Difference between revisions of "The Tiffany Troupe"

Latest revision as of 09:25, 10 October 2023

The Tiffany Troupe circa 1979 Left to Right: Patti Freiwald, Terri Hardin, Garrett Gafford, "Queen" George Hamilton

The Tiffany Troupe circa 1981

Flier for the 3rd Anniversary Show (start of 4th year)

The Tiffany Troupe was the Rocky Horror performance group at the legendary Tiffany Theater from 1977 to 1983.
The Tiffany Troupe is featured in Creatures Of The Night: The Rocky Horror Picture Show Experience by Sal Piro.

Cast Location: West Hollywood, CA

Cast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/183159695069949/

Cast Status: Legendary (Retired)

Cast Venues: Tiffany Theater

Show Frequency: Every Weekend - Twice nightly on Friday & Saturday

Cast History

Not officially named or organized by current standards, "The Tiffany Troupe" was the Rocky Horror performance group at the legendary Tiffany Theater in West Hollywood, CA from 1977 to 1983. The Sunset Strip location became a sought-out destination by Rocky Horror enthusiasts all over the world, and the theater itself gained a well-earned reputation early on as one of the most boisterous venues ever for The Rocky Horror Picture Show. At its peak, the line began forming before 10 PM, as it was generally sold out long before the doors opened for the Midnight show, creating a need for 2 AM screenings on both Friday and Saturday (and Thursday at Midnight in the summer months).

Initially, the earliest performers often referred to themselves as "The Group," (as in "I'm part of the group who performs") which later morphed into "The Troupe." The performance was known as "The Floor Show," which was the act before each screening, consisting of performing to the soundtrack LP, and occasionally other music that played as the audience filtered in and found their seats. The principle cast members generally took up the whole front row, though sitting on the floor in front of the front row or in the aisles became fairly standard for many long-time attendees who got into the theater without tickets, and spent as much time in the theater lobby as inside the auditorium watching the film. Although there was plenty of Audience Participation throughout each screening, it wasn't until the '80s that the entire film was acted out in front of the screen as it is today. The cast however, had regular, planned participation from their seats that went between the usual callbacks. Much of the activity was developed because of the low profile of the Tiffany's screen, making it easy to make shadows directly into the movie. Most popular were creating shadows of the letters "J-A-N-E-T" from the back of the theater during "Dammit Janet" by holding up marquee letters, or giant, shadow hands from the middle of the theater cupping and caressing Janet's breasts during "Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me"-- making the Tiffany LITERALLY the first place with a Shadowcast. Of course, virtually everyone got up to dance "The Time Warp", and the cast members all danced and acted along to the pre-show videos of Tim Curry's "Paradise Garage" and "I Do The Rock."

The longest performing Frank N Furter was Garrett Gafford, an admitted transsexual, who at the time was saving up for the operation. The premiere Magenta was Terri Hardin, who at the time was a puppeteer for Sid and Marty Krofft. The lead performers remained in place, and the supporting players were generally replaced in a semi-formal manner, though many nights the rotation was free-form, and just about anyone who wanted to could take part in the performances.Part of the rotating nature of the cast was due to so many fans from so many different areas (regular or not) showing up in costume on any given night. The one constant was Garrett in the lead from early 1978 through mid 1981 when Garrett retired from performing. In 1982, Shock Treatment was added at Midnight on Thursdays and 2 AM on Saturday in place of Rocky Horror, with the by-then more structured cast doing double-duty. The Tiffany Troupe gave their final performance on March 13, 1983 when the Tiffany Theater was closed as a cinema.

30 years after the theater closed, on March 9, 2013, a group of around 30 alumni of the group met up for the I Survived the Tiffany Reunion. The group convened for a group photo on the site where the abandoned theater stood on the Sunset Strip. The group then met for several hours of reminiscing at famed Canter's Deli, where many late-night/early-morning, post-Rocky gatherings were had from 1977-1983. Later that night, the group headed to the Nuart Theater for a midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, which was preceded by a special video culled from archival footage of the group.

