Kickaha
31st July 2005, 00:00
Dracula
A few years back if anyone I’d known or myself had suggested going to the ballet the general response would have been “are you gay” and serious doubts raised about the person’s sexual orientation
However as the years have gone on I find myself more likely to try a few different experiences and with this in mind after seeing an advertising poster for the Ballet “Dracula” which I thought looked interesting, I first asked a friend of mine if she’d be interested in night at the Ballet and upon getting a yes for an answer I headed off to purchase our tickets quite some time in advance to make sure of some good seats
As it got closer to the date I found I was quite looking forward to it and started to tell a few more people where I was going, the reaction varied from “ I wish my partner would take me to things like that” to the more expected “you’ve got to be fucking joking” the former always from the women and the latter from the guys although some of the women and all of the guys I know couldn’t quite believe I would go along without any pressure being applied to me and that it was my idea from the start to attend and I had no motive beyond a good night out
The venue was the Issac Theatre Royal in Gloucester Street which was originally opened in 1908, In November last year it was closed while it received a $6.1 million dollar facelift and only reopened earlier this month, I headed off to pick my friend up and arrived at the venue just after 7.00pm and was there ever a crowd with the rebuild they revised the seating and can accommodate 1300 people and every seat was full, the seats are quite comfortable but there isn’t a lot of legroom, the interior has obviously been kept in the original style and was really quite nice
The light go out the curtain goes up and it’s straight into it, with the setting of Jonathan Harker sleeping in bed and as the lighting changes other characters gradually join the scene I’m not going into much detail as I can’t remember the proper sequence at the moment, but the Victorian costuming and effects with them fading characters in and out using the lighting and smoke was simply awesome
When Dracula makes his entrance his presence can be felt and the costume with the long red tails suits his character very well, his entrance into the last scene at the very end of act two was outstanding with him suddenly appearing as if out of now where as well as the scene with him dancing with Mina earlier on while Jonathan Harker sleeps
Other good bits, the Way Dracula fades back into the smoke after his attack on Lucy, the very best bit comes in Act 3 with the setting being the Crypt full of undead with Dracula’s arrival and his execution of Renfield very well done as the undead drag him away and return with bloodied hands and faces, not long after that the boys arrive with a bang as they blow the door down and every one in the theatre shits their pants with fright after a bit of a stuggle they bash a stake through Dracula’s heart with a shovel and toss him on top of the coffin where he fades into the smoke
I haven’t ever been to a more classical Ballet so I have no comparison but I’ll be going along when one comes to town to give me a better idea of how it compares, there was a interesting cross section of society with anyone from young children to pensioners to Goths to Asian students and after experiencing it I can see it would have wide appeal
I would recommend this very highly if you’re looking for a good night out the effects, lighting and costumes are brilliant and I’m very impressed with the whole production, it runs for close to 2 ½ hours with two intermissions and is well worth a look :yes:
A few years back if anyone I’d known or myself had suggested going to the ballet the general response would have been “are you gay” and serious doubts raised about the person’s sexual orientation
However as the years have gone on I find myself more likely to try a few different experiences and with this in mind after seeing an advertising poster for the Ballet “Dracula” which I thought looked interesting, I first asked a friend of mine if she’d be interested in night at the Ballet and upon getting a yes for an answer I headed off to purchase our tickets quite some time in advance to make sure of some good seats
As it got closer to the date I found I was quite looking forward to it and started to tell a few more people where I was going, the reaction varied from “ I wish my partner would take me to things like that” to the more expected “you’ve got to be fucking joking” the former always from the women and the latter from the guys although some of the women and all of the guys I know couldn’t quite believe I would go along without any pressure being applied to me and that it was my idea from the start to attend and I had no motive beyond a good night out
The venue was the Issac Theatre Royal in Gloucester Street which was originally opened in 1908, In November last year it was closed while it received a $6.1 million dollar facelift and only reopened earlier this month, I headed off to pick my friend up and arrived at the venue just after 7.00pm and was there ever a crowd with the rebuild they revised the seating and can accommodate 1300 people and every seat was full, the seats are quite comfortable but there isn’t a lot of legroom, the interior has obviously been kept in the original style and was really quite nice
The light go out the curtain goes up and it’s straight into it, with the setting of Jonathan Harker sleeping in bed and as the lighting changes other characters gradually join the scene I’m not going into much detail as I can’t remember the proper sequence at the moment, but the Victorian costuming and effects with them fading characters in and out using the lighting and smoke was simply awesome
When Dracula makes his entrance his presence can be felt and the costume with the long red tails suits his character very well, his entrance into the last scene at the very end of act two was outstanding with him suddenly appearing as if out of now where as well as the scene with him dancing with Mina earlier on while Jonathan Harker sleeps
Other good bits, the Way Dracula fades back into the smoke after his attack on Lucy, the very best bit comes in Act 3 with the setting being the Crypt full of undead with Dracula’s arrival and his execution of Renfield very well done as the undead drag him away and return with bloodied hands and faces, not long after that the boys arrive with a bang as they blow the door down and every one in the theatre shits their pants with fright after a bit of a stuggle they bash a stake through Dracula’s heart with a shovel and toss him on top of the coffin where he fades into the smoke
I haven’t ever been to a more classical Ballet so I have no comparison but I’ll be going along when one comes to town to give me a better idea of how it compares, there was a interesting cross section of society with anyone from young children to pensioners to Goths to Asian students and after experiencing it I can see it would have wide appeal
I would recommend this very highly if you’re looking for a good night out the effects, lighting and costumes are brilliant and I’m very impressed with the whole production, it runs for close to 2 ½ hours with two intermissions and is well worth a look :yes: