Bram Stoker’s Dracula is preparing to swoop in and spook Bunbury with one show only at the Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre on June 23.
The gothic horror story, created and adapted by shake & stir theatre co, will tour Australia as it makes its way to Bunbury on Friday, June 23.
The new adaption of Stoker’s twisted tale comes from the company behind the multi-award winning, nationally touring productions of 1984 and Animal Farm and follows young lawyer Jonathan Harker.
When Harker visits Castle Dracula deep within the Carpathian mountains, he’s not expecting the strange hospitality he receives from his mysterious host. Alone and trapped within the castle walls, Jonathan discovers that Dracula wants more than his presence at the dinner table – he might also be the main course.
Leaving Jonathan for dead and his castle behind, Dracula travels to London on a quest for seduction, true love and above all, blood.
Nick Skubij plays Dracula in the mesmerising, yet terrifying production and said the show has been a hit so far all over the east coast of Australia.
“People have so far really loved the show and they’ve been blown away by the scale of it. I think it’s a really good and fun night out at the theatre,” he said.
“We take the original book and keep the essence of it in the text but through the presentation of it on stage, we update it and make it feel fresh.
“People who love the book can come along and see the book on stage but they feel like hopefully they’re seeing it for the first time or they’re seeing surprising things in it that they haven’t considered before.”
Although a dark and scary character, Skubij said Dracula has been the role of a lifetime.
“Dracula is a great part to play because you can get away with a lot given that he’s not a human character so when you play these supernatural characters, there’s a lot of fun you can have,” he said.
“People have different ideas on what Dracula is based on their own experiences with vampire fiction so it’s great to come in and do my own, different version of that.
“It’s a real kind of escapist character to play, lots of makeup and costumes so it’s a big heightened, very theatrical character which are always the greatest characters to play.”
Skubij said the physical set of the production is an asset to the show, and worth seeing all on it’s own.
“Most of the audience mention the set first, it’s a massive automated stage where furniture comes in and out magically and a double story gothic castle with it’s own stage and that really blows people away, the sheer scale of the show,” he said.
“And it’s exciting that we can bring those big production values into all sorts of venues, from big cities to really regional stops – everyone gets the same show, nothing gets cut, it’s always the full production at it’s most sumptuous and people are really liking that idea of this luxurious gothic world.
“We can’t wait to get to WA. We love WA, it’s a beautiful place and we’re really looking forward to our shows there.”
In a warning to viewers, the critically-acclaimed production includes simulated violence, sexual and supernatural themes haze and strobe lighting.
WATCH: The trailer for Dracula by Bram Stoker which will be at BREC for one night only this June.
Dracula will perform at the BREC on Friday night, June 23. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit bunburyentertainment.com.
