Review: Dracula’s: Sanctuary at Crown Theatre

Dracula’s: Sanctuary at Crown Theatre
Thursday, October 31, 2024

High-octane aerials, stunning visuals, and gripping vocals on the spookiest night of the year guarantee one thing: a spectacular Halloween show. However, the cast of Dracula’s needs no such holiday assistance to stage an exceptional night of salacious, gothic-era goodness with a modern twist.

Dracula’s: Sanctuary, the latest vaudevillian spectacle from Newman Entertainment, clawed its way into Perth’s Crown Theatre after a sold-out season across Australia and New Zealand in 2023. This time the show was set within the confines of an asylum, complete with doctors, patients, and fever dream sequences.

From the moment of entrance into the theatre, visitors were instantly immersed in the world of Dracula’s, with deep red hues sweeping the stage, signature cocktails for sale in blood pouches and tiny coffins, and macabre set dressings in the lobby. Paired with the impressive costumes of enthusiastic punters, the scene was set. Massive screens straddled the stage, giving audiences even as far as the back row a clear view of the on-stage action.

Such attention to detail and punter experience was then further continued in the high-energy opening number of the show, pairing dancers, live music and vocals, intense lighting setups and pyrotechnics. From the get-go, the standard was set for a high production performance. Visually interesting set pieces and props and eye-catching costumes set the scene for a well-designed production.

Following the show-stopping introduction, the production did ease to a slower pace, ebbing and flowing between bigger numbers and quieter moments. While the balance felt strained at times, particularly losing rhythm in the drawn-out dialogue between scenes, the routines themselves were varied and mostly captivating.

Leading the cast in the titular role as Dr. Acula, Will Rogers was a charismatic and playful host, with a never-ending supply of quips and jokes. Rogers was joined by Emma Mylott as an enigmatic nurse and James Smart as a patient. The three seemed to form the crux of the show, all ‘MCing’ in addition to performing acts of their own.

The indisputable highlight of the show’s first half was a black-light skeleton dance tribute to Elton John—an altogether otherworldly combination of thoughtful props, careful choreography, and well-executed camp humour. However, while much mental gymnastics were required to make the connection with the asylum theme, the whimsy, and impressive stagecraft of the scene itself perfectly suited the tone of the show.

Likewise, aerial artist Caitlin Tomson-Moylan’s rope-based aerial routine was breath-taking and executed, even to the untrained eye, with flawless technique and showmanship. While vocalist Mylott delivered captivating renditions of spooky and heavy classics, sporting a haunting quality to her performances that perfectly suited the darkness and sinful allure of Dracula’s world.

After a surprisingly short first half, the second half followed suit with a range of interesting and varied routines. Aerial artist Spencer Craig performed a visually intricate trapeze routine, later returning with Moylan to deliver an exquisite lyra duet that commanded resounding silence as the auditorium collectively held its breath. These aerial performances were maybe rivalled only by Mylott’s haunting vocals, set against a candlelit piano, as she delivered an exhilarating rendition.

Featuring a live band of two, Lachlan Neate, a drummer-singer, and Viola Skyes, a guitarist, both of whom were sensational throughout, with boundless talent on display, the show often had the feeling of a rock concert and certainly benefited from the visual intrigue of live music performers. However, it did feel as though additional musicians were sorely missed, with several numbers not seeming to be played live, or if so, accompanied by backing tracks.

While the show itself was certainly entertaining and clearly the product of a history of successful shows, it felt as though it contained a surprising amount of ‘filler’, often at the expense of what felt to be genuine performance. In between routines, to facilitate set and costume changes, the show’s pace was encumbered by scripted interludes that smacked of a cheap stand-up set, burdened with outdated jokes that elicited reluctant laughs bordering on pity for Rogers, who tried desperately to deliver them with gusto. In addition, there were moments of alienating attempts at audience interaction, including a somewhat bizarre ‘glory-hole’-inspired challenge for two punters. The crudeness of the game, reliant on toilet and sex humour, lost most of its entertainment and comedy value, grinding the show to a stand-still that was difficult to return from.

Overall, Dracula’s: Sanctuary was a blockbuster show, with guaranteed entertainment, infused with breath-taking acts of circus, song and performance infused with moments of silliness.

BEC WELDON