I recently went with some friends to see The Rocky Horror Picture Show which I last saw as a student many years ago. The theatre, in the middle of a suburban town was packed for the matinee performance with an age range from twenty somethings to considerably older! Many were dressed in costume (have a look online if you don’t know the show).
Some of us had seen it before, some hadn’t but by the end of it we all came out buzzing and saying what a fantastic production it was. To have lasted over 40 years is an amazing achievement, especially given that the subject matter/story line is unusual to say the least! When looking for a description to summarise the show, the best one I could find online was this:
“This is an exceedingly grand visual and musical camp satire of the golden days of the B-movie horror and science-fiction genres.”
Like any successful product, it has some core ingredients:
- It is spectacular and attention grabbing
- It is clever with witty dialogue
- It is fast moving and entertaining
- It involves the audience – it is engaging
- It doesn’t take itself too seriously
The audience participation is particularly important. Not only are the audience expected/encouraged to respond/retort to the scripted lines, but extravagant costumes are common, and there are dance moves that everyone can join in with.
It’s quite an edgy show with a lot of things I wouldn’t want my children to see, but overall it’s extremely entertaining and has stood the test of time well!
From a marketing point of view, if you want to create a successful product you could apply a lot of the above principles.
The show is currently touring the UK if you’re interested! Click here to find out more.