Scenic Design: Yu Shibagaki * Costume Design: Kathleen Geldard * Lighting Design: Pablo Santiago * Sound Design: Thomas Dixon * Magic/Illusion Design: Dendy
by Vanessa Severo in collaboration with Joanie Schultz
co-directed with Joanie Schultz
at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, 2024
Bram Stoker’s classic vampire tale comes back to life in this evocative world premiere where everyone has a secret…and those secrets are deadly. Lifelong friends Mina and Lucy share intimate details about the men in their lives. Dr Seward works to unlock the mystery of Renfield’s strange affliction with the help of his friend Van Helsing, who carries her own secret. Jonathan Harker returns from Transylvania with a dark disclosure. As tensions rise, temptation lures them into double lives as they unmask one man, Count Dracula.
“While it is a serious exploration of darker realms of passion, it is not averse to accommodating laughter. There is blood-letting, of course. But it takes place offstage and is represented by the stage being bathed in red by Pablo Santiago’s lighting. Same with the violence inherent in a vampire tale. We see very little of it. Severo and Schultz aren’t trying to disgust us. They want something more potent. They want the fear to live in our minds, not our memories.”
