‘Let’s do the Time Warp again!’: Stage Left visits Transylvania for ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’

Nearly 50 years after the original staging of Richard O’Brien’s “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” the play and subsequent film adaptation continue to garner a cult following.

Directed by Heather McHenry-Kroetch and Troy Nickerson with musical director Cedric Bidwell-Williams, the show will run at Stage Left Theater Thursdays through Sundays Nov. 19.

If you don’t have tickets, well, you’re too late. The show was completely sold out a week before opening night.

A campy, comedic parody of B-movie horror and science fiction films from the 1930s to 1960s, “Rocky Horror” is “for the dreamers and the disenfranchised,” Stage Left artistic director Jeremy Whittington said in a press release.

Stranded during a storm, sweethearts Brad (Robert Cordero) and Janet (Taylor Wenglikowski) come upon the mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Gabriel A. Conesa Caquias), a transvestite scientist. As the pair stumble further into the mansion they meet an increasingly eccentric cast of characters, their story – full of love, sexuality and self-acceptance – unfolds through a series of dance numbers and rock songs.

For generations of Americans, Whittington said, “Rocky Horror” would’ve been a first for many when it came to witnessing depictions of gender fluidity, whether on stage or on screen. And while many members of the cast have had the chance to grow up with other examples, the characters in Rocky Horror still hold a special place in their memories.

Caquias, a nonbinary performer who uses they/them pronouns, is thrilled to be taking on the role of Frank-N-Furter, the musical’s famously self-proclaimed “sweet transvestite from transexual Transylvania.”

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Caquias moved to the United States in 2015. Settling in the Spokane area after some time in Colorado and later in Omak, Caquias attended Eastern Washington University.

Caquias’ experience of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” – one to which many musical theater fans can surely relate – involved stumbling across a YouTube clip from the film in the wee hours of the morning.

“This was actually even before I was on stage, before I fully got into theater,” Caquias said. “I watched ‘Rocky Horror’ once and fully fell in love with the whole show.”

From the costumes to the opening chords of “Sweet Transvestite,” everything about the show screamed, “get out there and be yourself.”

Caquias hopes the Stage Left production continues sharing the same message.

“This has made me feel more confident in doing what I want, wearing what I want, being myself and not being afraid of anything,” Caquias said. “I want the audience to feel that confidence … fully accepting themselves and each other.”

Joining Caquias on stage, the cast will also feature Scott Lind, Thomas Heppler, Patrick McHenry-Kroetch, Claire Hermann, Aubree Peterson, Will Dowling, Karlin Kahler, Ollie Davies, Amanda Hampton, Barry Saxton, and Bee Aaron.

For more information, visit stagelefttheater.org.