Shivering with Anticipation for Rocky Horror at Cine El Rey

Throughout October, Pluma Blanca Community Theatre has been putting on shadowcast performances of “Rocky Horror Picture Show” for the Halloween season as part of a longstanding tradition. 

When asked how “Rocky Horror Picture Show” is different from other productions, Gina Kiern, a co-director of shadowcast explained that actors pantomime and lip sync the actions of the actors in the film. Audience participation is also important, through the use of prop bags.

“The audience is 100% involved in the experience,” Kiern said. “This is not a passive experience.” 

Kiern and Jasmin Coddington-Landero are first-time co-directors of the shadowcast this year. Kiern is a mother who previously did theatre in high school, and later decided to go back to her roots, having joined community theatre three years ago. 

“I like it because we have different strengths and weaknesses, and it works,” Kiern explained. “We just support each other. To have somebody that you can collaborate with and lean on has been really cool.” 

For Coddington-Landero, this is her third year with the shadowcast. 

She first played the character Riff Raff in 2022, then was the assistant director of last year’s show to co-director this year. 

“It was way more stressful. As an actor, I would just show up and perform. As a director, I feel like I worked overtime for the show, trying to stay organized on top of rehearsals and props and breakdowns and advertising,” said Coddington-Landero on how she felt going from cast member to directing. 

Jolyssa Perez, a theatre sophomore, has been excited about her experience as a performer. 

“My first experience and exposure with Rocky Horror was “Glee” and “Perks of Being a Wallflower,” Perez said.

Perez is playing the character Magenta, on top of working two jobs, two theatre productions with The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, and is a full time student. While it is difficult for Perez to balance her participation in “Rocky Horror Picture Show” with school and work, she said she does it out of love.

The first performance was on Oct. 4.

“Once people started coming in and the music and the lights and everything was there, it felt like a community,” said Perez regarding her first performance. “The energy was perfect.”

Clover Puente (they/them), a UTRGV mass communication senior, who plays Dr. Everett Scott, expressed their admiration of the film as the motivation for them to be part of the cast. 

“I’ve been in love with the “Rocky Horror Picture Show” since I watched it,” Puente said. “Probably too young of an age to watch it, but everyone does that.” 

Throughout this experience, Puente found they enjoyed performing in front of a crowd more than they expected. 

Puente’s character doesn’t appear on stage until Act 3, allowing them to see the audience from the sidelines. 

“I’m watching the whole thing, and it’s so much fun getting to see everybody’s reactions,” they said. 

When talking about their thoughts on the local theatre scene in McAllen, the two co-directors are optimistic on the community’s prospects. 

“I feel that it is definitely growing, I think there’s more room for improvement just because it’s so small,” Coddington-Landero said. 

“There are so many talented kiddos and people,” Kiern added. “I love that there’s still a lot of opportunities. I think it’s pretty active and I’m really excited to be a part of it.” 

Jaclyn Flores-Barreriro, a UTRGV graduate with a bachelor’s in theatre, is reprising her role as Janet Weiss this year.

Flores-Barreriro is grateful to be a part of Pluma Blanca Community Theatre and its emphasis on inclusivity, especially with the LGBTQ+ themes of Rocky Horror. 

“We don’t care about race or gender or sexuality,” she said. “We want people, all of us to come here and have a place and a home to perform safely and just be themselves.” 

The Halloween show, the last performance of the season, is this Saturday.