The Original “A-Hole Brad” Barry Bostwick Hosts A Shadowcast Presentation Of ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ At Nightmare Weekend 2025
Michael Rennie was ill the day the earth stood still, but he told us where we stand. And Flash Gordon was there in silver underwear; Claude Rains was the invisible man. Then something went wrong for Fay Wray and King Kong. They got caught in a celluloid jam! Then at a deadly pace, it came from outer space, and this is how the message ran…
The crowd at Nightmare Weekend diminished considerably after the Exhibit Hall closed on Saturday night. The party was still going on the Main Stage, and in a handful of the smaller auditoriums, but most of the paying populace retreated back to their respective Fortresses of Solitude in one of the many overpriced lodgings that lie between the convention center, and the hellishly overcrowded O’Hare International Airport. A dozen hours of gawking, massive leg work, and excessive spending had left them utterly depleted, and a lot of them still had Sunday to get through. Within minutes, the citizens excused themselves before leaving the nocturnal revelers to their favorite obsessions, and they were even sensible enough to take their kids with them!
There were after hours costume contests, burlesque shows, late night hookups, and a multitude of people shambling around the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center, discreetly ingesting whatever mind-altering substances helped them with traversing the treacherous seas of social interactions. That’s when most of them found their way to one of the smaller rooms, and to the lovely folks awaiting them inside – Freaks of the night looking to thrill them, chill them, and fulfill them; to show them a world that takes a pickaxe to convention, while drinking those moments when the blackness would hit them, and the void would be calling…
“LET’S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!!!”
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For all the uninitiated virgins out there, it is based on the smash hit play The Rocky Horror Show (1973-present) by musician/actor Richard O’Brien (who plays Riff Raff in the movie, and co-wrote it with Jim Sharman), and it tells the story of a nerdy a–h–e named Brad (Barry Bostwick), and a sl-t named Janet (Susan Sarandon). They are an extremely vanilla couple who met in Dr. Scott’s college refresher course and were on their way to tell him about their recent engagement when Brad’s car got a flat tire. The naive couple were stranded in the rain at night, but that’s when they saw a light over at the Frankenstein Place that turns out to be the home of Dr. Frank-N-Furter (a brilliant performance by Tim Curry), a sweet transvestite from Transexual, Transylvania, who jumps at the opportunity to take Brad and Janet up to the lab and show them what’s on the slab.
The film has been a midnight staple at cinemas worldwide since it premiered 50 years ago. It was a pop culture phenomenon that encouraged individuals to challenge societal norms, and all while leaving the young ones at home where they belong. Unlike most movies, audience participation has always been a big part of the viewing experience with people shouting at the screen, and throwing household (and bedroom) appliances everywhere. To the point where fans would cosplay as the characters, and act out the scenes from their seats. This would lead to another great trend.
Since 1985, the Midnight Madness theater company in Chicago has been doing shadowcast productions of the gender-bending classic, and that entails everything mentioned in the previous paragraph, but the difference is that theater employees don’t harass them for dancing in the aisles. First timers (or at least the ones foolish enough to admit being one) are marked with a V (for Virgin!) on their forehead with a red sharpee, and the show begins with some light hazing on their behalf before they’re allowed to join the seasoned (and soiled) veterans. This time the good folks at MM took their show out of their local movie theater homebase (shoutout to the Music Box!), and brought it to Nightmare Weekend, but they didn’t come alone (and phrasing).
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Barry Bostwick was at the three-day convention signing autographs, taking selfies, and not getting weirded out when somebody says, “Oh, Brad…” while walking past his table (He-he-he). He made an appearance at the late night freakshow jubilee to hang with the cast (and one lone pseudo-journalist) before the doors opened, and then the actor got onstage to introduce the show once the patient proletariats were let into the room. Aside from being a friendly, witty octogenarian who still maintains a youthful glint of mischief in his eyes, Bostwick has always embraced the film, and the generations of fans who know the lines to it better than he does.
Something which he joyfully declared while reminiscing on the half century experience. “Richard O’Brien invited me to his orgy 50 years ago,” Bostwick said. “And I’ve never left!”
One of most popular traditions in the Rocky Horror live show experience is yelling “A–h–e!” whenever Brad is mentioned, and “Sl-t!” when it’s Janet’s turn. The vulgar monikers become understandable to newcomers as they watch the film, but it never gets old to watch their puzzled expressions before that moment of enlightenment. Not only does Brad agree that “Janet is most definitely a sl-t!” but he owns his title like a gleaming badge that should never be taken out into public during daylight hours.
He was met a standing ovation when he declared this at the end of his introduction. “I have been able to fulfill my boyhood dream of being the biggest a–hole in history!”
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is available to rent on Prime. It’s just a jump to the left!
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