UM cheerleader is Rocky in Missoula's 'Rocky Horror Show Live' - Montana Kaimin

October 23, 2019 at 10:55PM

RockyHorror01.jpg
University of Montana cheerleader Tyler Iverson plays Dr. Frank-N-Furter's creation, Rocky, in "The Rocky Horror Show Live," which will be playing at the Wilma on Oct. 25th and 26th.

A stadium full of people cheering and screaming. The abandoned Mismo Gymnastics Center. In either environment, Tyler Iverson of the UM Cheer Squad, is just as comfortable.

Iverson's silhouette is tall and muscular. But as he waits to go on the Mismo stage, Iverson is anything but intimidating as he jumps and dances to the groovy tunes as he watches the cast of "Rocky Horror Show Live!", his face lights up with a mixture of excitement and concentration. The blue floor bounces with every barefooted step.

Iverson towers above most of his castmates from "Rocky Horror Show Live!" as he jogs around the edge of the gym floor, enters from stage right, and brings to life a certain doctor's creation with flexing muscles.

Iverson darts around the stage throughout the musical number, throwing confused glances at the other characters. He lifts one of the actresses up high enough to hide his face behind her body as he's chased through the scene, although he's far too large to hide behind anyone. His frame and his cropped blonde hair made him an ideal choice for the character. 

That might have been why director Reid Reimers called Buck Claesson, the Cheer Squad head coach at UM, to ask if Iverson would be interested in performing the role of Rocky. 

Iverson relates to Rocky, which is why he thinks he is the easiest character he could play on the show.

"He's new to everything, but he's also this big muscle man who has no idea what's going on half the time, which is my life," Iverson said. "And he's just confused and he's having fun with it."

Iverson is more used to performing athletically than artistically, although some could argue that throwing human beings on top of other human beings is an art form. He's been on high school and collegiate cheerleading teams for nine years, and even performed competitively during his freshman year at UM. Iverson is perfectly suited to the UM football field, where he spends game days throwing stunts with cheerleaders.

 Peyton Croaker, a sophomore studying psychology, is Iverson's primary partner. The stunts they, as well as the rest of the team, throw require balance, practice, and — indispensably — trust in one's partner. But after nine years of cheer, Croaker says Iverson knows both the guys' and girls' technical aspects of the stunts. 

"He is like the cheer god," she said.

The team gets closer as the semester goes on. Iverson, Croaker and Ross Coleman, the cheer squad's team captain and one of Iverson's best friends, all refer to being on the cheer squad as a family. They have game and movie nights whenever their schedules allow it. Iverson makes it when he can, but whenever he isn't cheering, working out, working, or studying, he's at rehearsals for "Rocky Horror."

The potential for being falsely stereotyped has come up before. But Iverson said stereotypes like flamboyant male cheerleaders and self-centered female cheerleaders are not at all true at UM. Coleman said when he began cheering in high school alongside Iverson, it felt odd at first. He thought it would be something like "High School Musical," where the guys would have the same job as the girls instead of doing stunts. Although he felt he had to explain what he was doing on the squad to his peers, he quickly realized cheer is just like any other sport, any other team.

Iverson hasn't ever quite felt held down by stereotypes, either on the side of being a male cheerleader or a "quirky" actor in a chaotic play. And he doesn't mind walking around in gold underwear for almost the entire show. He claims he's sung the Barbie theme song in front of an entire basketball stadium. As long as he gets to be himself, at least a little, Iverson is on board. The only thing he isn't sure about is wearing fishnet tights and high heels.

 "It's definitely fun and uncomfortable," he said. "But I'm going to do it regardless."

Darkitecture and disorientation
RockyHorror01.jpg
University of Montana cheerleader Tyler Iverson plays Dr. Frank-N-Furter's creation, Rocky, in "The Rocky Horror Show Live," which will be playing at the Wilma on Oct. 25th and 26th.

A stadium full of people cheering and screaming. The abandoned Mismo Gymnastics Center. In either environment, Tyler Iverson of the UM Cheer Squad, is just as comfortable.

Iverson's silhouette is tall and muscular. But as he waits to go on the Mismo stage, Iverson is anything but intimidating as he jumps and dances to the groovy tunes as he watches the cast of "Rocky Horror Show Live!", his face lights up with a mixture of excitement and concentration. The blue floor bounces with every barefooted step.

Iverson towers above most of his castmates from "Rocky Horror Show Live!" as he jogs around the edge of the gym floor, enters from stage right, and brings to life a certain doctor's creation with flexing muscles.

Iverson darts around the stage throughout the musical number, throwing confused glances at the other characters. He lifts one of the actresses up high enough to hide his face behind her body as he's chased through the scene, although he's far too large to hide behind anyone. His frame and his cropped blonde hair made him an ideal choice for the character. 

That might have been why director Reid Reimers called Buck Claesson, the Cheer Squad head coach at UM, to ask if Iverson would be interested in performing the role of Rocky. 

Iverson relates to Rocky, which is why he thinks he is the easiest character he could play on the show.

"He's new to everything, but he's also this big muscle man who has no idea what's going on half the time, which is my life," Iverson said. "And he's just confused and he's having fun with it."

Iverson is more used to performing athletically than artistically, although some could argue that throwing human beings on top of other human beings is an art form. He's been on high school and collegiate cheerleading teams for nine years, and even performed competitively during his freshman year at UM. Iverson is perfectly suited to the UM football field, where he spends game days throwing stunts with cheerleaders.

 Peyton Croaker, a sophomore studying psychology, is Iverson's primary partner. The stunts they, as well as the rest of the team, throw require balance, practice, and — indispensably — trust in one's partner. But after nine years of cheer, Croaker says Iverson knows both the guys' and girls' technical aspects of the stunts. 

"He is like the cheer god," she said.

The team gets closer as the semester goes on. Iverson, Croaker and Ross Coleman, the cheer squad's team captain and one of Iverson's best friends, all refer to being on the cheer squad as a family. They have game and movie nights whenever their schedules allow it. Iverson makes it when he can, but whenever he isn't cheering, working out, working, or studying, he's at rehearsals for "Rocky Horror."

The potential for being falsely stereotyped has come up before. But Iverson said stereotypes like flamboyant male cheerleaders and self-centered female cheerleaders are not at all true at UM. Coleman said when he began cheering in high school alongside Iverson, it felt odd at first. He thought it would be something like "High School Musical," where the guys would have the same job as the girls instead of doing stunts. Although he felt he had to explain what he was doing on the squad to his peers, he quickly realized cheer is just like any other sport, any other team.

Iverson hasn't ever quite felt held down by stereotypes, either on the side of being a male cheerleader or a "quirky" actor in a chaotic play. And he doesn't mind walking around in gold underwear for almost the entire show. He claims he's sung the Barbie theme song in front of an entire basketball stadium. As long as he gets to be himself, at least a little, Iverson is on board. The only thing he isn't sure about is wearing fishnet tights and high heels.

 "It's definitely fun and uncomfortable," he said. "But I'm going to do it regardless."

Darkitecture and disorientation

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