Fancy Dress Competition and we were amazing! This is what I call - making an impact, or a statement....or just having a great time shouting "S***!" or "AR******!" and popping prematurely.

I highly recommend it to all you Rocky Horror Virgins wherever you are :D

Me