Play: Dracula

Completing a trio of Meetups, last night I was back with Up in the Cheap Seats for the only non-film of the week - we were seeing a female-centric version of Dracula at the Lyric Hammersmith.

Far enough to take the Tube - funny how I never usually do, but since the strike finished, I've been doing it every day! I walked to the station - though it didn't rain, it was very breezy, and I was wearing a cape that billowed around me (figured that was appropriate, for this play). Happily, mainly - as the saying goes - the wind was at my back. And on the Tube, I got a seat after a couple of stops.

I got there early enough to eat beforehand - was thinking the William Morris, which is right across from the theatre. But wouldn't you know it, it was completely full.. I ended up in The Swan, on the other side of it, where I had a very nice chicken schnitzel. It occurred to me that's four days in a row now, I've had that.. well, I do like it. And hey, the garlic is a good protection against vampires.. and while I ate, I was entertained by watching the large lantern outside the window sway back and forth in the wind..

And so to the theatre - where they always make an effort to make the place reminiscent of whatever's showing. As I arrived, they started to play Don't Fear the Reaper, the stall selling programs was nicely decked out in red, as was the bar - and as ever, they had themed cocktails:

We duly headed up to our seats - and the oblivious usher sent me to the wrong side. I might generally have been able to push past the others in the row, but for this - the back row in the Circle - the row is split, four seats on each side; and of course, I was on the other side. Anyway, it's a good seat, and at the end of the section, so I had plenty of space for my stuff.

Very atmospheric setting, the auditorium bathed in red, the stage curtain ripped (although it's hard to see from the photo). And the staging in general is terrific - really, I haven't seen a scary play staged better. More than a nod to the film, Bram Stoker's Dracula, I think, with the preponderance of red, and a Gothic feel. Mood lighting, great costumes, effects beautifully executed - those with closer seats said the vampires seemed to be wearing red contacts. The scene where Jonathan Harker is attacked by a trio of female vampires in his bed, in Dracula's castle, is excellently portrayed, with them coming across as really scary. We were all massively impressed with the staging.

The premise has Mina as the only survivor, telling her cautionary tale in this performance. She directs the cast of characters in re-enactments - very effective ones, as I say. And I did wonder whether the constant refrain of "Come to me.." was influenced by the new version of Nosferatu. Again, it was obvious that a lot of thought has gone into the production. So far so good..

And then it all went to pot. There's an Agenda, you see - beware anything that describes itself as "female-centric". The full purpose of the play doesn't become apparent till the end, by which time, as someone remarked afterwards, it felt like we were being beaten by a hammer. And, as she said, it got shouty. The premise they eventually finish on doesn't even make logical sense.. what they've done is to drop in a political agenda, in the guise of a horror story. The proper way to do that would have been to announce the purpose from the start - but of course, that wouldn't have sold as well. So instead we got sideswiped. Runs straight through without interval - and of course, there were (women) on my level who gave it a standing ovation. I gave it a brief clap - the staging was superior, as I say - and waited until I could leave. Runs until the 11th - caution, contains some extreme strobe lighting.

It ran too late to blog last night. Next, a few more films coming up - tonight, thinking of another Palestinian documentary; this one is From Ground Zero, a collection of short films made by Gazans. Produced by Michael Moore. I saw the trailer when I was in the Curzon Bloomsbury, but this week it's showing in the ICA.

Tomorrow only, the Cinema Museum is showing The Big Heat, a film noir with Glenn Ford. Eating beforehand in the Toulouse Lautrec.

And on Thursday, back with Movie Roadhouse London at The Garden Cinema (complete with member's discount) for a murder mystery called Islands, set in the Canaries. We're eating in Caravan beforehand - never heard of it, but as he's how I found out about the Toulouse Lautrec, I'm happy to give it a shot!