Way back in the summer of ’03, my best friend developed rabid fanboyism for a certain singer who was called Meat Loaf. Now, be it luck, or destiny itself, but somehow he heard about the Rocky Horror Picture Show, a film which starred Mr. Loaf as one of its characters, Eddie.

So there I was, somehow coaxed into watching an old VHS copy of the RHPS, which was in slight disrepair. The movie’s inherent nature made my blood run cold from shock- and yet, I found myself loving every minute of it.

This was the start of my addiction. It would not be until a year later that I would attend my first live show.

Now, we had done extensive research on live shows before attending one ourselves. We knew that there was a “Virgin Sacrifice,” and that when attending a show, it was customary to dress up as your favorite character. So of course, we prepared for our first voyage into the unknown.

Not having been to the Beach Theater before, and therefore having no idea that cosplaying was a rarity outside of events such as Larger than Life’s annual production, I came to the show dressed as Riff-Raff, and my friend, Eddie.

That’s where I met Fish, who at the time was the regular Riff. Over time he eventually convinced me to join cast. Taking his words to heart, I wrote an E-Mail to the cast, requesting a position for the then-available Riff understudy slot. A few weeks later I was on cast and performing; and the rest is, as they say, history.

Three years later, I'm still performing with the cast of Interchangeable Parts. It is because of IP that I have any once of success in Tampa. Performing to a sold out house in the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center's Carol Morsani Hall, I find myself wondering why I'm there.

I can, without a doubt, say that Rocky was the best thing that's happened in my life thus far. The friends I've made while on cast, the opportunities presented to me to expand my horizons as an artist are irreplaceable. I struggle to think where I would be- what condition I would be in- if I wasn't surrounded by the same like-minded individuals- like-minded artists- every weekend at midnight.

I used to blame Meat Loaf. Now I blame fate.