We were intrigued by Bobby Wesner’s description of his ballet of the Dracula legend, so on the Friday before Halloween, we jumped in the car and headed for the Akron Civic Theatre.
Holiday entertainments are generally characterized by low expectations, and Halloween brings more than its share of candy corn and would-be “spooky” stuff. But Count… The Legend of Dracula sets itself apart from hackneyed seasonal entertainments with eye-popping projections by Emmy-Award-winning visual-effects artist Andy Gardner, lighting design by Dennis Dugan, and a clear, easy-to-follow story developed by Michael Thomas, another Emmy-Award-winner.
The sky itself is no small player in this show, which begins with realistic lightning and thunder; later we see a beautiful and ominous night sky complete with moon; daylight with idyllic green backgrounds temporarily reassures that all is well and — spoiler alert — the dawn that destroys the vampire seems to stream down in cleansing rays from heaven itself.
Projections show us Dracula’s palatial home in Transylvania, a derelict sailing ship and an English drawing room, and the costumes by Inda Blatch-Geib successfully evoke late 19th-century England. But even without these realistic features, the dancing and music alone could have taken us through the narrative.
Plot points are clear but perhaps more important, the dancing carries an emotional wallop. We especially liked the graveyard scene under the previously mentioned night sky. The ballet steps are grands jetés followed by a pas de deux but they evoke Dracula’s Vampire Wives flying through like bats out of hell and our protagonist, danced by Ethan Michael Lee, locked in a deadly showdown with the undead Lucy danced by Brooke Wesner.
Bobby Wesner has provided choreography and an edited soundtrack with recordings of various artists divided into scenes that alternately build tension and soothe, the better to build tension again.
Quibbles? We have a few.
We thought the costumes for the gypsies were a bit too busy for the ballet stage and need to be simplified while preserving the layered, thrown-together look that we’ve learned to expect of theatrical depictions of the Roma. Also, we were disappointed that Dracula’s costume did not include the iconic — not hackneyed — voluminous cloak that often embellishes dance theater.
Dracula was danced by José Soares, an accomplished dancer and a strong partner who brought considerable personal magnetism and commitment to the role. But we wonder if the choreography could have shown us his character’s dangerous, predatory nature more graphically.
Still, in one hour and 15 minutes including intermission it’s a good, good show. Not too scary for the kids. Watch for it next Halloween.
And, speaking of seasonal entertainments, check out Neos Dance Theatre’s 1940’s Nutcracker coming up on 12/12.
[Written by Elsa Johnson and Victor Lucas]
Akron, OH 44308