Edward Alderton Theatre Home | News | This Season | Next Season | Bookings | Auditions | Members | Archive | History | Location | Links | Contact Us   Count Dracula by Ted Tiller Directed by Roz Betts 14-21 May 1994 (7 performances) At Dr Seward's Asylum for the Insane, there's a new patient called Renfield, and a new resident in the castle across the valley - a mysterious foreign count, Dracula, who has been seen only at night... Cast Sybil Seward Pam Sage Hennessey Jim Humphreys Dr Arthur Seward Peter Richardson Renfield John Wilson Wesley Ian McKenzie Jonathan Harker David Hall Mina Susan Hall Count Dracula Paul Lay Heinrich Van Helsing David Hampton Crew Stage Manager Alison Armit Assistant Stage Manager Janet Hampton Set Construction Paul Lay, Steve Spooner, Ron Hardwen, Alan Webster, Ian McKenzie, Alison Armit, Tim Hewitt, Mike Higginson Set Artwork Nicole Antras, Allison Henderson, Carole La Roche Costumes Freda Philips Properties Janet Burns, Jean Sharp Lighting  Tim Hewitt Sound Jerry McKeon Special Effects Roger Butler Backstage Crew Christine McKeon, Peter Griffin, Alan Webster Programme Design Eleanor McEnery Review Dracula checks in to the asylum Dracula took time off from Transylvania last week to spend time at the Edward Alderton Theatre in Bexleyheath. Piercing red-rimmed eyes, a deathly white complexion and a chilling air of menace in his every move all combined to return Bram Stoker's most celebrated character to the world of the living. Ted Tiller's Count Dracula is a rather free adaptation of the classic story but his play embraces all the main characters, including the vampire killer Van Helsing. Set in a mental asylum, it lends itself to melodrama. Director Roz Betts, however, not only opted for a classically dramatic approach but introduced a host of sound and visual effects to shock audiences into a state of nervous anticipation. With bats suddenly flapping across the auditorium, the vampire disappearing into thin air and windows and curtains opening and shutting of their own accord, the production was a triumph of ingenuity. Paul Lay made a splendidly intimidating and imposing Dracula but his clipped mid-European accent limited his ability to add a menacing dimension to his dialogue. Peter Richardson's intensely sober portrayal of the director of the asylum, Pam Sage's delightfully eccentric performance as his wife and David Hampton's idiosyncratic creation of Van Helsing all generated good contrasts in acting styles. With John Wilson excellent as a very disturbed asylum inmate, Susan Hall delicately treading the path between lust and fear and David Hall shaking off initial lethargy to make an ultimately convincing Harker, this was a very inventive and atmospheric production. It was also one that owed much to Roger Butler's special effects, Tim Hewitt's lighting, Jerry McKeon's sound effects and some slick work by the stage crew. Roy Atterbury Kentish Times | 26 May 1994