‘Dracula’ brings Halloween thrills to Encore

LIMA — It might be just the right time for Lima’s Encore Theatre to perform “Dracula.”

But for director Ashley Roberts, there is more to this production than simply monsters and scares.

“The perfect timing to do Dracula is around Halloween time because it’s kind of spooky, kind of scary,” she said. “Some would even consider it more of a horror story. And it’s also the 125th anniversary of Bram Stoker actually writing the book. So it just kind of seemed fitting. It was kind of neat because I’m fortunate. I didn’t plan that way. It just kind of happened. And so it’s kind of a neat way to celebrate that anniversary.”

“Dracula” has maintained a long-standing appeal, having brought vampires into the horror genre, and Roberts hopes to tap into that appeal at Encore.

“Honestly, it’s a really cool story to tell because, in my opinion, it’s the first vampire story that got everybody hooked on vampires,” she said. “There are so many different vampires in pop culture today and so many movies and books and music and different things that have to do with vampires that kind of all started with his story.”

This will not be the first time that Encore has housed “Dracula,” but it does represent a change of pace for Roberts, who previously directed a production of “Elf: the Musical,” and she hopes to bring something different to this production.

“I really wanted to stay away from making the play can’t be and so it’s more of like a kind of a psychological thriller where I want people to really think about it and feel something when they watch it,” she said. “It’s something that I want people to really kind of think about. There are so many different characters within the play that have a lot that is going on with them. There are different ones who have already met Dracula, that have had an effect from him, and they’re working through that. And then there are their loved ones who are trying to figure out what exactly is going on with them. And then there are others that haven’t met him at all yet. And then they’re just mesmerized by this guy and what he’s all about. And is Dracula really a bad guy? Or is he just trying to survive like everybody else is trying to survive?”

Roberts even said that the theatre read different versions of the story to until they found the one that was right for it.

“There’s so many different versions of the story. I know the theatre had actually read different versions to kind of figure out which one they even wanted to do, and I don’t know how many they read. So this one may be slightly different. But for the most part, it’s about the same. The ending might be a little bit different than what they’re used to. But I think that alone might get some people talking. I think that’s also a good thing.”

Judging from additional comments, Roberts will likely avoid producing a campier version, staying true to the macabre, gothic roots of the story.

“I would advise that it’s probably not the best to bring little kids to,” she said. “I would say probably teenagers are okay because there is quite a bit of violence. I think some people were a little surprised with, once we got started doing rehearsals, how much violence there actually was. And it’s really neat because one of the cast members, and also my assistant director have had experience in theatre combat, which is great because he’s the actor who is actually the one that plays Dracula, and he was able to really help with those fight scenes and work through those so that way, everybody’s doing it in a safe way, and also so that way it looks right but it also feels safe and is safe for everybody. And there’s very minimal amounts of blood. So that’s not something to worry about when they’re trying to figure out who should come if they should leave certain teenagers at home or not, there’s not really blood. There’s very minimal amount I should say. And violence is going to be the main thing.

Dracula will run for the next two weekends, from Friday, October through Sunday and Oct. 28-30, at the Encore Theatre on 991 N. Shore Drive, Lima. Friday and Saturday performances begin at 8 p.m. while Sunday shows begin at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online at https://bit.ly/3MGfiqx.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “Dracula”

WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday

WHERE: Encore Theatre, 991 N. Shore Drive, Lima

Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors, $10 for students and $8 for youth 10 and under. Tickets can be purchased online at https://bit.ly/3MGfiqx.

Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.