Blackeyed Theatre’s Dracula at Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre

The time is 1897. Mankind is on the cusp of vast technological change, scientific mastery and media innovation.

Poised between traditional beliefs, the threat of the unknown and the shock of the new world, an altogether darker fear is emerging.

As a new shadow looms large over England, a small group of young men and women, led by Professor Van Helsing, are plunged into an epic struggle for survival.

Stretching from London, through provincial England, to the mountainous wastes of Transylvania, Bram Stoker’s timeless story embodies the struggle to break taboos, resist temptation and stop the unknown outside becoming the enemy within.

The theatrical treatment of Bram Stoker’s adventure blends Victorian gothic with the contemporary, showcasing Blackeyed Theatre’s trademark ensemble performance style and featuring a haunting soundscape, powerful performances and innovative design for an exhilarating theatrical experience.

The cast of six comprises Maya-Nika Bewley, David Chafer, Richard Keightley, Pelé Kelland-Beau, Marie Osman and Harry Rundle.

Dracula is adapted and directed by Nick Lane, known to Stephen Joseph Theatre audiences as the writer of the last nine years’ Christmas shows, as well as being the co-adaptor of The Comedy of Errors (more or less) and Love’s Labour’s Lost (more or less) – which is on now and runs until Saturday April 19.

Nick said: “I’m always excited to work with Blackeyed Theatre, and Dracula is such a cracking work – tense, dense and dripping with menace.

“I wanted to tell the classic story, but also to try and explore certain elements within it in a slightly different way.

"When you blend the familiar and the strange, as we did with Jekyll & Hyde and more recently the Sherlock adaptation The Valley of Fear, what you’re hoping is that fans of the story – whether in book, film or TV form – feel you’ve done Bram Stoker justice, while those that are coming with no preconceptions are drawn in by the mystery of who Count Dracula is.

“And, of course, ultimately you want to give everyone a great night out.”

Artisticdirector of Blackeyed Theatre Adrian McDougall said: “Dracula gives audiences a little bit of everything and really encapsulates what Blackeyed Theatre is all about – telling fantastic stories with passion, originality and unashamed theatricality.”

Dracula is produced by Blackeyed Theatre in association with Harrogate Theatre and South Hill Park Arts Centre.

It can be seen at the Stephe Joseph Theatre at 7.30pm on Thursday May 1, Friday May 2 and Saturday May 3 with matinees at 1.30pm on Thursday, May 1 and 2.30pm on Saturday May 3.

Tickets for Love’s Labour’s Lost and Dracula are available from the box office on 01723 370541 and online at www.sjt.uk.com