ORLANDO — Right in time for Halloween season, Orlando Shakes is diving into a horror/suspense classic to get audiences into that mood.
But what mood, exactly, is that?
For example, last October, Shakes presented a staged version of Hound Of The Baskervilles, and this year they’re giving audiences a new rendition of Bram Stoker’s horror classic Dracula.
Ah, but audiences might recall that Hound was a side-splitting comedy, with three actors playing multiple roles and taking silliness to delirious new heights. Shakes’ new production, Dracula: A Comedy Of Terrors, puts the emphasis on zany over scary. Once again, the object is to tickle our funny bones so outrageously that — well, it’s positively scary how much laughter can fill the theater.
Dracula: A Comedy Of Terrors has preview performances tonight and Thursday before its official opening on Friday night, then runs through Nov. 8. For those who like their horror with some fine guffaws, the show is calling your name.
What is Dracula: A Comedy Of Terrors?
Dracula: A Comedy Of Terrors, authored by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen, has the right ingredients for a horror stage show — a spooky castle in the mountains of Transylvania, a ship carrying Dracula and his coffin filled with recently dead sailors, bites on the neck and stalking vampires.
What is also has is the kind of approach to horror literature that Mel Brooks employed in Young Frankenstein and his own vampire spoof Dracula: Dead And Loving It: humor that satirizes the source material while also paying homage to it. Often described as a “Gen Z take” on the Stoker classic, the show is filled with pop culture references and, like Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, gives us a bisexual Dracula with a passion for tight leather jeans and slick moves on the dance floor.
Let the silliness begin!
How is Orlando Shake’s Production of Dracula?
A cast of 5 juggles multiple roles as they retell Bram Stoker’s saga in a way that Monty Python might have appreciated. Real estate agent Harker finds himself enduring a bumpy ride inside a carriage travelling through the barren mountains of Transylvania, where only the sounds of howling wolves hints at any life out there. His driver abandons him when the going gets rough (the wolves are closing in), forcing Harker to make a mad dash for his destination, Dracula’s castle. Once there, he finds Dracula in tight leather pants with slicked back hair and chest prominently displayed, looking as if he just got back from his condo on Fire Island.
But while Dracula is eager to sooth the weary traveler, he’s also enchanted with Harker’s photo of his lovely fiancee Lucy, and suddenly becomes quite eager to buy real estate in England.
This exceptionally lighthearted and goofy play, directed by Shakes’ artistic director Jim Helsinger, aims to keep things moving at a speedy pace, zipping from one set piece gag to the next. The cast is certainly game. Freddy Ruiz’ Studio 54 vampire is hip, kinky, and ever on the prowl, while Trevor Spence’s weenie geek Harker is a delightful fall guy for him.
Kelly Bashar as Dracula’s crazed servant Renfield and Regina Fernandez as the delectable Lucy understand the play’s manic-but-not-too-manic tone and approach, while Paul Vogt is a riot as Mina Westfield, Lucy’s decidedly tough-to-market sister who is thrilled when Dracula comes a-calling. Vogt also plays a female version of Dr. Van Helsing and is both a scene stealer and reminder of how good the right actor can be in deliciously over-the-top drag roles.
Dracula: A Comedy Or Terrors is the anecdote for those who who think there’s too much horror tossed their way around Halloween, from those TV revivals of The Shining to Universal Orlando’s “We dare you to get scared” Halloween Horror Nights. Here the scariest assault is on your laugh reflexes.
Where Can I See Dracula: A Comedy Of Terrors?
Dracula: A Comedy Of Terrors is being performed in the Goldman Theater at Orlando Shakes, 812 E. Rollins St. in Loch Haven Park, now through Nov. 8, with shows at 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. matinees. The show runs for 2 hours with a 15-minute intermission.
Tonight and Thursday are “Pick Your Price” preview performances, with tickets available from $30-$85. “We thank you for the amount you wish to give us for your tickets to these specific performances,” Shakes notes.
The production officials opens on Friday with ans Opening Night Party at 6 p.m. with dinner options, drinks, live entertainment, and a pre-show talk with the artists at 6:30 p.m.
There will be a Post-Show Talk Back session on Oct. 4 following the 2 p.m. matinee, and a Pride Night talk back on Oct. 8 following the 7:30 p.m. show.
For tickets or to learn more, call (407) 447-1700
Michael Freeman is an Orlando journalist, playwright, and author of the book A Christmas Eve Story. Contact him at Freelineorlando@gmail.com.
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