For a certain kind of theater kid, midnight movie misfit, or queerdo, Tim Curry gave us permission to be weird. Permission to be sexy. Permission to belt “Sweet Transvestite” at top volume in a packed theater. On Saturday at the Sydney Goldstein Theater, that love came full circle.
If you were one of the thousands of queer or questioning kids Time Warping at a midnight showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, you know the deep impact Curry’s performance has had on our psyches. Over the decades, he’d marched, tiptoed, snuck, and occasionally terrified us in his roles.
Saturday’s show was part of SF Sketchfest, the city’s long-running comedy and pop culture festival, which has a habit of gathering cult icons for onstage tributes. This one, hosted by Peaches Christ, was equal parts drag spectacle and career retrospective — clips, performances, and a live conversation with Curry himself. If you grew up yelling callbacks at a midnight Rocky Horror screening, this was your Super Bowl.
A be-feathered, be-dazzled Sister Roma held court in the lobby, her gaze sweeping over the costumed crowd. When one particularly impressive look caught her attention, she crooked a perfectly manicured finger, summoning its wearer forward for inspection.
Before we could perish from anticipation (see what I did there?), Peaches Christ took the stage, leading us into a full-blown Tim Curry drag extravaganza.
Dance numbers vied with film clips, taking us from a baby-faced Curry flashing that devilish grin to his many transformations over the years. We watched him transform again and again. I spotted D’arcy Drollinger, Trixie Carr, Jason Brock, Valentine, and Lady Piranha among the performers. A raucous homage to Tim Curry’s iconic laugh stirred up long-buried memories.
When Tim Curry was finally brought on stage, the entire theater rose to its feet. Sitting before us in a wheelchair — a result of his 2012 stroke — Curry was met with cheers and tears. We shone every bit of love we had for the man who’d helped us find our own identities. It took almost a minute for Peaches Christ to quiet the crowd.
She did an admirable job of asking the questions we all wanted answered, without fan-girling too much. When asked how he felt about his cult following, Curry’s wry response was that he quite liked it. “Nothing I can do about it.”
The conversation started with Rocky Horror, of course. When Peaches asked what his favorite part of playing Frank-N-Furter was, Curry answered that he liked it when he got laid. After the laughter died down, he added, “Something we have in common.”
Curry called the Waverly Theater to see it for himself. When he identified himself as Tim Curry, the boy on the phone informed him that he was the third “Tim Curry” to call that day.
Peaches led us into Curry’s role of “The Darkness” in Legend, recalling how hot and bothered Curry’s “Satan with muscles” persona made her as a young person (she certainly wasn’t alone). “You really corrupted me!” she burst out.
“I’m very proud,” he replied.
Then came Clue. “I was astonished to be in a film with Madeline Kahn,” Curry said. “And she did not disappoint.”
And, of course, It (1990). When my therapist asks, “What scares you?”the first thing that comes to mind isn’t the headlines of doom, climate change, or even job security. No, it’s Tim Curry’s Pennywise, reaching for my ankles from the sewers.
“I approached the role very gingerly,” Curry said. “Because I wasn’t sure what I was going to do.”
Peaches told us that when the Haus of Cream walked by Curry backstage in full Pennywise regalia, he shrugged and said, “Been there. Done that.”
We moved on to Annie. When Peaches brought up his role as Rooster and working with Carol Burnett, whom Curry proclaimed he loved and adored. Curry’s paused thoughtfully, then added: “Annie? Not so much.”
Peaches reminded us of the Hollywood rule to never work with children or animals. Curry replied sourly, “She also had a dog.” We died.
As the night wound down, Peaches wrapped up by asking — “You’ve inspired so many of us. So many of us could have tried to quietly fit in. With what’s going on now, do you have advice?”
Curry thought for a moment and said, “Well, when the tough get going…” and once again, we were all on our feet. Tears and applause didn’t feel like enough.
On the way out, I ran into an elated Sister Roma. I asked her how Curry had impacted her.
“So, when I was in high school, I used to go see The Rocky Horror Picture Show at the midnight show with all my friends. We’d bring the newspapers, the squirt guns, and the rice, and live our best lives. I didn’t even know why it turned me on or why I was so intrigued by it. Later, I realized that he was giving me the courage to dream it and be it.”
Can you imagine a San Francisco without Sister Roma? Scandalous! Just one more reason to be thankful for Tim Curry. Go catch a shadow cast of The Rocky Horror Picture Show or Clue and have a little dream in the dark, hoping for the continued freedom to live our best lives.
Thank you so much, Mr. Curry.
Vita Hewitt is a Bay Area-based photographer, filmmaker, journalist, and writer.
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