Homer’s Dracula Performance Leaves Audience Thirsty for More

By: Liz Allen

Enter the mysterious castle of Dracula; where disembodied shadows, giggles, and the sweet music of howls from the children of the night present themselves around you. Mind turning around the corner? The door will blink and close by itself behind you; as in Transylvania, everything is conscious. Homer High School’s cast and crew, including myself being the lead makeup artist, have been working daily for the past two months to prepare for the opening night of Dracula. Dracula has been skillfully adapted and directed by Kim Hubbard. The two performances took place on October twenty-ninth, and thirtieth, and charged seven dollars per person.

Of course, we all know that being blood-thirsty is a complicated business; and who is the expert on craving human-life? The handsomely evil Count Dracula (played by Zen Northrup.) Vlad Tepes Dracula--yes, I’m using his full name, has been anxiously awaiting his guest, Johnathon Harker, (played by Aaron Lener) to arrive at his castle. Once Harker steps into the castle, he is escorted by a servant named Gretel (played by Addison Platt.) Gretel serves him an elegant meal--venison, cheese, and wine. Throughout Harker and Gretel’s interactions, she hints at the dangers of the night that the castle beholds. Harker obliviously, and regrettably, laughs at her remarks.

As suspense rose, the cast continued to be illuminated with blended lights of purple and blue, and red and orange by light designer, Zach Sovocool. The contrasting cool and warm-toned lighting allowed for Dracula’s pale and easily-burnt look to truly serve its purpose. As the hair and makeup artist of Homer’s Dracula, I have learned that the more sickly the cast looks, the more impressed the audience will be. Since I was making my gothic-makeup debut, it was quite the learning curve to adapt to such carved cheekbones and heavy eyeliner. Under the simulated moonlight, with the use of gray-toned, extra-dark contour, and a heavy amount of cool-toned, almost-white concealer, I was able to make Dracula come alive by making him look as dead as possible. With precise makeup and acting, Dracula inherits the power to control the suspense of human life. Although the goal of the cast’s makeup was to achieve that blood-drained look, I did take the creative liberty in adding a hasty amount of blush to some of the actors. To my surprise, this greatly emphasized the dark recesses of their temples and dips of their cheekbones.

Now, to keep you here awhile longer, finally being able to witness the morbidly beautiful lighting and music changes, poetic speeches, and evil smiles in its full form quenched my nerves of how well the play would turn out. Dracula has crossed oceans of time to evoke a wave of terror throughout Transylvania; and displays his power of suspense to the public. The audience receives a euphoric, yet cynical thrill in response to Dracula’s vampiric and questionable ways. The ominous ending, which I will not spoil for you if you haven’t seen it, left the audience in a haze of beating hearts, entranced minds, and emptied veins.