Review: DRACULA at Space Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre

Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Thursday 7th September 2017.

One wonders if, after having written Dracula, the Irish author, Abraham 'Bram' Stoker, could have envisaged the future that lay ahead of that quintessential horror character. Nelle Lee and Nick Skubij have written an entirely new adaptation of the novel for Brisbane based shake & stir theatre company, which is directed by Michael Futcher, who was also the dramaturg. This is not one of those dreadful melodramatic interpretations, filled with ludicrous histrionics and liable to generate considerable unintended laughter, but a faithful adaptation in what might be called theatre noir. There was no laughter from the opening night audience, but there were a few jumps and starts, and occasional exclamations of surprise. This is the real thing, offering some seriously scary Gothic horror.

Congratulations must first go to the set designer, Josh McIntosh and the lighting designer, Jason Glenwright, who establish the dark, foreboding visual aspects of this production, to which sound designer and composer, Guy Webster, added a further dimension. If the whole thing had been run without the actors, it would still have been eerily captivating, so powerful is the imagination of these people, realised in their work. Leigh Buchanan's costume design is no less important in setting the tone of this production. There are also many excellent special effects, great and small, from the Count climbing headfirst down a wall, to clever use of flash paper making things burst into flame at the close proximity of a vampire.

The production begins in darkness, with the voice of Jonathon Harker, a young lawyer, reading from his journal and telling the beginning of his misadventures when sent to Castle Dracula in the Carpathian Mountains in Transylvania to arrange the signing of documents to make Count Dracula the new owner of a property in England. When the lights come up, we find him arriving at night and being greeted by the mysterious Count. He soon realises that he is a prisoner and that the Count has no intention of ever allowing him to leave again. He also discovers that the Count intends to prey on English victims.

Michael Wahr plays Jonathan Harker, suitably naïve when we first meet him. As the real aims of the Count are revealed, Wahr skilfully builds his character through fear, defeat, renewed resolve to escape, and then a complex series of changes until the final encounter. Wahr's skillful development of his character is masterful.

Nick Skubij is imposing as Count Dracula, with long silver hair hanging down his back, and aided by ghastly makeup and electronic voice enhancement. Skubij fills his Dracula with a sinister intensity befitting the undead master of evil, powerfully establishing his otherworldliness.

Once Dracula reaches England and drinks blood, he becomes younger, and here is the weakness in this production. With short hair and tight leather outfit, Skubij looks less like a terrifying vampire and more like a brooding James Dean impersonator. Occasional use of the current vernacular during the production also jars and takes away, somewhat, from the authenticity of this production. The modernity conflicts with the Gothic darkness.

In England, Jonathan's fiancée, Mina, and her close friend, Lucy, who has just ended a relationship with Dr Jack Seward, become the centre of Dracula's attention. He first focuses on Lucy, visiting her at night to drink her blood and turn her into a vampire. At a loss to understand Lucy's illness, Jack calls on Professor Abraham Van Helsing who immediately realises what is happening and sets in motion countermeasures to foil the Count's plans and end his evil.

Adele Querol, as Lucy, begins as a bright and flighty young girl then convincingly conveys Lucy's descent into illness and eventual violent death. Querol then takes a dramatic leap in her characterisation as Lucy becomes one of the undead.

Mina is played by Nelle Lee, in another of the fine performances offered by all of the members of this cast. Lee presents Mina as a strong, confident woman in the face of her imminent transition to a vampire, fighting against the change.

Dr Jack Seward is played by Ross Balbuziente who brings out the compassionate nature of his character, showing his difficulty in embracing the requirements of vampire hunting, particularly when faced with the transformed Lucy. He gives a nice balance to Seward's distaste for killing and the need to end the vampires.

The role of Van Helsing falls to David Whitney who brings a commanding presence to the role, providing the strength in his characterisation that assures us that he will, in the end, triumph over the evil Count. He also impresses as he doubles as the madman, Renfield, with a taste for disgusting foodstuffs, locked up in Seward's asylum.

This is a production that will definitely please those who have read the book and want authenticity in an adaptation, or those who prefer their horror stories as they should be told, full of the blackness, with no holds barred. This work is selling out, so speed is of the essence if you want to get tickets

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