Over Halloween weekend, Alpha Psi Omega put on its annual production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. A cult classic horror/comedy/musical from the 1970s, The Rocky Horror Picture Show portrays the story of two conservative young adults in middle-America as they embark on a journey into the lives of Transylvanian misfits, where they learn about sexuality and unconventionality. The revolutionary film stars Hollywood icons such as Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon and Meat Loaf, who are just a small piece of the puzzle that makes Rocky Horror so beloved. A tradition amongst many fans is to attend showings of the movie, but they are not ordinary showings. At any rendition of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the movie is played on a screen behind a crew of actors who lip sync to the movie, while the audience shouts obscenities at the movie. And while they may be calling characters sluts and assholes, this is the fans' way of expressing their passion for the film. One of the most important aspects of The Rocky Horror Picture Show is the costuming, both in the film and on the stage. Alpha Psi Omega did not shy away from making costumes that made a lasting impression and were relevant to the film.
The Core Four
The show opens with the audience meeting Janet Weiss and Brad Majors, a traditional, monogamous, heterosexual couple who get engaged after attending their friend’s wedding. At their engagement, Janet is wearing a bubblegum pink skirt suit set and a white hat. Brad is wearing a tuxedo, with a plaid bow tie and cumberbun. Their outfits are meant to highlight their traditional and preppy nature. Janet is in soft pastels and an outfit of the popular silhouette for women at the time.
Brad’s plaid shows both his wearing of the traditionally masculine pattern and young status, as Janet and him have recently finished high school. These outfits are meant to highlight their conformity to traditional gender roles and styles of dressing. The live production opted out of these outfits in favor of what the characters wear as they arrive at Frank-N-Furter's castle.
This is a light pink dress with a peter pan color and gingham belt and a white cardigan for Janet, and a beige jacket with their schools logo and slacks for Brad. The live production omitted the school logo and the gingham on Janet's dress, but the colors and silhouettes are the same. In the movie, the gingham is once again meant to highlight her naive, childlike outlook on the world, but the omission isn’t bad as the pattern wouldn’t have translated well on stage. The next costumes worn by Janet and Brad are their underwear. Well, Brad is in his underwear, while Janet is in her bra and skirt slip. These costumes are meant to show that they are being stripped of their past lives, as Frank-N-Furter is starting their transformation into misfits. The costumes are worn by them for the rest of the movie until the very end, when they perform “Rose Tint My World” in costumes that are matching with Columbia and Rocky.
Columbia, Frank-N-Furter’s ex lover, wears a costume that resembles a showgirl costume. She wears a sequin corset, shiny short, a gold sequin blazer and top hat, and a red bow tie. This highlights her natural sense as a performer, but also shows that she is truly happy where she is, as she is dressed in colors that represent positivity, like yellow. The live show featured less sparkles, but stayed true to the color scheme, making the outfit still just as effective. This changes after Rocky kills her lover, Eddie, in front of her and the rest of his guests. She then wears a pair of drab, gray pajamas with a pair of Mickey Mouse ears.
The live show puts her in pink and white striped pajamas, instead of the blue-gray in the film. While not a huge change, the blue-gray of the film aided in showing her sadness in a way that the pink doesn’t. She looks like a child in this outfit, showing that in her time of grief, she is trying to replicate simpler times and find comfort in them. She wears these pajamas until the performance of “Rose Tint My World.”
Rocky, the titular character, wears gold underwear for almost the entire movie. He is the “Man with blond hair and a tan” that Frank-N-Furter has created for his own sexual pleasure. The show opts for gold tight shorts and gold socks, instead of the gold speedo and boots in the movie. His costume is meant to show that he is an object to Frank-N-Furter.
The Help
Riff Raff is one of the servants of Frank-N-Furter. The most visually jarring character, Riff Raff wears standard servant attire, but his physical appearance is what makes him different. With his hunchback, long bleached hair, and lifeless skin, Riff Raff rightfully gives Janet and Brad the creeps when he invites them into the castle. The live show nixed the hunchback, but gave their Riff Raff deadly makeup, which served its purpose of making the character a little creepy.
