BROADWAY SNAP-SHOT
by Russell Bouthiller

Dateline: September 5, 2004

Blood, fangs, coffins, and lots of flying. What else would you expect from a musical about vampires? For the first new musical of the 2004-2005 season, composer Frank Wildhorn brings to the stage an adaptation of the Bram Stoker classic in DRACULA: THE MUSICAL, with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton.

Starring Tom Hewitt as the bloodthirsty count and Melissa Errico as his female obsession, Mina Murray, DRACULA: THE MUSICAL exhumes skeletal remains of plot and the ghosts of familiar Victorian characters. Directed by Des McAnuff, best known for THE WHO'S TOMMY, this launch into high-flying horror offers spectacular stagecraft and dazzling special effects.

In the 1990s, pop composer Frank Wildhorn gained fame and fans when his JEKYLL & HYDE opened on Broadway and gave birth to a new cabaret standard, "This Is The Moment." He followed that with THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL, a show critics snubbed, but audiences kept alive for a respectable run.

DRACULA: THE MUSICAL seems to have none of the selling factors that Wildhorn's previous shows possess. Even his third legit foray, THE CIVIL WAR—an unmitigated flop—had a noble goal and some good songs. DRACULA: THE MUSICAL, however, has little to offer beyond the remarkable special effects.

Tom Hewitt, who vamped androgynous as Frank N. Furter in THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW, has little to work with as Dracula while wafting in his smashing, albeit derivative, wardrobe by Catherine Zuber. But, Wildhorn's score never provides that magic moment for Hewitt. As a principal character, Dracula has such hazy development, it's no wonder he can't see his own reflection. And, since much of the flying is done by a dummy-double, the soaring moments aren't Hewitt's at all.

Melissa Errico as Mina Murray is blessed with the better songs in this score. Her "A Perfect World" and "If I Could Fly" are undoubtedly the evening's high points. But, like her appearances in HIGH SOCIETY and AMOUR, Errico stands out as a captivating talent adrift in a lackluster vehicle. This is not Melissa's moment.

Comparisons to the ill-fated DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES are unavoidable, so why resist? What can be said about DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES is that it went all out and ended up with too much of everything. DRACULA: THE MUSICAL simply plods along, conjuring in its wake an enveloping listlessness.

Darren Ritchie as Jonathan Harker proves an affable romantic lead. Kelli O'Hara breathes life into Lucy Westerna. Don Stephenson's Renfield is broadly animated and Stephen McKinley Henderson as Van Helsing is inclusive casting that raises the question: Does that Dutch-sounding name make him a black Afrikaans?

Scenic Design by Heidi Ettinger is daunting. Lighting design by Howell Binkley is effectively hypnotic. And, the aerial staging by Rob Besserer is exhilarating. Technically, the show is a marvel and on that level one may find it well worth the price of admission. But, for all the coup de theatre in this grand production, DRACULA: THE MUSICAL is a bloodless coup.