Kate Hamill's Dracula

Dracula, as originally written by 19th-century novelist Bram Stoker, is a Gothic tale of vampirism about an undead Transylvanian count who travels to Victorian England to prey upon the unsuspecting Mina Harker and her best friend Lucy Westenra only to be confronted by the Dutch vampire hunter Abraham Van Helsing.

Kate Hamill’s Dracula, which will appear on the Morristown High School stage November 20–22, is a 2022 reimagining of this classic tale, by award-winning playwright Kate Hamill, in which the vampirism of Count Dracula (Elliot Eck) serves as a metaphor for chauvinism, and Doctor Van Helsing (Olivia Montague) is a stake-slinging American who arrives in London to shake up the Victorian gender hierarchy and drive a stake through the heart of sexism.

Hamill has put a postmodern twist on the iconic horror tale about the seductive, immortal nobleman who draws life from the women upon whom he prays. “Finally, the women of the play, Mina [Tara Gumpper] and Lucy [Caroline Higgins], have agency in the story,” says MHS faculty director George LaVigne, adding that Hamill’s Dr. Van Helsing is “a woman who suffers no fools, bullies, or vampires.” Per LaVigne, “the play is threaded with themes of sisterhood, challenging cultural tropes, and deconstructing gender roles.” Full of frights, fights, feminism, and buckets of blood, Kate Hamill’s Dracula is funny, scary, gory, and a whole lot of fun.

Warning: MHS’s production of Kate Hamill’s Dracula contains mature themes, scenes of horror and violence, and a healthy helping of blood.