Magenta is the sister and accomplice of Riff Raff, who serves as the maid of the house. She wears a typical maids uniform, but with paper white face makeup, angular eye makeup, and larger than life, red hair. The show stuck true to this costume almost exactly. In a sexual relationship with his sister, Riff Raff and Magenta plan to go home to Transylvania and see Frank-N-Furter as an obstacle. He is only acting as a servant to gain Frank-N-Furter’s trust. When they finally find an opportunity to go home, they are in matching gold, angular outfits, which I can only assume is clothing worn in Transylvania. They then kill Frank-N-Furter and return home. The live show recreated these outfits exactly, as they are just too unique and creative to omit.
The Boss
The most important costume to nail in any production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show is Frank-N-Furters. Played by Tim Curry in the original film, Frank-N-Furter is the transvestite, mad scientist who is the catalyst for the events of the night. Sporting a black, sparkly corset, black underwear, sheer black knee high stockings, comically large pearls, fingerless gloves, heels, and over dramatic stage like makeup, Frank-N-Furter's first costume is easily the most recognizable of the movie.
He has a tattoo of a heart on his arm with the word “Boss” written there, to show his power in the castle. This costume is the first time we see boundary-pushing fashion in terms of gender roles. The outfit is meant to show his sexual nature, as he wears when he sings the song "Sweet Transvestite" with the lyrics, "I'm just a sweet transvestite/From transexual, Transylvania". The lingerie style of costume he is wearing is very progressive, seeing as the movie was released in the 1970s, when men were still expected to dress pretty "masculine.” He's in women's clothing, which is meant to be boundary pushing and help the misfits of society identify with his character. The live show followed this outfit almost exactly, with only the arm tattoo missing. His next costume is a lab coat that is reminiscent of female nursing uniforms in the mid 20th century. Frank-N-Furter has a pink triangle on his chest, which is a reference to the symbols that gay men were forced to wear by Nazis in the Holocaust. Frank-N-Furter is referencing taking back the power that homophobia has taken from gay people, as he now is a very powerful person.
The live show does not include the triangle, which I think should’ve been left in. He is next seen in a motorcycle jacket with many pins and fringes, which is a reference to the punk styles in London at the time. Tim Curry is from the UK and Frank-N-Furter speaks in a vaguely British accent, so this is most likely just a nod to that boundary pushing subculture of style at the time.
This is included in the live show and is almost an exact remake. Frank-N-Furter’s next costume is an entirely new body suit. It covers more and is darker, making Frank-N-Furter look more intimidating. He is slowly losing power in the house and this outfit is a last ditch attempt at looking powerful. The live show puts Frank-N-Furter in a sheer cardigan instead. The final costume worn by Frank-N-Furter is worn during the performance of “Rose Tint My World.”
Rose Tint My World
This is the climax of the film. Janet, Brad, Columbia, Rocky and Frank-N-Furter all perform on a stage in similar outfits. Janet, Brad, Columbia and Rocky are all in matching outfits that resemble what Frank-N-Furter wore in the beginning of the film. They wear strapless black corsets, underwear, and intense face makeup that make them look almost mime-like. Rocky doing this is the least shocking, as he is only seven hours old at this point and has lived his entire existence with Frank-N-Furter as his creator who he must be loyal to. Columbia’s part is shocking, as she watched Frank-N-Furter kill her lover, but her participation highlights her blind loyalty and love for Frank-N-Furter. Janet and Brad’s participation highlights their disenfranchisement with conventionality. They are completely different people than they were when they entered the house. Brad is crying out for help in this scene, as he is not fully comfortable with this side of himself, as Janet is fully embracing her pleasure in the situation. In this scene, Frank-N-Furter is in a red corset top and fresh makeup. The top keeps falling down, showing his loss of control over his life at this point. He sings the words, “Don’t dream it, be it” in the song following this one, which serves as a catchphrase for fans of the film. The show almost exactly copies these costumes, with the only difference being that they stay dry throughout the performance. In the movie, Frank-N-Furter and the four others jump into a pool for some sort of symbolic orgy, showing everyone’s full acceptance of the situation they are in. These are the final costumes of the film and the live show.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show changed the landscape of queer film, and the tradition of the live renditions are a great representation of storytelling in costumes and a must-see for any fan of movies or fashion.
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