October 2007

Dear Subscriber:

THE DAYS ARE GETTING SHORTER, the nights are cooler and sadly, the Cardinals’ playoff hopes have slipped away—it’s October in St. Louis. We are so appreciative of your response to our openings of both the Mainstage and Off-Ramp seasons with two very different sets of “boys.” Altar Boyz runs through October 7th, so if you haven’t yet seen it, you still have a few more opportunities before these popstar apostles pack their bags for Cincinnati. That’s right—if you’ve always dreamed of being a groupie, you can make an easy start by following this act to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, our co-producers for this play.

WE WELCOME FALL AT THE REP with a chill in the air, mist on the ground and dogs howling on the moor. The Count has come to call—Dracula, that is. Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston’s masterfully suspenseful play based on Bram Stoker’s original vampire novel will have you squirming in your theatre seat and checking behind the curtains when you get home. Written in 1927, this is the script that cemented the notion of Bela Lugosi as the quintessential immortal Prince and established for us all the iconic undead Master who is suave, stealthy and nearly unstoppable. As he seeks to make the pure and beautiful Lucy Seward his newest conquest and partner in his reign of darkness, he is met in opposition by Lucy’s father, a psychiatrist; her fiance, Jonathan Harker, and Dr. Seward’s old friend, AbrahamVan Helsing, an ardent and experienced scientist whose research has led him to believe in creatures that most people discount as fantasy. An intriguing blend of rational man of science and true believer, Van Helsing uses cool, methodical reasoning to track his adversary but ultimately relies on articles of faith and folklore to meet him in battle. The play is a nail-biting race against the clock as Lucy’s team struggles to root out and destroy all of the Count’s safe haven coffins before he completes her ghastly transformation. Van Helsing and company are both aided and encumbered by one of Dr. Seward’s patients, Renfield, who is, against his better wishes, under Dracula’s control. So tight, so flawlessly focused is the writing in this work that even the most stoic theatergoers may periodically need to quiet their heartbeats and remind themselves that this is, in fact, only a play.

HOW COULD SOMETHING SO FARFETCHED as a shape shifting semi-human parasite seem real enough to frighten decades of readers, theatergoers and movie fans? The answer is simple. The legend of Dracula preys upon our greatest universal fears—issues of vulnerability and powerlessness. What we don’t see, know or understand is far more alarming than what we do; the horror of the unknown is greater than that of the reckoned. Dracula strikes in the night, entering a room as vapor when our defenses are compromised by sleep and, through mental suggestion, persuades his victims to discard the few weapons that are effective against him. We are terrified by the thought of losing control and this is precisely what this shadowy fiend forces us to do. Van Helsing observes: “The strength of the vampire is that people will not believe in him.” As long as he remains a mere figment, he is free to do as he wishes, impervious to correction or containment. But once he is identified, named for what he is, he can, through clinical reasoning, be hunted and ultimately destroyed. The interesting paradox is that as omnipotent as the Count may appear, he is strangely vulnerable himself. This creature who cannot be harmed by a bullet or knife is squeamish around wolf-bane, grows weak at the sign of the cross and is incapacitated by something as simply complex as a Communion wafer. This lopsided marriage of faith and scientific fact is an excellent snapshot of the state of the Victorian consciousness as Gothic classics like Dracula and Frankenstein are being penned. One of the resulting fears of the human body being classified as an intricate machine is that the mind and soul, previously thought of as divinely inspired, might operate in the same way—as little more than multifaceted wind-up toys, devoid of independent thought or emotion. This concern leaves many vacillating between the empowerment of science and the dehumanization of it, with heroes like the versatile Van Helsing springing up in the literary wake. Like the passionately earnest Harker, we want to believe, but we also want to understand what it is that we believe.

STEPHEN HOLLIS DIRECTS THIS RIVETING TALE with Kurt Rhoads and John Michalski (Gross Indecency) squaring off as the eerily seductive Count and his worthy opponent Van Helsing, respectively. They are joined by Larry Bull, Julia Coffey, Richert Easley (Witness for the Prosecution), Elizabeth Helitzer, Scott Schafer (Side Man) and Jeffrey Withers. Wade Laboissonniere provides stunning costumes while scenic designer Paul Shortt teams with Kirk Bookman, lighting designer, and David B. Smith, sound designer and composer, to create an atmosphere sure to send shivers down your spine. The special effects (informed by the work of a magic consultant) are amazing with a surprise ending that will keep you spellbound to the very end.

