The last Broadway revival of Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show was in 2001.  The new one by Roundabout Theatre Company makes you wonder what took so long.

Nearly everything about this production is terrific: Luke Evans’ masculine, mustachioed Frank-N-Furter; Amber Gray’s Riff Raff, with bleached braids and black lipstick, a little like Dwight Frye in the old Universal monster movies; Rachel Dratch’s criminologist, her boxy movements and SNL line readings perfect for the role’s deadpans.  The set design by dots, packed with candelabras, staircases, and statues, evokes movies like The Old Dark House.  The costume design by David I. Reynoso is full of great details, from Brad’s semi-rimless glasses to the teal coloring of the Usherette’s outfit.  The cast sings the songs well, with enough variations from prior recordings while still remaining faithful to the source material.  Music continues to play during intermission, keeping the energy up during the break. (Why don’t more musicals do this?)

Any production of The Rocky Horror Show has to contend with the popularity of the movie, with its established subculture of call-and-response.  There’s been a lot of media attention on how this has shaken out at Studio 54, but at the performance I attended, there was a reasonable balance between midnight movie and Broadway show.  The audience mostly restricted itself to callouts during dialogue, not songs, and the actors (Dratch, in particular) were adept at fielding these volleys from the crowd.

This isn’t a perfect production.  I had a little trouble hearing Harvey Guillén (Eddie and Dr. Scott), and “Hot Patootie, Bless My Soul” really needs to be belted.  Juliette Lewis (Magenta and Usherette) is all right, but not good enough to make this feel like anything but bizarre stunt casting.  Still, these are quibbles, and I otherwise could not be happier with this revival of The Rocky Horror Show.

Now only one question remains: when am I going to see it again?

The Rocky Horror Show runs through November 29th at Studio 54.  254 W. 54th Street  New York, NY.  1 hour 50 minutes.  One intermission. Photograph by Joan Marcus.