Welcome to My Nightmare (film)
Encyclopedia
Welcome to My Nightmare is a 1976 music concert film
of Alice Cooper
's show of the same name, produced, directed and choreographed by David Winters
. The film accompanied the album, the stage show (also produced, directed and choreographed by Winters) by the same name and the TV Special The Nightmare, the first ever rock music video album, starring Cooper and Vincent Price
in person. Though it failed at the box office, it later became a midnight movie favorite and a cult classic.
In 1975, Alice Cooper
released his first solo album, Welcome to My Nightmare
, and a huge theatrical stage show was created and put together by Winters to 'tour the album'. Whilst in the past the Alice Cooper stage show was semi-improvisatory, with confrontational elements of violence and satire (see Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper
), the new production was purely horror-themed and professionally choreographed
and performed to the split second (Winters had a long history of choreographing and directing big celebrity films, stage and TV shows starring in the cast of West Side Story
and choreographing 4 films with Elvis Presley
and 5 films with Ann-Margret
). With the edginess removed (gone were the bloody guillotine, the spit and the skewered baby dolls, although "Only Women Bleed" presented a drunken, physically abusive side to the character), the Welcome to My Nightmare show was part a carefully planned move toward a more mainstream-friendly 'Alice'.
Welcome to My Nightmare was a phantasmagorical exposition of music and theatre themed around a nightmare experienced by a young boy named Steven. Costing US$600,000 to produce, the show was a grand visual spectacle with an elaborate stage set, pre-filmed projections, four dancers, and elaborate costumes. Set in a graveyard/bedroom, a well-drilled band ran through the new album and a selection of older hits, whilst Alice encountered giant spiders, dancing skeletons, faceless silver demons and a 9-foot 'cyclops'.
Concert footage was taken from a series of London shows at the Wembley Arena
on September 11–12, 1975, but the film was a box office failure in its original 1976 release. However, like The Rocky Horror Picture Show
, Phantom of the Paradise
and others, Welcome to My Nightmare found a low-volume but dependable audience on the midnight movie circuit. The film is out of sequence with the live show, and the final Department of Youth segment has some post-production inserts.
The film was first issued as a videocassette in 1981 with numerous reissues since, and a DVD
version was released in 2002.
Before "Some Folks", a short medley
was performed as the dancers danced in their skeleton costumes. The medley consisted of "Halo of Flies" (from Cooper's Killer album), "The Black Widow", and "Didn't We Meet" (which would be released on Cooper's next album, Alice Cooper Goes to Hell
).
Track Listing:
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
of Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
's show of the same name, produced, directed and choreographed by David Winters
David Winters (choreographer)
David Winters is an English-born American dancer, choreographer, producer, director, screenwriter, and actor. Winters has participated in, directed and produced over 400 television series, specials, and motion pictures...
. The film accompanied the album, the stage show (also produced, directed and choreographed by Winters) by the same name and the TV Special The Nightmare, the first ever rock music video album, starring Cooper and Vincent Price
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
in person. Though it failed at the box office, it later became a midnight movie favorite and a cult classic.
In 1975, Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
released his first solo album, Welcome to My Nightmare
Welcome to My Nightmare
Welcome to My Nightmare is the eighth album by Alice Cooper, released in 1975. This was Alice Cooper's first solo album . The cover artwork was created by Drew Struzan for Pacific Eye & Ear. Rolling Stone would later rank it as one of the "Top 100 Album Covers Of All Time".Welcome to My Nightmare...
, and a huge theatrical stage show was created and put together by Winters to 'tour the album'. Whilst in the past the Alice Cooper stage show was semi-improvisatory, with confrontational elements of violence and satire (see Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper
Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper
Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper is an Alice Cooper film. First released as a feature film in 1974 and eventually restored and released onto DVD in 2005, this movie features footage of a live show from the band's Billion Dollar Babies tour, filmed in Texas in April 1973, with some footage from...
), the new production was purely horror-themed and professionally choreographed
Choreography
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
and performed to the split second (Winters had a long history of choreographing and directing big celebrity films, stage and TV shows starring in the cast of West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
and choreographing 4 films with Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
and 5 films with Ann-Margret
Ann-Margret
Ann-Margret Olsson is a Swedish-American actress, singer and dancer whose professional name is Ann-Margret. She became famous for her starring roles in Bye Bye Birdie, Viva Las Vegas, The Cincinnati Kid, Carnal Knowledge, and Tommy...
). With the edginess removed (gone were the bloody guillotine, the spit and the skewered baby dolls, although "Only Women Bleed" presented a drunken, physically abusive side to the character), the Welcome to My Nightmare show was part a carefully planned move toward a more mainstream-friendly 'Alice'.
Welcome to My Nightmare was a phantasmagorical exposition of music and theatre themed around a nightmare experienced by a young boy named Steven. Costing US$600,000 to produce, the show was a grand visual spectacle with an elaborate stage set, pre-filmed projections, four dancers, and elaborate costumes. Set in a graveyard/bedroom, a well-drilled band ran through the new album and a selection of older hits, whilst Alice encountered giant spiders, dancing skeletons, faceless silver demons and a 9-foot 'cyclops'.
