Whether your car breaks down outside a spooky mansion or you just need a two-hour escape from the cares of modern horrors and headlines, Reston Community Players embraces the wild, weird, and wonderful world of mayhem, madness, sex, rock and roll, and so much more, bringing the cult favorite musical The Rocky Horror Show back for the spooky season.
There is a new, crispy fall feel to the air outside recently, but things are hotter than an electrically charged mad scientist’s laboratory inside the Leila Gordon Theatre at the Reston Community Center.
Even before curtain time, sexily clad ensemble members roam the house, teasing and taunting open-minded audience members to jump-start the experience. Is that a drag queen with a two-foot-tall hairdo? Check! Savvy fans of local drag performer Anja Dick (or his alter ego, Ryan Kincade) will be pleasantly surprised.
Not feeling like being messed with or touched? They have you covered: grab a set of red beads, and the “phantoms” and other cast members will pass you by.
For anyone game for some good-natured and naughty fun, you may just find your happy place at this show. Extroverts and party folk, this show is tailor-made for you. Fueled by the legend and lore of the 1975 film version, which became a midnight-showing cult phenomenon, this Rocky Horror stage show embraces many of the traditions from the picture show. The production highly encourages audience participation, especially the call-outs. (The theater sells goodie bags with a few approved props to use and throw, but no toast, frankfurters, rice, confetti, or water guns.)
On one Sunday matinee, the audience was filled with Rocky Horror super-fans and possibly even a few “plants”; there were new interjections that mentioned Lionel Ritchie and even Elon Musk! These call-outs, old and new, will likely change depending on the specific performance. But this is the kind of show that lends itself to a second or even a third visit, following the cult status.
Super-duper fans and those for whom Halloween is the “most wonderful time of the year,” RCP has you covered: At no extra charge during the Friday, October 31 performance, the brave and the bold can enjoy The Rocky Horror Halloween Extravaganza, complete with prizes and a costume contest, featuring Witti Repartee, drag queen extraordinaire. Register by 7:40 pm, judging begins at 8 pm, and the musical kicks off at 8:15 pm.
Atmosphere? Audience participation? All set. But what about the show itself? Whether you are a Rocky Horror Show virgin or weirdo from way back, this production has something for everyone, every creature, and everything in between.
Director Liz Colandene and choreographer Kendall Mostafavi have set up a perfect stormy night of a show, tipping their hats to memorable moments from the film and honoring the simplicity of the stage show while adding their own innovative elements. “The Time Warp” fills the stage with joy and energy with the signature moves intact.
Just in case this is all new to a reader of this review: The Rocky Horror Show is a horror, sci-fi spoof that also uses the tropes of 1950s and ’60s musicals to tell the tale of a hapless couple, Brad and Janet, who stumble onto an old castle with a crazy party going on presided over by the diva-tastic “sweet transvestite from Transexual Transylvania,’ Dr. Frank N. Furter, and his retinue of strange and unusual servants, guests, and victims. Richard O’Brien created the show in the tradition of Meredith Willson’s The Music Man, or Rupert Holmes’ Drood — actor O’Brien wrote the book, music, and lyrics, a mélange of pastiche numbers that move the plot by inches but provide ample opportunities for the cast to shine and take the spotlight.
As the “phantoms,” members of the ensemble, circulate and head to the stage, the lights dim, and Ryan Kincade, dolled up as his Anja Dick drag persona, serves as the usherette, Trixie, setting the tone of the wild and wacky night of nostalgia, ecstasy, and betrayal, “Science Fiction, Double Feature.” Clips from the ’50s era, black-and-white sci-fi and horror flicks, highlight the opening number.
When we’re introduced to Brad (“bastard”) and Janet (“sl*t”), Cristian Bustillos and Lottye Lockhart inhabit the roles of the dating couple who soon become victims of Frank N. Furter’s sexy and dangerous world. Their duet, “Dammit, Janet,” sets up their sexually repressed relationship. Later, when she is able to cut loose with Dr. Frank’s perfect physical creation Rocky (“Bullwinkle!”), Lockhart is able to belt out “Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me” with a powerful vocal instrument, all while being touch-a, touch-a, touched.
As Frank’s right-hand lackey and ultimately conniving servant, Riff Raff, Steve Cairns brings the seedy creepiness and rock tenor voice that raises the roof in his numbers, especially “The Time Warp.” As Magenta, henchwoman to the evil sidekick, Leah Chiaverini matches Cairns with malicious intention. They are joined by the tap-dancing pixie Columbia, played with cutesy weirdness by Hannah Conradt.
