For the past several years, the “Rocky Horror” musical production at Oasis has been a Halloween-season tradition for patrons of the iconic, gay nightclub in San Francisco . However this year’s show is bitter sweet, because it’s the last time fans will experience the on-stage tribute to the cult film “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Earlier this summer, Oasis owner D’Arcy Drollinger announced that after a decade of queer entertainment and parties, the venue is shutting down at the end of the year. In a statement on the Oasis website, D’Arcy said the closure is due to “the rising cost of operations, paired with declining attendance and sales.” But there are still dozens of events to check out, such as drag shows, film screenings and dance parties.
Like the film, “Rocky Horror” is about a couple who seeks help at a mansion owned by Dr. Frank-N-Furter. D’Arcy, who is also a drag queen, plays Dr. Frank-N-Furter. He turns the couple’s visit into a musical adventure. “Rocky Horror” is an immersive experience where the audience gets to sing and dance along to all of the film’s tunes. The cast interacts with, and performs, among the crowd. Jason Hoover, the show’s director, started the production in 2015 at San Francisco’s Victoria Theatre before moving it to Oasis several years ago. In this interview, Jason Hoover discusses why “Rocky Horror” resonates with so many people and how it comes to life on the Oasis stage.
This interview was edited for clarity
PORFIRIO RANGEL: Hi Jason, before we talk about “Rocky Horror” at Oasis, when was the first time you watched “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”?
JASON HOOVER: I was going to college for theater. They were doing “Rocky Horror” as the spring musical and I was fortunate enough to get cast in that. That was 2000 and forever ago. We'll just say that. Then, the cast arranged an opportunity to see it. We went to L.A. and saw some weird play that night and then we saw a midnight production of “Rocky Horror.” That was my very first interaction with it. [I was] just having a very quintessential experience seeing the show.
The first time I watched the movie was also back in college. I was just like, “What am I watching?”
Yeah, exactly.
What were your thoughts the first time you watched the film?
The first time I saw it was with a shadow cast. You're getting a little bit of musical theater and a little bit of the movie all rolled into one. It was a wild experience because I had never seen anything like that.
A shadow cast is a live performance group that acts out a film on stage while it’s screening. Please go on.
When we moved to Oasis, we asked, “How do we incorporate some of that audience interaction into a live musical?” When you do the musical there's that fourth wall. You're not getting the level of audience interaction that you get from a shadow cast and the film. It was our goal, in creating the immersive version, that we were combining both worlds as best you possibly could. We're not going to throw a handful of rice at a bunch of actors, but we wanted to make sure that we were giving the audience as close to both of those experiences as we possibly could.
I recently watched the Oasis production and I saw a lot of immersion. Folks were singing along to the songs and being in the moment. How does it feel that you created that kind of atmosphere?
It was important to us that no two people would have the same experience. The way we have the cast moving through the crowd, they're not going to be seen by everyone. We like the idea that people would leave the show and someone would say, “Oh, did you see that thing with Magenta over here?” Then someone else would say “No, I didn't. I didn't catch that at all.” All of these little personal details, I feel, makes it a unique experience.
I agree. I sat down in the press area that was near the stage. So a lot of the cast members were walking up and down near me. It's a different experience compared to people who were standing next to the couch or the piano. So what's your favorite song from the film?
It's different this year. I think everybody's favorite song is either “Time Warp” or “Sweet Transvestite.” You know, the castle is Frank's home and the club is D’Arcy's home. So when we get into “I'm Going Home,” this year in particular, it's a really special moment. The way that D’Arcy delivers it ,and the way that the technical team has designed the number, that's definitely my favorite this year. It speaks to more than just the story of Frank-N-Furter going home. It speaks to the entire club. It speaks to D’Arcy and it speaks to all the people who've been involved in the show for 10+ years.
This year also marks the film's 50th anniversary. People are still celebrating, dressing up, going to these productions and singing along. Why do you think that this film resonates with so many people?
There is an important subculture that has been built into the show over its history. It gave people, when it first came out, a way to be around others who were like them. I think the reason that the show has survived is because of the cult following it's built up around people being able to be who they want to be. It's really a story of self-discovery, both from the character's point of view and from the audience who's viewing it. Which is why we thought the immersive experience was so important, because you're allowing people to be who they want to be, with the people they want to be with.
After the show ended, D’Arcy said to the audience, “Let San Francisco be San Francisco.” What about the show speaks like San Francisco? I think it comes down to having safe spaces to be with people, who are like-minded and want to be able to create this stuff. A place like Oasis, for the past 10 years, has been extremely important when it comes to providing that space. Not only for people to see shows that they want to see, but also, and maybe even more importantly, for people to perform and create the art that they want to. It becomes harder to find certain things because our avenues to perform and our locations to perform get smaller. So a place like Oasis has been extremely important in letting San Francisco be San Francisco. That’s something that D’Arcy speaks to every night at the closing of the show. People need to keep making stuff. Just because a place closes doesn't mean the party's over. It means we're moving the party to another place now.
The show uses all of the space at Oasis. When I say all of the space, I mean all of it. As you walk in through the front door into the lobby, you see a wedding happen. Then, you go into the main Oasis room and people are performing on stage. They interact with the audience. Talk about the creative process.
When we wanted to move the show over to Oasis, I was passionate about giving it a different feel. It needed to have a different way of expressing, for the audience to track through the show. The club is already divided up so perfectly for something like that. I think before we did our very first rehearsal there, we saw a couple of “Princess” [drag] shows and we were like, “Yes, this is the right vibe. How can we use some of this to create the story that we're trying to tell and use all of the club?” It was just a natural fit as we walked through and figured it out. Over the years, we've expanded the experience. There's a secret dance club that happens in the toilet area.
I love that the show really feels like the stage is part of the mansion that we see in the film. A character in the show asked, “Are we at a gay nightclub?”
That line, admittedly, we've taken some liberties with. The original line is “We're in some sort of hunting lodge for freaks.” We didn’t want it. So we changed the line because we think it speaks to what the club and the castle is.
It’s very San Francisco. It's a love letter to the fans. So you've been working on this production for a long time with D’Arcy. Talk about that relationship. We started in 2015 [at the Victoria Theatre] and I didn't even know D’Arcy. I knew D’Arcy's name. Then, a person who was working with D’Arcy at the time, Bobby Bryce, was our choreographer for the very first year in 2015. We were desperate and needed a Frank-N-Furter. We wanted to have a brand new person who no one had seen on our stage before. Bobby suggested D’Arcy. I said, “Well, I've only heard this person's name. They seem like a big deal. Do you think we're able to get them?” D’Arcy came in and behold– huge fan of the show and Frank-N-Furter. She had been thinking about [playing Frank-N-Furter] for years but just hadn't found a spot. The two of us immediately clicked. Over the past 10 years, it's been a fortunate thing to be on this ride with someone who you really believe in their work, and they believe in your work.
You're both passionate. I could definitely see that. So there's a well-known line from the movie when Dr. Frank-N-Furter says, “Don't dream it. Be it.” What does that line mean to you?
This is something that D'Arcy pushes at the end of the show. It goes back to “Keep San Francisco, San Francisco.” There are so many people who don't have the ability to be the things they want to be. I think the line, and the way we interpret it, kind of means keep going. Whatever that thing is that you're thinking about, go out there and try to do it. Go out there and be it.
“Rocky Horror” is currently running at Oasis in San Francisco until November 1. Tickets are sold out, but they’ll have a limited amount at the box office on the day of each show.
