Review by Laura Riggs

Last night my husband and I took his 12 year old, Maddie and her best friend, Marisah, to see Dracula at the Oregon Children’s Theatre’s Black Box Theater. Although both are familiar with the “Twilight” series, neither were familiar with the darker sided Dracula. (What, all vampires aren’t sparkly and filled with teen angst?!)

This was a perfect way to help them delve into the classical, gothic side of one of their favorite subjects. The entire cast is composed of teens, from eighth graders to seniors. The stage didn’t give the actors very much space to work with, but these kids didn’t need much. From Mina Murray’s adorable ankle boots to Count Dracula’s creepy accent, these teens used very little, and it was a huge success. From nailing their lines to interacting with six or seven people in such a small space, the cast did such a good job sucking you in with their stage presence and body language, I heard several gasps from the audience and people were literally standing to get a better look as Dracula is held down to be staked.

I can understand why this show sported ” Sold Out” signs. As we left the show, the girls chattered about their plans to sign up for drama next year and both of them grabbed pamphlets for the Oregon Children’s Theatre on our way out.
This performance of Dracula is the perfect pre-halloween activity for tweens and teens.

Editors note — all performances for Dracula are sold out!

Laura and her guests were given complimentary tickets to attend the show.  They were not compensated for this review.

posted by Tabitha Rhodes