Review: DRACULA - A COMEDY OF TERRORS at English Theatre Frankfurt

The latest ETF production blends classic horror with contemporary humour, offering audiences a fast-paced comedy full of surprises.

With „Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors“, The English Theatre Frankfurt (ETF) presents one of the most successful stage comedies of recent years. Not to be confused with the recent "Dracula" incarnation starring Cynthia Erivo, Gordon Greenberg's and Steve Rosen's acclaimed adaptation transforms Bram Stoker’s famous Gothic novel into a high-energy comedy packed with unexpected twists, rapid role changes, and dark, wacky and occasionally salacious humour. By turning familiar vampire lore into a modern theatrical parody, it casts its iconic characters in an entirely new light. The production premiered in the United States in 2023 and subsequently enjoyed a successful Off-Broadway run in New York. Following a widely praised London staging, the play now makes its way to Frankfurt, almost simultaneously with the first German-language production currently touring the country.

The wildly entertaining play is directed by Ewan Jones, already well known to ETF audiences through productions such as „Sister Act“, „Something Rotten!“ and „Nunsense“, once again demonstrating his distinguished ability to bring layered comedy effectively to the stage. Together with his creative team, he has developed an imaginative production that fully exploits the possibilities of live theatre. Stylistically, the show moves between British farce and American movie comedy, drawing on the humour of the likes of Mel Brooks, „The Naked Gun“ and „Monty Python“. With its brisk pace, pointed dialogue and deliberately exaggerated characters, the production becomes both a tribute to classic horror and a playful reinterpretation celebrating its absurdities. British humour, slapstick, puns and a touch of naughtiness blend into thoroughly light-hearted entertainment.

Sophia Pardon not only creates atmospheric costumes, but also a stage design reminiscent of vaudeville and, at times, classical scenery, recalling the proscenium designs of traditional opera and creating the illusion of a play within a play. The curtain repeatedly falls for scene changes and reveals all manner of settings. From a Gothic castle façade and a Victorian drawing room to a turbulent sea voyage, a wealth of attractive scenes unfolds, all framed beautifully by Jamie Platt’s lighting design. In particular, the spooky moments and numerous travel sequences are captured perfectly. Anna Short’s sound design integrates seamlessly into the overall concept, deliberately juxtaposing loud horror effects with the absurdity of the action. Ewan Jones has also devised several remarkable choreographic sequences that strike a balance between highly functional comic staging and impressive dance virtuosity.

Music, too, plays a special role. Although „Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors“ is not a musical, an original score accompanies the action throughout the evening. It has been created by Musical Director Mal Hall, who has overseen the theatre’s musical productions since 2018 and who, for the first time, has developed an independent musical concept for a straight play. Drawing on works by Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff, among others, he gives each character a distinctive musical motif that recurs throughout the performance. The music underscores scene changes, supports dialogue and heightens both suspense and comedy. The result is a style of storytelling inspired by the traditions of vaudeville theatre, enhancing comedy and drama in equal measure.

The production is carried by an intentionally small ensemble. Five performers take on numerous roles, switching at breakneck speed between a wide variety of characters and identities. Joseph Beach, for example, portrays the often dry-witted Dr Westfeldt, who grows increasingly eccentric as the story progresses, as well as the utterly deranged Renfield, whose sheer repulsiveness becomes a source of great comic delight. At times, he performs both characters within the same scene, much to the audience’s amazement.

Shaun McCourt plays Jonathan Harker, who in this version is mildly neurotic and plagued by compulsions, fears, phobias and various sensitivities. In the second act, the character discovers his sensual, homoerotic side, which McCourt explores with obvious relish and considerable contrast.

Briana Kelly, who already demonstrated her comic talent in Frankfurt with „Something Rotten!“, portrays Lucy Westfeldt as charming, slightly nerdy and with a well-hidden mischievous streak. In contrast, her other role – that of a kleptomaniac and compulsively dishonest maid – allows the actress to reveal much more boisterous and tomboyish facets.

George North interprets Dracula exactly as the script of this successful comedy intends: utterly self-obsessed, revelling in his own physical perfection, pansexual and in a perpetual state of amorous excitement, he employs exaggerated gestures and physicality to reduce audiences to tears of laughter. His scenes with McCourt, Kelly and especially Liam Huband are uproariously funny. It is evident that the cast possesses tremendous onstage chemistry, with North serving as its charismatic centre.

Huband, however, ultimately steals the show. In his dual role as Mina Westfeldt and Jean van Helsing, he portrays two female characters and gleefully sends them up with impeccable female impersonation. His Mina is perpetually unwanted, relentlessly bullied by everyone around her, yet never gives up trying to attract men with the cheesiest pick-up lines imaginable. Huband instantly becomes an audience favourite in the role, a success that is only amplified by his Dr van Helsing, who emerges as a wonderfully affectionate parody of German stereotypes. Excellently cast, the ensemble thrives on countless witty directorial ideas and guarantees an evening of first-rate entertainment.

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