Less than 6 months after the reunion, the Tiffany Theater was razed, to make way for a much-protested development of a hotel and multi-use building project.

Alumni Members

June 10, 1977 - March 13, 1983

Frank:

• Garrett Gafford (aka D. Garrett Gafford)
• Michael Wolfson
• Tammy Freiwald
• Michael Danke
• Michelle Helseth

Janet:

• Lisa McKinnis
• Bobbi Snider
• Tori (Last Name?)
• Jamie Wayman
• Laura King
• Julie Reagan
• Chris Sproull

Brad:

• Brad Branson
• Jim Cochrane
• Josh Bornstein
• Del Wells
• Dave Acosta

Riff Raff:

• Philo Barnhart
• Cory Haibloom
• "Queen" George Hamilton
• Mark Presley
• Tom Murphy
• Richard Gifford
• John Cunningham

Magenta:

• Terri Hardin
• Diana Fitzgerald
• Karen Borter
• Joanna Morales
• Dawn Friewald
• Brandi Gifford
• Jill McManus

Columbia:

• Elaine O'Rourke
• Patti Freiwald
• Myrna (Last Name?)
• Marc-e Gervais
• Julie Ford
• Michele Morris
• Lori Rizzo
• Shani Moore

Rocky:

• Brad Thompson
• "Queen" George Hamilton
• Michael Danke

Eddie:

• Christine Grisanti
• Mike Hansen

Dr. Scott:

• Vid Kadavre
• Dave Smithson

The Criminologist:

• Troy Martin

Trixie:

• Lisa Kurtz Sutton

Space Suit Riff-Raff:

• Mark Presley

Space Suit Magenta:

• Jacquie Llywen
• Terri Hardin

Floorshow Columbia:

• Lisa Kurtz Sutton

Electric Xmas Brad:

• Jay Goldstein

American Gothic Farmer:

• Lisa Kurtz Sutton

Transylvanians, Employees & Other Participants of Note:

• Steve Laybourn Cartoon
• Dawn Morrison
• Caron Leon
• Meredith Jacobson Marciano
• Stacy Homan
• Michael Sugar
• Meryl Senatt
• David Bryant
• Brett Pearce
• Elliot Katz
• Terri Semper
• George Caceres
• Jason Ward
• Hale Fox
• Cyn McKee
• Al The Doorman
• Steve Fobert
• Dennis Miller
• Leonard The Button Man
• Ann The Button Lady
• ...and JP The Button Dog

Absent Friends

• Garrett Gafford
• Richard Gifford
• Brandi Johnson
• "Queen" George Hamilton
• David Bryant
• Tami Nelson
• Dawn Morrison
• Hilary Laddin
• Brad Branson
• Jim Cochrane
• Gilbert Shannon
• Bonnie Rose
• Nora McGilliivray
• Tammy Freiwald
• Dawn Freiwald
• David Cruikshank

Special Shows

• The Rocky Horror Picture Show 3rd Anniversary Floor Show featuring Costumes from the Roxy (June 6, 1980)
• The Rocky Horror Picture Show 4th Anniversary Floor Show featuring Barry Bostwick (June 19, 1981)

Public Appearances

• Two On The Town - CBS Television News Program (June 1978)
• Rialto Theatre (Halloween 1978)
• Wilshire Theater, Fullerton CA (March 1979)
• Rocky Horror Hair Show - Sherman Oaks, CA (Nov 1979)
• Fade To Black - Feature Film (1980) [1]
• That's Hollywood - "Midnight Movie Mania" episode, ABC Television (1981)
• Vice Squad - Feature Film (1982) [2]
• Valley Girl - Feature Film (1983) [3]
• Solid Gold - "Step By Step" video clip by Eddie Rabbit (1983)
• I Survived the Tiffany Reunion (March 9, 2013)

References

Rocky Horror At The Tiffany Theater [4]