Concert footage was taken from a series of London shows at the Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena is an indoor arena, at Wembley, in the London Borough of Brent. The building is opposite Wembley Stadium.-History:...
on September 11–12, 1975, but the film was a box office failure in its original 1976 release. However, like The Rocky Horror Picture Show
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is the 1975 film adaptation of the British rock musical stageplay, The Rocky Horror Show, written by Richard O'Brien. The film is a parody of B-movie, science fiction and horror films of the late 1940s through early 1970s. Director Jim Sharman collaborated on the...
, Phantom of the Paradise
Phantom of the Paradise
Phantom of the Paradise is a 1974 musical film written and directed by Brian De Palma. The story is a loosely adapted mixture of The Phantom of the Opera, The Picture of Dorian Gray and Faust and also briefly references Frankenstein and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari...
and others, Welcome to My Nightmare found a low-volume but dependable audience on the midnight movie circuit. The film is out of sequence with the live show, and the final Department of Youth segment has some post-production inserts.
The film was first issued as a videocassette in 1981 with numerous reissues since, and a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
version was released in 2002.
Before "Some Folks", a short medley
Medley (music)
In music, a medley is a piece composed from parts of existing pieces, usually three, played one after another, sometimes overlapping. They are common in popular music, and most medleys are songs rather than instrumental. A medley which is a remixed series is called a megamix, often done with tracks...
was performed as the dancers danced in their skeleton costumes. The medley consisted of "Halo of Flies" (from Cooper's Killer album), "The Black Widow", and "Didn't We Meet" (which would be released on Cooper's next album, Alice Cooper Goes to Hell
Alice Cooper Goes to Hell
Alice Cooper Goes to Hell is the ninth studio album by Alice Cooper, released in 1976. A sequel to Welcome to My Nightmare, this concept album was written almost exclusively by Cooper with guitar player Dick Wagner and producer Bob Ezrin....
).
Track Listing:
- Opening creditsOpening creditsIn a motion picture, television program, or video game, the opening credits are shown at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes on top of action in the show. There...
- The Awakening - Welcome To My NightmareWelcome to My NightmareWelcome to My Nightmare is the eighth album by Alice Cooper, released in 1975. This was Alice Cooper's first solo album . The cover artwork was created by Drew Struzan for Pacific Eye & Ear. Rolling Stone would later rank it as one of the "Top 100 Album Covers Of All Time".Welcome to My Nightmare...
- Years Ago
- No More Mr. Nice Guy
- Years Ago (reprise)
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Years Ago (reprise)
- I'm EighteenI'm Eighteen"I'm Eighteen" is a 1970 song by rock band Alice Cooper, featured on their first major label release album Love It to Death. It was released in November 1970, 3 months prior to the album, and became the band's breakthrough hit.-Achievements:...
- Some Folks
- Cold Ethyl
- Only Women BleedOnly Women Bleed"Only Women Bleed" is a song written by the musicians Alice Cooper and Dick Wagner. It is a ballad about a woman in an abusive marriage.It is one of Cooper's biggest hits, reaching #1 on the Canadian RPM national singles chart and #12 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1975. It is from...
- Devil's Food
- The Black Widow
- Steven
- Welcome to My Nightmare (reprise)
- Escape
- School's OutSchool's Out (song)Female pop duo Daphne & Celeste, released a cover of the song in 2000. The chorus is based on Alice Cooper's hit of the same name, and some other elements of that song have been retained, although much of the song is "original", in a pop-rap style...
- Department of Youth
- End creditsEnd Credits"End Credits" is the first single from Drum and Bass duo Chase & Status' second studio album No More Idols. The single was co-written, co-produced and features vocals from Plan B and was released on 29 October 2009, reaching a peak position of No. 9 in the UK Singles Chart...
- Only Women Bleed (alternate version)
Personnel
- Alice CooperAlice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
- Vocals - Dick WagnerDick WagnerDick Wagner Dick Wagner Dick Wagner (born December 14, 1943, in Oelwein, Iowa is an American rock music guitarist and songwriter best known for his work with Alice Cooper, Lou Reed and KISS.-Performing career:...
- Guitar, Vocals - Steve HunterSteve Hunter (guitarist)Steve "The Deacon" Hunter, born June 14, 1948, in Decatur, Illinois, is an American guitarist best known for his collaborations with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper. He first played with Mitch Ryder's Detroit, beginning a long association with record producer Bob Ezrin.In the 1970s, he appeared on five...
- Guitar - Josef Chirowski - Synthesizer, Keyboards, Clavinet, Fender Rhodes, Vocals
- Prakash JohnPrakash JohnPrakash John is a Canadian rock bassist.Born in Bombay, India, John was a student at the Cathedral and John Connon School, enrolling at the age of four in 1951. He migrated to Toronto in 1960....
- Bass, Vocals - Pentti "Whitey" GlanPentti GlanPentti Glan a.k.a. Pentti “Whitey” Glan is a Finnish drummer born on July 8, 1946 and best known for his work with Alice Cooper.-Musical career:...
- Drums