'Drakula' takes on serious gothic tone empowered by strong acting
Tuesday, October 15, 2002
By NANCY STETSON
"Gentlemen, the undead are with us. And Drakula is the key," declares Dr. Heinrick Van Helsing (Barry Marcus) in the Naples Dinner Theatre's production of "Drakula in New England."
And Count Drakula, played by Jim Ballard, is key in this show, commanding attention and cranking up the action several notches every time he is on stage.
This "Drakula," spelled with a "k," was written by Naples Dinner Theatre artistic director Michael Wainstein, who also directed the show. Though based on Bram Stoker's novel, it comes across like "Dark Shadows" meets "Masterpiece Theatre."
These characters, set in Portsmouth, N.H., of 1891, speak so properly and in such perfect diction you almost expect to hear the "Masterpiece Theatre" theme music swell in the background.
This serious drama is a rare offering for the dinner theater, which usually presents musicals, comedic plays and farces.
For a serious play, the topic is quite fanciful, and the action and dialogue sometimes border on soap-opera-ish. But the actors are dead serious (excuse the pun).
The owners wanted to see how audiences would respond to a serious drama.
For some it won't be their cup of tea, and anyone who just wants to be entertained with light material might expect them to break into song and dance any second. But it should definitely appeal to the "Rocky Horror Show" crowd and to those interested in science fiction, fantasy or gothic subjects.
Ballard as Drakula is larger-than-life, sheer evil with a Transylvanian accent. He has a flare for the dramatic and is capable of opening doors and controlling people with the power of his mind. Without such a strong, sinister performance from Ballard, the play would suffer greatly.
Marcus, as Drakula's nemesis, Dr. Van Helsing, is a wonderful counterbalance, representing good. He is every bit Drakula's match. And his German accent is quite believable. It was great to see Marcus sink his teeth into such a serious role; his performance was gripping.
Chrissy Wright, as Angelique, another of Drakula's victims, is well known to the dinner theater's audiences, but in this show she disappears into her role. She is heart-wrenching as a fellow vampire desperate for Drakula's love.
But Drakula is obsessed only with himself, with power, and obtaining new victims.
Scott Striegel plays Renfield, a man whose mind has been taken over by Drakula. It's obvious Striegel relishes the role, lurking about, pretending to eat bugs and responding to Drakula's unheard commands.
The play raises some interesting issues about passivity in the face of evil ("The vampire is allowed to flourish because of humankind's denial of their existence"), the high cost of ignorance ("My father was killed because he didn't know enough") and the self-deception people accept in order to gain power and riches. There are also veiled references to AIDS ("What kind of plague can spread so quickly and kill so viciously?") and the destructive nature of obsessive love, the folly of giving total control over to another, even in the name of love.
But while Wainstein raises these interesting issues, he doesn't always follow through with them. That would be a tall order for any playwright, but still, it would have been nice to see some of those themes developed more fully.
The play could have also used tighter pacing; sometimes the action seems to lag because the actors are explaining things to each other. But the use of narration by the doctor is a great device.
The costumes, by Susie Hartman, are wonderful period pieces, and the sets by Tim Baumgartner are noteworthy, especially the opening atmospheric scene on a dock in Portland and the closing scene in Drakula's crypt.
The music — recorded pieces of John Cage, Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Béla Bartók and others — are gems. Wainstein obviously took great care to find unusual, eerie, effective music, and his choices help create suspense.
Tuesday, October 15, 2002
By NANCY STETSON
"Gentlemen, the undead are with us. And Drakula is the key," declares Dr. Heinrick Van Helsing (Barry Marcus) in the Naples Dinner Theatre's production of "Drakula in New England."
And Count Drakula, played by Jim Ballard, is key in this show, commanding attention and cranking up the action several notches every time he is on stage.
This "Drakula," spelled with a "k," was written by Naples Dinner Theatre artistic director Michael Wainstein, who also directed the show. Though based on Bram Stoker's novel, it comes across like "Dark Shadows" meets "Masterpiece Theatre."
These characters, set in Portsmouth, N.H., of 1891, speak so properly and in such perfect diction you almost expect to hear the "Masterpiece Theatre" theme music swell in the background.
This serious drama is a rare offering for the dinner theater, which usually presents musicals, comedic plays and farces.
For a serious play, the topic is quite fanciful, and the action and dialogue sometimes border on soap-opera-ish. But the actors are dead serious (excuse the pun).
The owners wanted to see how audiences would respond to a serious drama.
For some it won't be their cup of tea, and anyone who just wants to be entertained with light material might expect them to break into song and dance any second. But it should definitely appeal to the "Rocky Horror Show" crowd and to those interested in science fiction, fantasy or gothic subjects.
Ballard as Drakula is larger-than-life, sheer evil with a Transylvanian accent. He has a flare for the dramatic and is capable of opening doors and controlling people with the power of his mind. Without such a strong, sinister performance from Ballard, the play would suffer greatly.
Marcus, as Drakula's nemesis, Dr. Van Helsing, is a wonderful counterbalance, representing good. He is every bit Drakula's match. And his German accent is quite believable. It was great to see Marcus sink his teeth into such a serious role; his performance was gripping.
Chrissy Wright, as Angelique, another of Drakula's victims, is well known to the dinner theater's audiences, but in this show she disappears into her role. She is heart-wrenching as a fellow vampire desperate for Drakula's love.
But Drakula is obsessed only with himself, with power, and obtaining new victims.
Scott Striegel plays Renfield, a man whose mind has been taken over by Drakula. It's obvious Striegel relishes the role, lurking about, pretending to eat bugs and responding to Drakula's unheard commands.
The play raises some interesting issues about passivity in the face of evil ("The vampire is allowed to flourish because of humankind's denial of their existence"), the high cost of ignorance ("My father was killed because he didn't know enough") and the self-deception people accept in order to gain power and riches. There are also veiled references to AIDS ("What kind of plague can spread so quickly and kill so viciously?") and the destructive nature of obsessive love, the folly of giving total control over to another, even in the name of love.
But while Wainstein raises these interesting issues, he doesn't always follow through with them. That would be a tall order for any playwright, but still, it would have been nice to see some of those themes developed more fully.
The play could have also used tighter pacing; sometimes the action seems to lag because the actors are explaining things to each other. But the use of narration by the doctor is a great device.
The costumes, by Susie Hartman, are wonderful period pieces, and the sets by Tim Baumgartner are noteworthy, especially the opening atmospheric scene on a dock in Portland and the closing scene in Drakula's crypt.
The music — recorded pieces of John Cage, Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Béla Bartók and others — are gems. Wainstein obviously took great care to find unusual, eerie, effective music, and his choices help create suspense.