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Wednesday, October 29, 2008
‘Dracula’ @ Aurora Theatre
THEATER REVIEW. “Dracula.” Grade: B. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. 2:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. $16-$30. Through Sunday. Aurora Theatre, 128 Pike St., Lawrenceville. 678-226-6222, auroratheatre.com
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Lucy is lying in a state of repose. There are strange marks on her neck, and her nocturnal behavior has been a little odd. Sleepwalking. Bad dreams, perhaps. But she has also seemed weirdly drawn to something outside the towering windows of her 19th century London abode.
As her suitor hovers over her bed, it appears that the end has come. No pulse. Will Lucy float off to meet her heavenly maker? Or will she open her eyes and fulfill her destiny as a blood-sucking vampire?
Hint: This is “Dracula.” It’s Halloween. And Lawrenceville’s Aurora Theatre has unleashed a sexy coven of vampires and unspooled a web of mystery that stretches from England to Transylvania and involves a certain cape-wearing count with a special knack for identity theft.
Of course, this wealthy devil could care less about credit cards or bank accounts. As described in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel and Steven Dietz’s contemporary stage adaptation, Dracula (David Quay) is a dangerously seductive prince who steals the identify of castle-guest Jonathan Harker (Chad Martin), then embarks on voyage to conquer virginal Victorian babes Mina (Cara Mantella) and Lucy (Shayne Kohout).
Will Renfield (Matthew Myers) get his fill of rats, flies and birds? Will Van Helsing (Mark Kincaid) get the garlic and crucifixes to the tomb in time? Will Mina become the eternal bride of Dracula — or will she choose Jonathan?
No matter how well you know the story, you can’t help but be sucked into the supernatural subtleties and psychological complexities of director Joe Gfaller’s elegant and intriguing production. Quay’s take on the fanged lord of Transylvania is cool and restrained. And you’ll swear there are vampires dancing in the shadows of Rob Dillard’s expansive, two-tiered set.
The power of this piece — which unfolds as a series of letters, flashback journal entries and straightforward narration by Renfield and Van Helsing —is the way it sketches the mystery in somber blacks and sinister grays. As time slowly drains, the suspense escalates. And when the blood and hysteria flow, the vampires hiss like serpents and the stakes are driven right down to the heart, you appreciate the measured sense of timing and tone.
Still, this strong piece would have been better if it were 15-20 minutes shorter, if the accents were a little less self-conscious and the wigs a little less Bride of Frankenstein.
At a time when it has become fashionable to turn vampires into dazzling sexual predators with a flair for glamour and fashion, the Aurora production hits the mark. With cool deviance and hot passion, this youthful cast makes the undead look like the living end.
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