La Jolla "Dracula" better than B'way version?

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 11:13am

I'm curious if anyone here saw the La Jolla produduction of Wildhorn's "Dracula." I remember reading the review highlights on Broadway.com, and they weren't really that bad. When the show came to New York though, it was trashed. Was the La Jolla version better, worse, or just as bad?

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:36pm

the show was actually worse, but the reviewers in San Diego are quite a bit nicer than the ones in NY. the only real plus I can remember from the La Jolla production was the presence of a full orchestra.

[B.B. Wolf]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 1:38pm

A full orchestra may have helped truthfully. This was one of the first shows where I actually noticed the synths. Still wouldn't help the rushed ending, though.

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 1:42pm

the structure was just a train wreck in La Jolla. it's a bit better now, at least to the point where you can tell what the story is if you pay really close attention. I came out of the La Jolla production actually knowing LESS about the plot than when I went in.

[B.B. Wolf]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 1:59pm

That's definitely a good development. I certainly didn't have any trouble following the plot and actually felt it was very close to the book. How the script still fell flat, in spite of good performers and close adherence to the structure of the book, is still confounding to me. There was just precious little immediacy to it. Maybe that was it. Stoker's novel charges forward, building the tension, from the moment Dracula begins the trip on the boat. Had I been writing it (which is what everyone says ) I would have at least attempted to build that tension through song, not more inane dialogue. Hell, Phantom does it with song (Point of No Return, I think) once the chase begins near the end and finally has the release of the Phantom's disappearance. On a side note, Tom Hewitt hasn't gotten NEARLY enough credit for the work he does in this very flawed show.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 4:47pm

I agree--Tom Hewitt was great. His voice was a little too brassy for the role--I think Dracula nees a more classical, richer sound--but dramatically he was perfect.