Dracula The Melodrama
` By: Joe Dickinson
Produced by: Pocket Sandwich Theatre
Hahahahahahahaha! In short, that’s my delighted response to my recent evening with Dracula The Melodrama at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre. FYI, this was my first time at the Pocket, and NOT just this brand spanking new location in historic downtown Carrollton but my very first time at any location, as I missed seeing a show before the Dallas location was closed for the relocation.
Now, those of you in the know, those loyalists who are longtime, perhaps decades long, devotees of the “old” Pocket will, I am sure, love the “new” Pocket. I have it on good authority, from others of your ilk, that the “new” is very much like the “old”, excepting some pesky columns and some somehow “bad” seats audience left in the “old”, which are sweetly missing from the “new”, at least in part thanks to an amazingly long beam that runs across the theater space. But for those like me who would be new to the Pocket, should they take my earnest advice and go ASAP, let me say just a bit more about the theater. It has booths, it has tables, it has seats racked along seemingly endless bar-like surfaces, good seats all, upon all of which wait staff, happy, friendly eager wait staff, will set tasty food and beverages, both adult and otherwise, including lovely pitchers of beer should you be so inclined.
Going to the Pocket Sandwich Theatre is an event, not merely an evening of Theatre and, as you might expect given the place’s name, the sandwiches are great. At least if you go by the sandwich that I devoured, called the Pocket’s Muse, which had Grilled Chicken and that I accompanied with a surfeit of draft Manhattan’s Necessary Evil. My friend’s soup and salad were also delicious (No, I did not nibble but take him at his word).
However, the first food item you’ll likely spy as you enter the theater is popcorn. Huge, giant barrels of freshly made masses of popcorn being made right there in the lobby by young eager folks, named Brandon and Lorilei the night I was there. Ironically, the popcorn is not so much for eating, although I will admit to eating at least a few handfuls, as it is for throwing at actors, wait staff, fellow theater goers. And, yes, you will be pelted with popcorn yourself by others, possibly very many others. Note, that you are not required to buy food or drink. However, if one comes early, say at 6:30 pm as we did, then you can have a genuinely enjoyable conversation before the show, given you come with the right peeps, as well as good eats and drinks. And, certainly, you could arrive much closer to the 8 o’clock curtain and order and eat and drink during the show, without the pre-show goods and welfare.
Now, Dracula The Melodrama is, as the name surely suggests, a melodrama which, per Britannica.com, is “… in Western theater, sentimental drama with an improbable plot that concerns the vicissitudes suffered by the virtuous at the hands of the villainous but ends happily with virtue triumphant.” For the Pocket Sandwich Theatre goer that means you get to boo the villains, cheer the heroes, and get mushy with “aaaaahs” over those gentles who need rescuing. And you get to throw the popcorn all ‘round. The first basket of popcorn, per couple, is free, with additional popcorn available for purchase at a nominal charge. We decided that six extra baskets would suffice, but I now think that twelve wouldn’t have been too many. And don’t worry as everyone in the audience gets full instructions from the stage during the curtain speech as to the audience’s role in the evening’s entertainment, including rules regarding popcorn tossing.
Caution: I am told by a frequent actor at the Pocket that ONLY every other show at the theater is a melodrama. Thus, if a marvelous theater, friendly folks, and fabulous food and drink, all combined with a good play, excellent acting and production values are not enough for you (i.e., you MUST also be encouraged and allowed to throw popcorn in order to have a satisfactory theater outing), please make sure you pick a melodrama. However, I personally am very eager to go to the Pocket’s next production that is not a melodrama, but a comedy called Murder at the Howard Johnson’s that opens February 24th, despite being limited to only eating and NOT throwing any available popcorn. I expect both you and I would have an excellent time attending, despite the lack of popcorn throwing.
Meanwhile, back at the melodrama, at the very top of the show there’s the funny and instructive curtain speech (delivered with aplomb by Kevin Michael Fuld who plays Dr. John Seward), a parade of actors through the audience, which immediately starts the popcorn flying, and even two songs for cast and audience to sing, both of which I knew, helpfully with the lyrics are printed in the program. Thereafter, mayhem ensued. However, before describing some of that mayhem, I must mention that throughout the evening all is accompanied/underscored by the brilliant Pianist Timothy Flippo, who adds so much atmosphere, urgency, and fun to the many scenes as he plays from upstage left.
In the first scene we meet the eponymous Count Dracula, Patrick Britton, a handsome and most sexy undead rockstar of a vampire, struttingly worthy of the name in the title. When not sucking blood, he eagerly and expertly chews the scenery, de rigueur in a melodrama. Following scenes give us the usual English suspects, including Mario Aguirre IV as a most stalwart Jonathan Harker and Kim Winnubst as Lucy Westenra, who together make a very properly British couple of the upper crusty set, with Winnubst charmingly putting me in mind of a young Megan Mullally, with her vocal and comic delivery.
Kristin Sutton Ford as Mrs. Westenra, Rebecca Litsey as Mina Murray, Charles E. Moore as Peter Hawkins, Ryan Negron as Arthur Holmwood, along with the aforementioned Fuld as Dr. John Seward, round out the Brits upon whom our erstwhile bloodsucker might prey. They all have excellent accents and, most importantly, chemistry as they play off each other and keep the plot moving swiftly along. The brash brat impishly bringing up the British rearguard is young Victoria Gomez as Melissa. Gomez is a big part of the fun and surprises in this Dracula, despite her small size, which is commensurate given her apparent youth. But the Brits are also ably and amusingly aided by an American, Ashley Collum as Quincey Morris, who puts a big old capital T on the front of Texan and TEXAS-SIZED exclamation point at the end. Collum’s Quincey was a definite audience favorite and the crowd reveled in rooting for one of our own.
Rounding out Dracula’s side is a creepy crawly Renfield played by Joel Hashop. Renfield seems to be Seward’s sole patient and their scenes together are disturbingly fun. Adding some sizzle to the sexy of the undead are the cheekily named Lady Patricia (Isabell Moon), Lady Maxine (McKenna Curtis), and Lady Laverne (Jennifer Nachazel) who, like the Patty, Maxine, and Laverne of Andrews Sisters fame, seem to have some great musical chops. Unfortunately, we’re just teased a bit with their harmonious musicality and don’t get a full song. In a plea to the producers/director, I hereby humbly share that I would have LOVED to hear the three sing a full song. Each of these young ladies is very fetching and funny, both singly (no pun intended) and together.
Finally, our hero is a marvelously strident and Dutch-sounding Lauren Hearn as Dr. Van Helsing. Hearn drives the resolution of the play and as the resident vampire hunter she brings an urgency and even a poignancy to the mostly comic undertakings.
Robert Clark’s Set Design is spare yet clever. Sarah Hearn’s Costume Design adds to the spooky period ambience and suits each character. Virgil Optic is credited as the production’s Phlebotomist although, while it appears convincing, I doubt and hope that it was not real blood that I saw on stage, which while never spurting was oft times smeared across faces. Director Nick Haley has helmed a fun and engaging production that will leave you laughing, but not plagued by nightmares. Go sink your teeth into this one!
Audience Rating: PG for use of blood. Parental guidance is advised.
Accessible Seating: Available
Hearing Devices: Not Available
Sensory-Friendly Showing: Not available
Production Sound Level: Comfortable
Noises and Visuals to Know About: Blood, Gunshot
See you at the Theater!
David Ellivloc
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