Wakefield sinks its teeth into Dracula

Trick-or-treating has come and gone, but the haunting will continue at Wakefield School in The Plains, where theater rehearsals are in full swing for the fall production of Dracula.

The foggy, blood-filled play is a bold move, replete with mature topics and difficult acting, but a challenge that theater director Tom Bazar believes students can tackle.

“They’re being challenged by this and getting out of their comfort zone,” Bazar said. “I’m proud of them.”

Although Bazar did not originally plan to produce the play this fall, “I thought, ‘Why not do it during Halloween time?’” he said.

“There’s this fascination the culture has with vampires,” he said. “Why not show them it originates from Dracula?”

The plot involves the famed Count Dracula, as well as a host of lovers, madmen, doctors, and the vampire’s nemesis, Abraham Van Helsing.

Set in Victorian England, the play initially centers around the journey of a young English solicitor, Jonathan Harker, who attempts to engage Dracula in a real estate transaction, but is instead drawn into the vampire’s web. The tangled story line unravels as Harker, along with his fiance, Mina, and her sister, Lucy, work to survive, escape and find love.

Throughout the play, Dracula emanates, even when absent from a scene. To Bazar, there is a sense of foreshadowing in the vampire’s looming presence.

Although the play is heavily imbued with sensual qualities and a vivid physicality, Bazar has successfully walked the fine line required to downplay and change parts unsuitable for his young actors, while allowing them to meet other challenges head on.

“I love the theatricality of it,” Bazar said, noting elaborate costuming, heavy makeup, and the style of acting required to carry off the “other-worldly feel of it.”

With a cast of 25 high school and middle school students, it’s a bit like “controlled mayhem in some ways ... but it’s wonderful,” he said

For some students, like senior Rob Bohn, who plays Dracula, it’s the first time they have acted in a Wakefield production.

“It’s kind of daunting, but worth it,” Bohn said. “Mr. Bazar has been a great director and I’m really starting to feel like I’m becoming Dracula when I’m on stage ... it’s less of me trying to play him and more of simply being him.”

Despite some awkward situations — most students aren’t used to the physicality required to pretend they’re biting someone’s neck — laughter provides relief as students rehearse for the roles that will ultimately pull the show together.

“We always make it work at the end of the day ... but this has definitely pushed us [to become better actors],” said Evan Gendreau, 17, who plays Abram Van Helsing. “It will definitely show what our theater department and Mr. Bazar are capable of doing.”

“It’s a cool piece of classic English literature that makes for a great play to perform,” he said.

Those involved say the show is a “thriller” more than a comedy or drama, and like the return to a more original and “true vampire.”

“It’s closer to the original idea rather than the romanticized, sparkly Twilight version,” said Sophia Rutti, 16, who plays Lucy Westenra. If Dracula made a comeback by a larger theater company, Rutti believes “it could change how people look at vampires.”

“In this story, the vampire is in love with [my character], yet she fears him, which is the more natural predator-prey relationship,” she said. “It makes sense.”

Though a very odd choice for a high school production, senior Andrew Snyder, still believes “it’s perfect.”

“Mr. Bazar makes a lot of bold choices and usually when he goes with his instinct, it’s right,” said Snyder, who plays Jonathan Harker. “There are so many different renditions of vampires, but this is going to be really cool because it’s our take on it.”

Wakefield will present Dracula Nov. 9-11 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 12 at 2 p.m. This show is recommended for students in sixth-grade or above and is not suitable for young children.

All tickets are $5. For more information, contact Tom Bazar at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)  .