Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre presents a dance version of ‘Dracula’
Photo by Duane Rieder
Lucius Kirst plays Count Dracula in the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s production of “Dracula,” and Marisa Grywalski portrays Mina.
Photo by Duane Rieder
Lucius Kirst and Marisa Grywalski in the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre production of “Dracula.”
Is there a fictional character who has turned up in more places than Count Dracula?
Springing from the classic 1897 Bram Stoker novel that bears Dracula’s name, his story has been told in multiple television series, a musical, visual art, an opera, cartoons, comic books, video games and movie after movie after movie, from the great (the 1922 silent “Nosferatu”) to the, well, not-so-great (“Billy the Kid Versus Dracula”). It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that in the 126 years since the seductive Transylvanian nobleman was first introduced to audiences that he has conquered just about every medium.
Including ballet.
This weekend, the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre is staging “Dracula,” one of a handful of balletic adaptations of the Stoker’s beloved tale. This version, probably the most well-known and well-received, premiered in 1997 and was commissioned to celebrate the novel’s 100th anniversary. It was adapted by British choreographers Michael Pink and Christopher Gable for the Northern Ballet Theatre based in the English city of Leeds and is notable for its fidelity to Stoker’s novel. It has since been presented around the world and by numerous U.S. ballet companies, including those in Kansas City, Mo., Atlanta, Orlando, Fla., and Milwaukee, where Pink is now the artistic director. Pink is guiding the Pittsburgh production, which will be at the Benedum Center for four performances this weekend.
In an interview with the Pittsburgh Ballet’s Lisa Auel, the company’s manager of program and archives, Pink explained that “Dracula” is “like a silent movie.”
“It’s designed in such a way to tell the story of Bram Stoker’s original novel,” he added. “We wanted to be true to the book as much as possible.”
When they embarked on “Dracula,” Pink said he and Gable, who died shortly after “Dracula” debuted, were interested in pursing “dance drama,” and not in creating something that was purely abstract. Pink said, “We wanted to tell the story without words, and tell it in a real, convincing way. And that’s really the desire from that day to this.”
The novel itself tells Dracula’s story through, among other things, diary entries, newspaper articles and letters, so it didn’t present a straightforward path to adaptation. When he and Gable embarked on it, Pink explained, they looked to take out “the things you really can’t say in nonverbal theater. There is a need for slightly broad brush strokes.”
Certainly part of the reason Dracula has had such staying power is the character himself. He is sophisticated, suave, seductive, intimidating and, in his unique way, mesmerizing.
“He’s a man who has immortality to deal with,” Pink said. “He’s not in a rush to do anything. He’s incredibly physically strong. … He gets inside people’s heads just by the way he looks.”
An opening night preview where Pink will explain the choreography and concept of “Dracula” is planned on Friday at 6:30 p.m., on the Benedum Center’s mezzanine level. An artist question-and-answer session is also set after the Friday night performance. A performance preview is scheduled for Saturday at 6:30 p.m., and a “Curtain Up” session with the company’s class on stage is set for Sunday at 1 p.m. Adam W. McKinney, the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s new artistic director, will meet-and-greet audience members during intermissions in “Dracula” and at the end of each performance.
Showtimes are Friday at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets or additional information is available at pbt.org or by calling 412-456-6666.