OUR OFF-RAMP SEASON CONTINUES with Theresa Rebeck’s Bad Dates, running October 17th through November 4th. This hilarious one-woman piece puts us in touch with the painfully funny social life of single mom, shoe collector extraordinaire and restaurant manager, Haley Walker. Several years after having sworn off men for fear of becoming Mildred Pierce, Haley re-enters the dating world with a series of mishaps and mismatches including a torturous evening at a French restaurant with a cholesterol-phobe. Add to this glaring disappointment the fact that the restaurant she manages is a front for the Romanian mob, and it’s easy to understand why her apartment is ceiling to floor shoes. With everything from stiletto heels and animal prints to skimmers and slides, she keeps shoe therapists like Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo and Chanel in business. Michael Evan Haney directs an energetic and endearing Annie Fitzpatrick, with scenic design by Narelle Sissons, costumes by Elizabeth Eisloffel and lights and sound by John Wylie.

SARAH RUHL’S AWARD-WINNING The Clean House opens the Studio series October 24th and runs through November 11th. In this deeply funny and deeply felt work directed by Rep Associate Artistic Director, Susan Gregg, physicians Charles and Lane’s well-ordered life is disrupted forever when he falls in love with an older patient and she hires a wacky Brazilian cleaning lady who’d rather write jokes than vacuum. In moments that are comic as well as crushing, they learn the hard way that the messy chaos of real life is immensely more rewarding than the rigid safety of a tidy household. Returning Rep favorites Andrea Cirie, John Rensenhouse and Carol Schultz are joined by new friends Roni Geva and June Gable. Michael Philippi’s scenic and lighting design, along with Lou Bird’s costumes and Tori Meyer’s sound design buttress this Latina-flavored production and build a world that is simultaneously completely credible and utterly fantastical.

WITH ONE DELICIOUSLY SPOOKY TRICK and two delightful fall treats, October at The Rep offers three wonderful shows in three unique venues. We look forward to sharing them all with you.

See you at the theatre,

Steven Woolf
Artistic Director

NEW YORK REPORT: Xanadu is a very silly musical adaptation of the cult classic film starring Olivia Newton John. Clever and often very amusing, the play offers campy, outrageous fun. I also saw Theresa Rebeck’s Mauritius in early previews. Centered on a family deciding whether or not to sell their dead grandfather’s very valuable stamps, this is a situation rife for some shady dealings. A very strong cast carries it off well and it will be interesting to see what changes come out of the work that is still being done in previews.

P.S. This month is busy both on and offstage at The Rep with several great enrichment and social opportunities for all ages. Visit us at www.repstl.org for details on these exciting events.

There’s no business like shoe business!

For our production of Bad Dates, The Rep is holding a shoe drive. The main character in the play, Haley, is a 40-something single mom living in Manhattan and navigating the choppy, shark-infested waters of modern dating. She is also a shoe fanatic, having accumulated over 600 pairs of designer shoes at discount prices over the years — an acute example of addiction to “retail therapy”.

And we need to put all those shoes on stage.

So we’re inviting you to let us “make your shoes a star” by soliciting donations of well-cared-for women’s shoes. For each pair contributed, you’ll receive a coupon valid for $5 off tickets for any upcoming Rep show (including Bad Dates), valid for up to four tickets, a $20 total value. You’ll also be entered into a raffle for a $100 gift certificate from Bronx-Diba to treat yourself to a brand new pair of designer shoes.

Donated shoes may be used as props during Bad Dates. After the production, they’ll go on to other starring roles in the lives of local women as they’re donated to charities such as Dress for Success that help prepare disadvantaged women for job interviews and professional opportunities.

All donations will be accepted at The Rep’s Box Office during regular hours through October 14.

What sorts of shoes do we need? We’re not too picky, but Elizabeth Eisloeffel, the costume designer, provides this guideline:

“If Haley is 40 now, she would probably have shoes in her collection from the mid-1980s through the present day. I think the shoes would be a mix of a wide range of styles: casual flats, business, boots—probably cowboy (she’s originally from Texas) as well as warm winter—and dressy with heels of all heights and all colors. They should all look as though they were lovingly cared for and not worn much.

“Haley specifically mentions the following designers: Joan and David, Jimmy Choo and Chanel. Other shoe designers from the time period might include, but should not be limited to, Carlos Santana, Charles Jordan, Christian Dior, Dolce & Gabana, Gucci, Prada, Steve Madden, Ralph Lauren, Ferragamo, Manolo Blahnik, Stuart Weitzman, Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Kate Spade, Cole Haan, Hugo Boss and Anne Klein.”

Of course, any gently worn and cared for pair will be welcomed. Let us take your old shoes off your hands...er, feet!