With all the henchmen and phantoms in place, as well as the innocent bystanders, how about the host and mad scientist with the unbridled libido and cruel streak, Dr. Frank? Making his entrance striding down the center aisle like the entire theater was his to own, Eric Morris commands the stage from his first withering look to his glorious death scene in the “final reel.” Nearly everyone knows how Tim Curry became a legend playing Frank in the 1975 motion picture. Not to take anything away from Curry, but Morris makes the role his — and her — own, owning the black corset, fishnets, and fabulously styled black wig. Switching from a purr to a snarl, from wounded bird to vicious villain, Dr. Frank fits Morris like a glove. His take on Frank’s signature song “Sweet Transvestite” is a highlight, and he makes it his own.
Morris shows a different side of Frank’s persona as he extols the virtues of his manly creation — think Frankenstein’s creature but made for Chippendale’s.
The apple of Frank’s eye, Rocky is brought to life — literally — by Jonathan Hardin, who is not only a physical specimen but a strong vocalist, shining during “The Sword of Damocles,” near the end of Act One.
The first act closes when Columbia’s former boyfriend, Eddie, emerges from a freezer, now a zombie determined to save his paramour, singing “Hot Patootie” like a rock and roll idol. Doubling down on the gender fluidity of the production, Paulina Stehr cuts a dashing figure as Eddie, playing it in the tradition of a drag king. Stehr makes the most of Eddie’s brief and ultimately tragic scene.
Later, Stehr rolls out, now as Brad and Janet’s paraplegic science tutor, Dr. Everett Scott, sporting a gigantic mustache. Rounding out the cast, Javier Buentello is dashing and campy as the narrator. Along with Ryan Kincade as Trixie, Syd Austin, Melissa Dyer, Jeffrey Mouritzen, and Haley Viar make up the phantoms — the guests and members of the ensemble. Each one embraces the sexy and free world of the musical.
The cast is aided in their libidinous and lasciviousness by the costumes, credited to Lourdes Turnblom, Jared Foeppel, and Allie Zito. Their designs are playful, sensual, and honor the traditions of the film and the show. Special mention to ensemble member Kincade, who also provided the wig and hair design of wild and wonderful looks.
Last but certainly not least, David Weinraub’s onstage band literally rocks the house from start to finish. Credited in the program as The Impalers (a mysterious rock band from Eastern Europe, with an entire hilarious backstory), the band handles each number with style. Weinraub (keyboards), David Smigielski (guitar), Christopher Willett (bass), Tito Perez (drums), and Dana Gardner (saxophones) make beautiful music together.
During this time of Spirit Halloween stores, pumpkin-spiced everything, and preparations for trick-or-treating, The Rocky Horror Show is another grand tradition of this time of year. RCP brings the strange and unusual characters to life with verve and wild abandon — a perfect match for O’Brien’s unique creation.
In a world where some factions keep trying to silence and push out the true diversity of humanity, a musical that embraces every type of gender identity, pushes sex positivity, and celebrates the message of “Don’t dream it, be it” is as right for the times now as it was in the early 1970s. Probably even more so.
Running Time: Two hours with one 15-minute intermission.
Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show plays through November 1, 2025, presented by Reston Community Players, performing in the Leila Gordon Theatre at the Reston Community Center, 2310 Colts Neck Road, Reston, VA. Showtimes are Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 PM, and Sundays at 2:00 PM. Reserved seating ticket prices are $26–$31. Purchase tickets online.
The program is online here.
Content Warning: Sexual themes, horror movie violence, and language. “The 1975 film based on this musical is rated R.”
Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show
By Richard O’Brien
Directed by Liz Colandene
CAST
Trixie (Usherette): Ryan Kincaid
Brad: Cristian Bustillos
Janet: Lottye Lockhart
The Narrator: Javier Buentello
Riff Raff: Steve Cairns
Magenta: Leah Chiaverini
Columbia: Hannah Conradt
Dr. Frank N. Furter: Eric Morris
Rocky: Jonathan Hardin
Eddie/Dr. Scott: Paulina Stehr
Phantoms: Syd Austin, Melissa Dyer, Ryan Kincade, Jeffrey Mouritzen, Haley Viar
CREATIVE AND PRODUCTION
Producer: Jocelyn Steiner
Music Director: David Weinraub
Choreographer: Kendall Mostafavi
Production Stage Manager: Anthony Pohl
Lighting Design: Kim Crago and Jeff Auerbach
Costume Design: Lourdes Turnblom, Jared Foeppel, Allie Zito
Sound Design: Andie Matten
Set Design: Anna Mintz
Set Decoration and Properties Design: Natalie Foley
Technical Director: Dan Widerski
