Picture shows to help build antici . . . . . .pation

RICHARD TAYLOR: Creator of Riff Raff statue. 

Source: http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/waikatotimes/0,2106,3104967a6004,00.html

22 November 2004
By TRACEY COOPER

With just four days to go, Hamilton is beginning to "shiver with antici . . . . . .pation".

Fans will recognise that line from Sweet Transvestite, a song from the cult classic Rocky Horror Picture Show.

And city residents will recognise the fans on Friday night when they jump to the left and step to the right as the Time Warp makes its way along Victoria St to the unveiling of the Riff Raff statue –- forged in honour of former Hamilton barber Richard O'Brien.

O'Brien left the city in the 1960s and flourished in London, where he created the Rocky Horror Picture Show and played the butler Riff Raff in the movie and stage shows.

The Riff Raff statue has been created by Weta Workshop's Richard Taylor, who said it was the first piece of public sculpture the Lord of the Rings' special effects company had worked on.

"This cult classic, which was born in Hamilton, has a place in the hearts of many people the world over," he said.

The statue will be unveiled on the old Embassy Theatre site –- where O'Brien worked –- at midnight on Friday, with entertainment from 9pm.

To get in the mood, Hamilton's Victoria Cinema is hosting a couple of late night, double feature picture shows.

On Wednesday it will be The Day the Earth Stood Still and Forbidden Planet.

On Thursday it's the 1933 classic King Kong and the second is, of course, the Rocky Horror Picture Show –- the interactive version.