I should of done a blog about this on Halloween night but unfortunately I fell poorly with a cold and I didn't get home from Cineworld till 10pm that day.
I'm going to blog about:
Northern Ballet's DRACULA
Dracula: Javier Torres
He played/danced the part really well. In fact he was brilliant.
Old Dracula: Riku Ito
Might as well have another dancer to play Dracula as the character transform from old to young.
Mine Murray: Abigail Prudames
She was a great Mina Murray.
Lucy Westernra: Antoinette Brooks-Daw
She brought life to the character.
Jonathan Harker: Lorenzo Trossello
I have never ever seen a handsome ballet dancer to play Jonathan Harker before.
Dr. Jack Seward:
Joseph Taylor
I wish he was my doctor LOL.
Arthur Holmwood: Matthew Koon
I know what you're thinking; where's Quincey Morris? Well for some Dracula productions the qualities that Quincey Morrie possess are added to Dr. Seward, Jonathan Harker & Arthur Holmwood.
Renfield: Kevin Peoung
He put so much energy into the character.
Dr. Abraham Van Helsing: Ashley Dixon
Great part for one of the great dancers.
The Brides Of Dracula:
Rachel Gillespie
Sarah Chun
& finally Minju Kang
Beautiful but deadly women.
Act 1 Synopsis:
Young lawyer, Jonathan Harker, travelled to Transylvania to conclude business with, Count Dracula. The Brides of Dracula tried to seduce Harker. Dracula intervenes, drank Harker's blood and transformed into a younger man.
Dracula travelled to England, Harker's fiancee, Mina is staying with Lucy while she waits for Jonathan to return. Lucy is choosing between two potential suitors but accepted Arthur Holmwood over Dr Seward.
Dracula visits mental patient, Renfield (who was being treated by Dr. Seward), recruited him to do his bidding. Dracula lures Lucy into a cemetery and drinks her blood before feeding her his own blood. Concerned by Lucy's behaviour, Mina tried to help and meets Dracula and they both immediately drawn to each other.
Tortured by the grasp the inflicted on him by Mina, he enacts his revenge on Lucy. Holmwood, Seward and Sewards mentor Van Helsing tried save Lucy's life but were too late.
End of act 1.
There was a 20 minute intermission which included a 'behind the scenes' featurette. Good excuse to go to the toilet then as I was also on my cycle that week. So I was having a very bad week that week in October.
Act 2 Synopsis:
Whilst everyone mourned the loss of Lucy at her funeral, Mina couldn't her thoughts about Dracula. But that very night, Van Helsing, Harker, Seward & Holmwood discovered that Lucy wasn't in her coffin. As dawn approached, Lucy returned to her coffin and Van Helsing drove a stake through her heart and chopped her head off.
Under the leadership of Van Helsing, the four men began their hunt for Dracula. Van Helsing hypnotised Renfield to make him reveal the location of Dracula's lair and therefore destroy. Furious about Renfields betrayal, Dracula kills Renfield and went after Mina.
Whilst she was alone in her room, Mina realised that she is now helplessly in love with Dracula (don't we all wish that we were head over heels with Dracula) who came to visit her. After the men returned they discovered that Renfield was dead and Mina was in the arms of Dracula. Dracula fled into the night.
While Mina was under Dracula's spell, Van Helsing led Seward, Holmwood and Harker on his crusade to free Mina from Dracula and destroy him once and for all.
I remember about five years ago on 04/09/14, my sister took me to Leeds Playhouse to see this ballet for her 26th birthday (she knows that Dracula is my favorite book) and that very same year I restarted college by doing English skills level 1. I really enjoyed the ballet so much that I really wanted to see it again. But that would take five years of waiting to se it again but a little bit different, not in a theater but in a cinema instead. I did enjoy my first streaming live from Leeds Playhouse at Cineworld but I would of enjoyed watching the ballet if I wasn't full of cold. Oh well maybe next time.
But I do give this ballet:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I can't wait to watch the new mini series of Dracula that Mark Gatiss wrote in New Year.
The role of Dracula will be played by:
Claes Bang
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