By Yvette d'Entremont - The Weekly News
It's the last afternoon before the Easter holiday
weekend, and a group of Bedford
teenagers are asking for instructions on how
best to stab each other to make the blood
flow.
This isn't a dangerous blood sport, but a
rehearsal for Charles P. Allen High School's
annual drama production. The blood is fake
and the young actors take great pains to grip
their chests and grimace convincingly as
they tumble to the floor, red liquid slowly
seeping across their chests.
Hoping to cash in on the popularity and
renewed interest in vampires following the
phenomenally successful Twilight series of
books and movies, this year's CPA drama
performance is Dracula, the musical.
"When you first hear 'Dracula, the musical,'
you think ‚'Oh no.' I think cheese as soon
as that comes to mind," said director and
teacher Rielle Gates. "But once we heard a
snippet of music from the show, we thought
'Wow, this is fantastic. It's going to be
incredible.'"
Following on the heels of Kim Dompierre
who was at the helm of CPA's annual productions
for many years, Gates said she recognizes
she has "some big boots to fill." But
she has high hopes for this year's production,
which will be held on the actual gym
stage for the first time in many years. She
said everyone was up for the challenge of
working within that space, and she believes
it's a good fit for a show she described as
movement intensive.
"Also compared to last year, we're going
for a minimalist show. We're doing a lot with
mixed media, we're going to be working with
projection a lot," she explained. "The set
pieces are small, there are very few of them
so we can highlight the actors. The show is
almost more of an art piece than what you
might expect from a high school musical. It's
quite stylized for high school."
Students Jason Ross (Count Dracula) and
Alex Fenez (Mina) are excited with their
leading roles. Ross is a dark haired, brooding,
stereotypical vampire sweeping across
the stage captivating his prey. The 17-yearold
is new to the school this year and only
tried out for the part on the advice of two
friends.
"I wasn't sure what it was at the beginning.
I went out on their advice for the first
time ever and got the part," Ross said. "I
think it appeals to a wide audience of people
because there's a little bit of violence, it's
scary, and it's not your typical high school
musical."
Fenez agreed. The 10th grade student has
taken voice lessons for the past six years and
said the music from the show especially captivated
her. She's excited to share it with the
audience, and is certain the Twilight craze
will encourage more people to come out.
"I think a lot of teenagers will be more
excited to come out and see this because it
has the same kind of Twilight theme story,"
Fenez said.
About 45 cast, crew and staff members
are working on this year's show, including
musical director Nathan Beeler.
Gates said she can't wait for the performance
space to be reinvented.
"The show will start off setting up that
atmosphere, you'll already be coming into
that space. It'll be something to see and feel,"
she said.
The production runs from April 14 to 16,
with matinees at 10 a.m. and evening shows
at 7 p.m.
The cost is $20. For tickets, call 832-8964.
