Part parody, part panto, part lesbian vampire romp, Count Dykula at London’s Soho Theatre is a total crowd-pleaser.
Butch loser Count Dykula (Rosanna Suppa) no longer scares the humans she preys upon behind big Asda. Propelled by her loneliness, Dykula leaves her gothic castle and enrols in Scare University to up her scare skills and find other monsters to consort with. But Dykula’s newfound freedom is threatened when Scare-U starts dictating the ‘right way to be a monster’. Part parody, part panto, part queer vampire romp, Count Dykula at London’s Soho Theatre is a total crowd pleaser.
The very concept brings many laughs, and the production consistently elicits eye rolls, groans, and big laughs in equal measure – ‘Count Dykula is at best a mouthful, and at worst a slur’. There are plenty of the expected Dracula/Nosferatu references, as well as queer and pop culture references for those in the know. The writer/performer combination from all three actors on stage clearly works and through the songs and the stupidityis a production that is a joy to watch.
The enormous, busty and (natural) breasts of queen femme vampire Scarlett Fang (Eleanor Colville), dean of Scare University, is a standout character. Colville’s sexy and malevolent performance is totally captivating and represents the ultra-femme vampires that are the antithesis of the Dykula – think the 2009 film Lesbian Vampire Killers starring none other than James Corden. It’s this normative threat that Dykula has to bring down, with sidekicks Zombie, a ghost, and a were-pug (not werewolf).
The production allows itself to stray from the narrative for some extra punch lines. Witty Tannoy announcements cover quick costume changes and are a mixture of monster references and lewd sexual jokes. It’s not quite pantomime levels of audience interaction, but the bits that do exist are a big source of laughs. At one point the house lights come on and the audience are encouraged to ask the Head of Administration, a two headed dragon, questions about enroling in Scare University. Suppa and Taylor hunt expertly predict what the other will say and it creates one of the biggest laughs of the night.
But packed inside the silliness, the music, and the jokes, is quite a sweet message about restrictive normativity. Suppa’s Dykula is earnest in her craving for the right to be masculine and happy as a lesbian vampire without having to justify or explain, and at its core is quite endearing, whilst not taking itself seriously in the slightest.
Rough around the edges is part of the character of Count Dykula. Costumes fly, and cues are missed, and winks to the audience are part of the fun. But the writer/performer – plus Taylor Hunt as director – combination may not always be helpful. Some moments feel rushed, the jumble of costumes/set and one too many jokes about a fourth character having to be off stage (for increasingly contrived reasons) end up distracting from the performance slightly . A touch more care to the narrative arc might have given the production a slight edge.
But structural brilliance and seamless stage craft is not what Count Dykula is about – and what it promises to do, it does without fault.