‘Dracula’ review
‘[they have] turned a well-known story into something new and exciting, and it is something the whole team should be proud of.’
The beauty of a Walkabout production is that you never know what to expect and are always kept on your toes; this is most definitely true with Co-Director and Writer Robyn Bradbury’s adaptation of Dracula. The audience are first led through a train journey, then a dinner with the Count followed by a daring escape, all culminating in a dramatic vampire hunt across the stage space.
As the audience steps aboard the train to Transylvania they are hosted by Holmwood, played by Florence Bray, who introduces the atmosphere of the performance. She leads us through the first scene, and it is our first introduction to the skilful improv we will see throughout the performance. It is in this train carriage that we meet our first main character, Harker, who is masterfully portrayed by Josh Brooks. With him the audience takes a trip as his apprentices, and we watch his transformation from a dignified solicitor to a paranoid man fearing for his life. Brooks’ acting instils his own panic into the audience and really brings us along with him in his storytelling. With the arrival of Katarina Bozic, portraying the titular Dracula, the powerful acting duo of the play is complete. Her command of the stage, intonation, and sense of power makes her Dracula into a character that the audience is glued to, especially when telling the story of the Dracula family history. As night sets and Harker ventures deeper into the castle, we meet our first monster vampires. Quinn Rice joins Bray and together they are haunting, animalistic creatures who are ruthlessly on the hunt for blood.
As the play moves into the second act, the vampire hunters (Matt Lo, Iphis Critchlow, and Ben Hooker) immediately bring the audience into their desperate hunt for Dracula and masterfully raise the stakes of the action. As we see the effects that the time at Dracula’s castle have had on Harker, Aaliyah Angir as Mina plays the wonderful picture of a loving wife who is desperate to seek revenge for her husband. The final character we meet is Rufus Brierly’s Renfield who uses movement in a deeply impressive way to create a sense of animalistic insanity, making the audience both enthralled and uneasy. He crawls, climbs, and skitters throughout the space, leaving the audience with the spectacular impression of a creature who is not entirely human. Whilst there are the occasional silent pauses in the performance, this is the very nature of an improvised and interactive play. The entire company works together to smooth these over and make the production feel seamless.
The technical design, led by Co-Production Managers Eva Ryan and Daisy Martin, truly brings the play together. The lighting, designed by Francesca Darkins and programmed by Zac Jackson, is used to guide the audience’s attention. Whilst the design is quite simplistic, it is greatly effective: spotlights highlight important changes and blood red washes heighten the drama of the most fearful moments. The soundscape, designed and operated by Aidan Groth, helps the audience feel connected to the action, especially during Dracula’s possession of Mina.
It is deeply impressive that the stage team, led by Libby Simpson and assisted by Nicola Ho, have turned the large theatre of the Collingwood Arts Centre into a series of small, intimate and atmospheric spaces which enable the audience to feel truly connected with the characters. Together, the entire tech team have turned one room into a labyrinth of mystery and atmosphere.
Throughout the production, it is clear that all involved have received dedicated and skilful instruction from the direction of Robyn Bradbury and Ellie Hutty, assisted by Harriet Stockton. Even when mishaps in audience interaction occur, the cast stay calm, collected, and in-character, and the cohesive nature of the tech team points to a clear creative vision. These factors make it obvious to the observer that the company has been brilliantly directed. The writing itself is also something to be marvelled at – Bradbury has turned a well-known story into something new and exciting, and it is something the whole team should be proud of.
By India Jubb.