by Blogbot
The Devil’s Carnival visited Santa Monica last Friday for the penultimate night of its encore tour. Inspired by The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the 60-minute rock musical is intended to be the first installment of what director Darren Lynn Bousman hopes will be an ongoing episodic cinematic experience. We arrived in the vicinity of Laemmle’s 4-Plex in Santa Monica at 8 PM in order to grab a bite to eat. Though it was a full two hours before the devilry was due to begin, a line of what was unmistakably Devil’s Carnival patrons had already formed down the block.
Once inside the cinema we were treated to performances from a couple of Vaudeville-style acts, though there was nothing Victorian about how a uniquely talented female performer deep throated a balloon of epic Ron Jeremy-proportions. Next, a collage of behind-the-scenes clips from Bousman’s previous musical endeavor, Repo! The Genetic Opera, afforded the audience an opportunity for a vocal warm up before the main event. It was impressive to see just how large of a proportion of those in the sold-out theater were word perfect as they sang along to favorites from the 4-year old soundtrack such a “Zydrate Anatomy.” A montage of singing videos sent in by fans and an on stage costume competition which paid tribute to the considerable sartorial efforts of the assembled helped further warm up the crowd for a night which was to be spent dancing with the Devil, as played by Terrance Zdunich, Bousman’s Repo! and Devil’s Carnival collaborator.
Bousman and Zdunich then took to the stage to introduce their film. Bousman explained to his fans that he’d wanted to create an experience that couldn’t be downloaded – though telling that to those inside the theater was tantamount to preaching to the choir, since they’d obviously left their computers behind to be there. Following the visually stunning and musically arresting film, the pair took to the stage again for a Q&A alongside other cast members including Dayton Callie (a.k.a. Chief Wayne Unser from Sons of Anarchy) and Repo! alumni Bill Moseley. The faithful would have asked questions all night had Bousman not brought things to a close so a merchandise signing session could begin. As fans lined up clutching posters and CDs, we headed out into the night with “In All My Dreams I Drown” spinning in our head. It’s testament to the strength of the score that almost a week later it’s still stuck there.
Photography: Nicole Powers
For more images from the night visit our Devil’s Carnival photo gallery.
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