Well, to begin, let’s address the elephant in the room. This isn’t your grandad’s Dracula. There’s not a single cape that billows menacingly, no hammy “Nya ha has,” and the Count himself is not the usual suave predator because… well, he’s not really there. The show’s focus is more on the women he terrorised than the vampire himself, which is a commendable feminist re-framing of the story, even if it does leave you feeling a bit cheated out of some good old-fashioned neck-biting.
The play presents itself as a “play within a play,” where Mina Harker, the sole survivor, and her buddies re-enact the events of the novel. This concept is either a stroke of genius or a terrible mistake, depending on how much you enjoy watching actors bicker about narrative arcs and the patriarchy.
The actors are, without question, excellent. Umi Myers’ Mina is a powerhouse, a one-woman show in a cast of five, and she’s a compelling guide through the tale. Mei Mac’s transformation from demure Victorian maiden to tormented, possessed ghoul is particularly haunting, though you might find yourself wishing she’d get to do more than suffer in increasingly dramatic ways. The supporting cast does a fine job, but they’re largely there to provide exposition and a bit of comic relief, which they deliver with a kind of earnest absurdity that’s hard not to appreciate.
The production design is cleverly minimalist, with a stark, skeletal set and some truly inspired use of sound and lighting. The jump scares are genuinely effective, and the illusions are simple but chilling. However, the show’s pacing can be a bit… uneven. The first half zips along with a nervous energy, but the second half gets bogged down in long speeches that feel less like dialogue and more like a university lecture on Gothic literature. By the end, you’re not so much scared as you are contemplating the difference between a feminist tract and a theatrical production.
If you’re looking for a spooky night out with a bit of traditional vampire fun, which I was, you might be a little disappointed, but if you’re in the mood for an intellectually stimulating, if a little preachy, deconstruction of a classic horror story, then this Dracula might just get its fangs into you.
NEED TO KNOW:
- Audio Described Performance: Tuesday 7 October, 7.30pm
- BSL Performance: Tuesday 30 September, 7.30pm
- Chilled Performance: Wednesday 1 October, 2.30pm
- Open Captioned Performance: Thursday 9 October, 7.30pm
