Jonathan Harker - Simon Panayi
Mina - Stephanie Newell
Lucy - Alice Saxton
Bride - Laura Baillie
When Jonathan Harker’s job takes him overseas he unwittingly puts himself at the mercy of a dangerously seductive count. At home his betrothed, Mina, waits.
A seductive and thrilling adaptation of Bram Stoker’s classic by Push to Shove theatre company is a triumph of physical theatre. It is an entirely wordless production given form by its superbly choreographed physical scenes to a soundtrack of eerie music.
The scenes are executed with blood-tingling accuracy with just enough wildness about them to put you on the edge of your seat. The performance has the wonderful quality of brushed silk; wonderful to look at, but you can still feel a rawness to it.
The story is dark and the production visceral. For physical theatre this is greatness in bud; it can only get better. It is a real joy to see such conviction and commitment from such a young company and the production is the more powerful for its neglect of the spoken word.
Dracula is a perfect story for such an undertaking, but it does help if you know the story beforehand. While the performers portray the plot admirably, if you don’t know the story of Dracula you may get lost. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing – the performance urges you to follow feelings, and those will surely tell you all you need to know.
Times: 4.45pm, 4th-29th August (not 16th)
Tickets: £9.50-£11.50 (£7.50-£9.50)