Dracula: A Theatrical Production

This is a photo of Dracula that has become one of the
most iconic and recognizable characters in entertainment! (Morris)

After researching much about the influence of the theatrical world on Bram Stoker and his pieces, it was only necessary that I continued to research one of the most famous 19th-century novels and its relation to theatre. The first Dracula script that was created was written by Bram Stoker himself, eight days before he published his famous novel Dracula. Surprisingly, Dracula was a hit on stage and even up until more recent years, but not when it first debuted. Then, fast forward to the early 20th century, Dracula would become one of the most memorable and significant characters known to entertainment (Buzwell, 1). Theatre became one of the first ways Dracula was formed into the iconic character he is portrayed to be today.

   The Creation of the First Script of Dracula: or The Undead

The Lyceum Theatre where Bram Stoker worked and Dracula: or the
Undead first debuted! (The Lyceum Theatre,)

When exploring the history of Dracula onstage, this journey starts at Bram Stoker's workplace, The Lyceum Theatre in London where he fulfilled the position: Theatre Manager. During Stoker's time as a manager at the theatre, he was working on his famous novel Dracula. However, a script version of this novel called, Dracula: or The Un-Dead was published just over a week before his novel. Stoker did this because he wanted to ensure he received the dramatic rights to his work and the process was lengthy. To receive the rights to his play, Stoker had to submit his work to the Lord Chamberlain's office and wait for the approval or disapproval for the license to his work. Stoker rushed to make this happen which left him with a mediocre play version of his novel Dracula (Buzwell, 2). Therefore, Stoker was the first one to produce a script of Dracula (which I find very interesting).

           Dracula Hit the Stage for the First Time

Dracula: or the Undead
script!
(Lugosi)

The advertisement for
Bram Stoker's show!(Lugosi)

After only a short-while, Stoker's Dracula: or The Un-Dead, premiered for the first time onstage and not in the way one would expect. The show had opened at the Lyceum Theatre in London on May 18th, 1897 and in fact, one of the actresses that Stoker managed agreed to act in his show. Edith Craig played the role of Mina Murray and although Stoker was anticipating the participation of Henry Irving, an influential person in Stoker's life, he denied the offer and described the show as 'dreadful" and he was not inaccurate. Dracula: or The Un-Dead had nothing more than an opening night as only two people showed up to the very first performance. The show consisted of a prologue, five acts, and forty scenes. Stroker critics believe this performance would have taken about five hours and it is likely the audience, no matter how interesting it is, would have sat through the whole thing. Another flaw that is believed to have led to poor attendance, is the lack of advertisement. The advertisement that was allowed for a show such as this was a hanging sign outside of the theatre a half hour before the show begins. In the 19th century, a show like this one was only a small advertisement (Skal, 373). While this performance was a bust, Dracula's life as entertainment was far from over

            Dracula's Comeback to Theatre and Entertainment

John L. Balderston (The Bride of Frankenstein)

Hamilton Deane (Hamilton Deane)

In 1924, nearly 50 years after Stoker but his show onstage, believers in Dracula in a theatrical form would make an attempt for success, and this time, it happens. Hamilton Deane, for the first time, would receive authorization to revamp Stoker's previous attempt at Dracula as a stage play. Later, in 1927, John L. Balderston revised it leading to its debut at The Little Theatre in London where Horace Liveright, a successful producer, was in the audience. After the show, Liveright asked Balderston to create the play into a Broadway production. After agreeing to such a prestigious offer, Dracula showed at Fulton Theatre's stage that same year (Dracula 1924,1). This event lead to the performance of Dracula all over the world as it became a great way of entertaining the public!

 Dracula on BROADWAY!

Specifically, in 1977, a Tony award-winning adaptation of Dracula hit the stage at Alley Theatre in Houston Texas. Gregory Boyd was the mastermind behind this famous creation as he was in charge of the scenic and costume designs. People and actors in this production were amazed by his design.Almost all the parts he created incorporated bats that symbolized that Dracula is everywhere even before the show introduces him. As for the scenery, most of it was three-dimensional which made its creation extremely intricate and without a question, this performance became a Broadway hit (Tran,1). So much so, that Dracula is still performed today, which, is quite impressive for being a complete failure at first

The library scene from a famous production of Dracula. (Tran)

To no surprise, the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker was a hit on the stage. Stoker spent his life immersed in the theatre, so it is not a shock that Dracula became that successful. It is believed by Stoker critics that his novel was written more like a script because he spent much of his life working in a theatre and picking up theatrical aspects to incorporate into his works. Overall, Stoker's works have been quite successful in the world of entertainment!

Works Cited

Buzwell, George. “Bram Stoker's Stage Adaptation of Dracula.” The British Library, The British                  Library, 13 Nov. 2014, www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/bram-stokers-stage-                      adaptation-of-dracula.

“Dracula (1924 Play).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 6 Oct. 2018,                                                          en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracula_(1924_play).

“Hamilton Deane.” Classic Monsters, 27 Sept. 2015, www.classic-monsters.com/hamilton-deane/.

Lugosi, Bela. “Staged Reading Of Dracula At The Lyceum Theatre In 1897.” The Bela Lugosi Blog,             7 Feb. 2018, beladraculalugosi.wordpress.com/2011/05/17/staged-reading-of-dracula-at-the-                lyceum-theatre-in-1897/.

McCormick, Mike. “Dracula Alley Theatre.” Production Notebook, vol. 32, no. 2, 2015, pp. 36–36.              EbscoHost, eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&sid=8def75d3-a7ea-46d4-              9c60-6afe3d4bcb9e@sdc-v-sessmgr03.

Morris, Nigel. “Bram Stoker Based Dracula on Scientific and Medical Research.” Inews.co.uk,                      Inews.co.uk, 31 Oct. 2016, inews.co.uk/culture/not-just-horror-story-dracula-based-scientific-              medical-research/.

“The Lyceum Theatre, Wellington Street, London.” The Lyceum Theatre, Wellington Street, London,             www.arthurlloyd.co.uk/LyceumTheatre.htm.

Stoker, Bram, et al. Dracula: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Reviews and Reactions, Dramatic and            Film Variations, Criticism. W.W. Norton, 1997.

“The Bride of Frankenstein.” Scifist, 1 Feb. 2017, scifist.wordpress.com/2014/11/19/the-bride-of-                  frankenstein/.

Tran, Diep. “Getting Gorey with Alley Theatre's 'Dracula'.” AMERICAN THEATRE, 3 Apr. 2015,              www.americantheatre.org/2015/02/06/getting-gorey-with-alley-theatres-dracula/.