The Real Transylvania Mania

Posted by Bruce Miller

Very quickly (it's past my bedtime), I attended TheatreVCU's production of Dracula this evening, written by Steven Dietz, directed by Barry Bell, and produced by David Leong. It was an exciting, impressive and creepy ride.

I especially appreciated the five leading men: Brandon Crowder as Dracula, Joe Carlson as Renfield, Joseph Sultani as Seward, Landon Nagel as Van Helsing, and Andrew Donnelly as Harker. All five inhabited their characters with distinct personalities and histrionic expertise, creating some heart-pounding suspense.

Of the five, Landon Nagel is the Barksdale vet, having played the minister and other roles in The Full Monty a couple summers ago.

Ron Keller's set, Toni-Leslie James's costumes, Mike Mauren's lights, and especially Thomas Vecchione's sound were all chill inducing. Ron Keller is another Barksdale and Theatre IV vet, having designed The Laramie Project and supervised the designs of countless other shows at Willow Lawn, including our upcoming productions of Doubt and The Little Dog Laughed.

The two leading ladies, Jaci Camden and Marie Weigle, spent most of the show as young lovelies, but became more interesting after becoming "unclean." Barry Bell staged it all with style, classical titillation, and a fun sense of the unexpected.

More than half the seats were empty this evening, which is a terrible shame. Students can attend for only $7 (adults are something like $18). This evening was further proof that even when exciting theatre is presented super-cheap in their own backyard, it's really difficult to convince the majority of university students to come to the theatre.

The last two performances will be tomorrow evening (Friday) at 7:30, and, if you want to be really creepy, Saturday evening at MMIIDDNNIIGGHHTT - AHH HHAA HHAA!! (That's me using my deep Transylvania voice with lots of reverb.)

Anyway, for an eerie good time, you won't go wrong with this new edition of Dracula. The VCU theatre department is full of talent. And you can't beat the price.

--Bruce Miller

The Joint is Jumpin' at VCU's "Smokey Joe's"

I had the greatest time last night at the opening of Smokey Joe’s Café at TheatreVCU. Everywhere I turned I bumped into another longstanding friend (notice I no longer use the word “old”). David Leong (VCU theatre chair) and Patti D’Beck (director and choreographer extraordinaire) were practically bursting with pride as their talented students brought back to life the era of my very early youth (notice I use the words “very early”). David and Patti are two national theatre treasures whose abundant talent is surpassed only by their friendliness.

Patti’s clever and joyful direction and choreography showcased all of her young performers’ many strengths. The unending highlights included:
· You’re the Boss, featuring the stylish vocals of Gerron Atkinson and Joy Newsome—two dynamos who have everything it takes to perform this show on Broadway tomorrow;
· Ryan Murvin’s channeling of Elvis’s spirit in Jailhouse Rock, while avoiding an outright impersonation;
· the powerhouse and performance-savvy voices of Jaci Camden and Calvin McCollugh;
· the blond bombshell shimmy of Katie Bradley;
· the read-his-face-like-a-book attractiveness of Joshua Boone;
· the gentle giant tenor of Joshua Grace; and
· the knock-it-out-of-park determination of Margie Mills, even as her mic decides to take a break at the outset of her biggest number.

Be sure to catch this terrifically entertaining show during it's three-week run. Tickets are only $18—what a bargain for a first rate musical! Richmond’s theatre community is immeasurably enriched by the contributions of the great theatre programs at VCU and U of R, and more Richmonders should take advantage of these wonderful resources. When they produce a crowd-pleaser as rousing and beautifully performed as Smokey Joe's Cafe, you're crazy to miss it!