BSU Theater Presents: Dracula
Through October 20-22 and 26-28, BSU students, faculty, and friends alike, were delighted to have the pleasure of viewing Dracula, a play adapted by Sarah Elizabeth Bedard (she/her) in the Rondileau Student Union Auditorium. This creative and fresh adaptation of Dracula subverts tradition by having a cast mostly of women placed into high profile roles that were originally male characters in the original Dracula by Bram Stoker and in the many other adaptations that followed it. This play didn’t just cast women into male roles, it actually changed those male characters into female characters. Professor Van Helsing (played by Erin Faria she/her) flips patriarchal scripts by showing us an independent woman leading and instructing men on how to proceed in the hunt of the vampires.
There are playful and explorative themes of sexuality, with homoeroticism present throughout the play. This is displayed to the audience clearly in Mina (played by Ava White she/her) and Lucy’s (played by Audrey Olmstead she/her) intensely close friendship, Lucy turning away from her lover Harker’s (played by Joseph Sebby he/him) kiss, and Count Dracula (played by Deeyanna Duffie she/her) kissing Lucy once she has been “turned.” These explorative themes provide a new take on the traditional play, subverting audience expectations and presenting the story in a different light.
Deeyanna Duffie embodied the physicality and movement of Dracula and put an immense amount of thought into how Dracula would move. The choreography throughout the show was incredibly professional and well done, with impressive dance numbers and maneuvers such as flipping Renfield (played by Divina Hernandez, she/they) upside down, suspended in the air by her fellow cast members exactly like how a bat would hang. Divina Hernandez was a standout performance in the show, and her maniacal shrieking laughter throughout the play heightened the suspense fantastically. Audience members were absolutely delighted by the personality, talent, and attention to detail that she brought to the character.
The costumes, set design, and music especially elevated the production to even further heights of excellence. The display of emotion that Erin Faria portrayed in the culmination of Van Helsing’s mental breakdown was astoundingly dramatic and heartbreaking in its intensity. If you want the opportunity to be stunned by a performance brought to you by performers like the talented cast of Dracula, keep your eyes open for BSU Theater’s upcoming shows!
