BWW Reviews: In the Teeth of Madness with FAC's DRACULA

He's been retold, untold, reborn, and dead and loving it. He's welcomed guests to Hotel Transylvania and has a daughter in Monster High. With so many revisions, deconstructions, and parodies spanning the decades, is there anybody who can really add anything new to the Dracula mythos?

Probably not, which may be why Fine Arts Center doesn't try. Instead, their production of Dracula gives us something old: shadows, primal fear, dangerous passions, and a haunting tale moves effortlessly between faith and reason, the scientific entering the realm of the supernatural. This is a Dracula that remembers what enthusiasts have always known about vampires: they're cunning predators, master manipulators, and formidable foes. They aren't misunderstood, don't feel particularly guilty about their behavior, and they certainly don't sparkle.

Darkness abounds in local playwright Steven Dietz's adaptation of the Bram Stoker classic, but none more so than the darkness of the mind. Secret desires bubble beneath the façade of Victorian propriety, and the line between sanity and madness is a thin, blurred boundary that the characters slip back and forth across constantly, culminating in bursts of cacophonic counterpoint. Confronted with a literal monster in their midst, normal people are reduced to shivering wrecks, tormented by the guilt and grief brought in Dracula's wake.

The ensemble is uniformly strong, but inevitably the imagination is dominated by the vampire and his victims. Dietz and director Nathan Halvorson create an effective build-up for Dracula (SET regular Matt Radcliffe), keeping him in shadow and rumor until well into the first act. Radcliffe succeeds admirably in such an iconic role, creating a Dracula that's both creepy and compelling, by turns repulsively inhuman and frighteningly irresistible. The women who fall under his sway are a charming pair, with Katie Consamus bringing a saucy, sweet energy to Lucy and Jessica Weaver giving Mina a resolute strength. Due to the 19th-century sensibilities of the source material, these ladies run the risk of being shamed for their sexuality and eventual victimhood, but here they are treated with dignity. As Renfield, Michael Lee exhibits moments of piercing lucidity which make his wild, gibbering outbursts even more unsettling in comparison.

Atmosphere is key in a good horror story, and (apart from some sync glitches in the sound department) the production staff does not disappoint. Christopher L. Sheley's castle set looms over the stage, draped in light and shadows effectively by Holly Anne Rawls. The ever-essential blood effects by Jonathan Eberhardt are highly effective-there were many delighted shudders at Van Helsing's very convincing transfusion apparatus. Halvorson keeps the sensuality and tension ratcheted up until the very end, which sinks a little bit as the characters hastily describe their pursuit of the count across Europe.

The best horror stories are not the ones which simply steep their tale in gruesome gore, but which tease the thoughts and disturb the dreams as well, and this version of the premier vampire tale is sure to do both. DRACULA plays now through November 2nd at the Fine Arts Center, Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30pm (with the exception of October 25th at 5pm), and Sunday matinees 2pm. Due to violence and adult situations, the production is not recommended for audiences under 16. For tickets, contact the box office at 719-634-5583 or visit csfineartscenter.org.

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