One More Blood-Sucking Weekend With 'Dracula'

Just in time for Halloween, Center Stage at Southampton Arts Center unveils “Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” a Gothic classic shrouded in horror and laced with passion. The show, presented in radio format and adapted for the stage by Philip Grecian, is currently kicking off the season and will be performed in all its chilling glory through October 26.

According to director Michael Disher, Stoker’s “brooding tale of seduction, power, eternal life, hungers and thirsts, remains faithful to the source material.”

Despite its haunting appeal, “‘Dracula’, oddly enough, is seldom staged,” Disher said. “I am drawn to Gothic literature and ‘Dracula’ may well be one of the finest examples of the genre. Plus, presenting literature on stage is important to Center Stage — and to me.”

The Center Stage cast includes Daniel Becker, Richard Adler, Mary Sabo, Franco Pistritto, Elizabeth Wyld, Michaal Lyn Schepps, Kyle Paseka, Michael Ponella, Taylor Tybaert and Tim Ferris as Count Dracula.

Reflecting on his love for “Dracula,” Disher said: “I guess the older I get, the more I’m embracing classics and rereading classic literature. Perhaps it’s the combination of the writing, the stories and the characters, for all seem to resonate more strongly than ever within me.

“Dracula” touches a deep and sometimes, forbidden, chord, he said.

“I’m always intrigued by the thirst for power and control over others. What drives this and what allows one’s weakness to succumb to another is a great mystery to me,” he said. “What exactly contributes to this powerful equation can be debated on so many levels. It is a primal conflict within most men and most fiction.”

The show also features stage management by Joey Giovingo and lighting and sound by Kenneth Blessing. “Bram Stoker’s Dracula’ is presented through special arrangements with Dramatic Publishing.

The remaining performances of Center Stage’s “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” at Southampton Arts Center are this Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $25 ($20 for SAC members) at southamptonartscenter.org. Southampton Arts Center is at 25 Jobs Lane in Southampton.