Chapin Theatre Company's "Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors" Is A Timely Halloween Treat

Five actors play multiple characters in a madcap spoof of Bram Stoker's classic vampire thriller

Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors advertises its premise in the title: take the basic Dracula story straight from the novel and play, then mine the rich material for as much humor as possible, playing off the audience’s likely familiarity with certain conventions and plot elements, while also making winking allusions to random bits of literary and popular culture. Like the title itself, a vague reference to a Shakespearean work, A Comedy of Errors. Reveling in the absurdity of such a notion, Chapin Theatre Company has put together a solid production of silly but entertaining merriment timed just right to get you ready for the Halloween season.

(Josh Kern and Katie Mixon)

Running through October 19th at CTC’s still-relatively new location - appropriately located right across Columbia Avenue from a cemetery - this latest entry into the canon of Dracula lore follows two chief models, one of which is the tradition of vampire comedies that probably began with the 1948 film Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, in which Bela Lugosi reprised his famous role as Dracula, the primary villain of the piece in spite of its title. A decade later, the bloodsucking count appeared in the lyrics of the novelty song “Monster Mash,” wondering in a Lugosi-like voice “Whatever happened to my Transylvania Twist?” By the 1960’s, Roman Polanski’s Fearless Vampire Hunters injected comedy into the Hammer Films-style of swashbuckling, adventure-filled horror, and on TV, Dracula evolved into the loving Grandpa Munster. The success of Mel Brooks’s Frankenstein parody led to other filmmakers similarly tackling Dracula in “Love at First Bite,” and years later, Brooks himself parodied the Coppola adaptation with 1995’s “Dracula: Dead and Loving It.” The play’s bat/blood/dead puns and anachronistic, vaudeville-style wisecracks stem from this tradition, while its action is carried out in what I’ll call the 39 Steps/Compleat Wrks. tradition.

The 39 Steps takes the basic plot and dialogue of the Hitchcock thriller, and creates humor by having a tiny cast play dozens of roles using wigs, accents, and quick-changes, and improvising props and scenery on the fly via pantomime and creativity; The Compleat Wrks. of of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) does the same, and was one of the earliest shows to develop this style of parody in the ‘90s. Frank Thompson directed George Dinsmore in 39 Steps a year ago at CTC, and here they reverse duties, with Katie Mixon, David Fichter, Debra Kiser, and lead Dracula performer Josh Kern along for the ride.

Dinsmore clearly has an appreciation for the right tone that needs to be maintained throughout, and his debut as director (of a full-length play, anyway) is successful due to having a veteran, multi-talented cast that can roll with the punches of a chaotic and exhausting show. The key is that nearly every line, apart from perhaps a few wisecracks and asides, needs to spoken in earnest, with as much gravitas and emotion as a straight horror tale might call for, although a little over-acting in the interest of fleshing out a character or just getting a laugh is OK too.

Distilled to its basics, the core Dracula story from the Bram Stoker novel is simpler than one may recall, and so each actor save for Kern has one or at most two major roles, and one or more support roles too. Thus Mixon plays heroine Lucy as well as a chambermaid and a carriage driver; Kiser portrays a female Van Helsing along with the ill-fated Mina (the ladies here are sisters, with names reversed from the novel), Fichter plays Dr. Westfeldt (a composite of Dr. Seward and the girls’ father, much like the 1931 film version) the mad, insect-eating Renfield, and a doomed ship’s captain, leaving everyone else to be played by Frank Thompson, especially Jonathan Harker, Lucy’s way-too-repressed fiance.

(Frank Thompson and Josh Kern)

While everything is done for comedy’s sake, I must say I was impressed by how faithfully much of the original material was followed, especially John L. Balderston’s rewrite of Hamilton Deane’s stage version of the novel, which in turn inspired the original Lugosi film, and just about every film since then. Indeed, no matter how wacky and light-hearted the proceedings get, there’s never any significant deviation from the central tale of a predator and his prey, and I was struck by one ostensibly throwaway bit of exposition: puzzled by the dying Mina’s incurable “anemia,” Van Helsing reflects on how these symptoms defy any of her medical studies and research….with the exception of something found in ancient medical texts that is the stuff of fairy tale and fiction. For whatever reason, that bit of dialogue seemed so real, with a learned scholar having researched the roots of medicine in folklore.

The other gimmick that takes this incarnation of the venerable bloodsucker into the 21st century is the depiction of Dracula as a buff, leather-clad, pansexual hottie. Much like the ripped-bodice heroines of countless films, audience members too have always swooned for the ultimate, unattainable bad boy, from Christopher Lee’s animal-like intensity and Frank Langella’s haunted, tragic demeanor, to others immortalized by first names only: Barnabas, Angel, Spike, Edward, Damon. Columbia audiences may even recall Melrose Place/Dynasty star Grant Show’s sexually-charged, bare-chested performance in the Dracula ballet a decade ago. Using the same Central European accent we expect, Josh Kern nevertheless imbues Dracula with some humanity, describing the loneliness and downright boredom of an immortal being. A running joke that also makes Dracula somehow more accessible is his constant fumbling over words, looking for a lover he can taste….errr… trust. I’ll reveal few spoilers, but one classic gag pokes fun at the typically flamboyant way a vampire often uses a swirl of his cape to morph into a bat and disappear, with a chagrined Kern attempting to explain away a wardrobe malfunction.

(David Fichter as Renfield)

I once referred to Mixon as Columbia’s Keira Knightley, and she can still fill out a corset like no other. She turns in the consummately professional performance we’ve come to expect. Thompson too has parodied uptight Brits for decades, and the actor plays with the notion of the nominal hero being something of a milquetoast, until a Sandy-in-Grease-style makeover late in the second act assures us that he’s the one that we want. Kiser consciously channels Cloris Leachman’s Frau Blucher (somewhere horses are whinnying) as Van Helsing, while Fichter is more than up for the challenge presented by the show’s most broadly-drawn characters. Everyone gets a chance or some good schtick, especially Kiser in moments where - with the help of a little practical stage magic - she appears to be leaning over and treating her other character. Mina’s last burst of energy is just priceless, but also likely to spark a little fear until its low-tech absurdity becomes apparent.

Many of the “special effects” are played for laughs and therefore don’t need to be realistic, but projections credited to Chris Harre are remarkably effective, including a stunning full moon, choppy waves in a storm, and a spooky forest. Costumes by Tiffany Dinsmore and Abigail Mathias are authentically Victorian, and most importantly have been constructed to facilitate extremely quick changes. Scenic design by Jim DeFelice, Lights by Ivy Munnerlyn, and sound by Chris Harre are fine as well, for a small community theatre venue. Nothing is fancy, but then again it doesn’t need to be. The house is filled with sturdy plastic folding chairs that were surprisingly comfortable. That said, the seats are to some extent mooshed together, so sit on the front row and/or aisle if you want a little leg or elbow room.

Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors is marketed with references to its influences, including Mel Brooks, Monty Python, and the aforementioned 39 Steps. Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen’s script is cute, and it’s probably the funniest vampire play you’ll ever see in Chapin, SC (population: 1,968), but it has neither the non-stop yuks of Brooks at his best, nor the surrealism and level of social satire of Python. Plus there are far fewer changes of character/costume/persona than found in Compleat Wrks or 39 Steps. If you’re fond of these artists, then it may suffice to say that while this is no Producers or Blazing Saddles from Brooks and Gene Wilder, it rises at least to the level of films Brooks’s Silent Movie or High Anxiety, or Wilder’s Sherlock Holmes’s Smarter Brother. Or for fans of the full Monty Python, this play is more like Terry Gilliam’s Jabberwocky, Terry Jones’s Erik the Viking, or John Cleese’s A Fish Called Wanda. And every one of those films has its moments, and its loyal fanbase.

All in all, Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors delivers in every way one might expect it to, with clever riffs on familiar vampire movie topes, and fine and energetic performances from its cast. The show runs two more weekends, through Sunday, Oct. 19th. Note that evening shows have a 7:30 PM curtain, not 8:00 PM. Also note that refreshments are available and can be taken to your seat. And another important note: CTC’s venue is easy to get to. From Columbia, just zip up I-26, take the Columbia Avenue Exit, go right for about half a mile, and you’re there. No, seriously - it’s that easy. Ticket info can be found at https://chapintheatre.org/home.html , and the site helpfully lets you know how many seats are left for each performance - and there aren’t that many, so make those reservations now.

~ August Krickel