From Register Staff
Lord Ruthven, a charming but vicious vampire with a taste for gambling, gains the confidence of Aubrey, a weak-willed young man who is dazzled by Ruthven's worldliness and urbanity. Through him Ruthven gains entrance to the stately country home of Aubrey's aunt, the rich but sharp-tongued Lady Harwood. As he draws Aubrey ever more deeply into debauchery and debt, the others try to loosen his hold on the impressionable youth, but to no avail.
Before the evil Ruthven has "sated his thirst," murder, terror and mounting excitement rule the stage. None of the pretty young women in the household (Lydia, Melissa and Constance) are able to resist his sinister charm, nor can any of the men defeat him. Eventually Lord Ruthven claims Aubrey's all-too-willing sister as his bride, despite the growing -- and well-founded -- fears of the others that her very life may be in danger.
Just in time for Halloween, Dreamweavers Theater presents, Tim Kelly's "The Vampyre," a work filled chills, thrills and black humor, those "penny dreadful" elements that audiences love. Directed, by Corrina Smith and Debbie Bauman, this lively adaptation is filled with well-balanced roles and climaxes with a final scene which is truly startling and electrifying.
The Dreamweavers cast includes Karla Bunter as Melissa; Jessica MacMillan as Lydia; Rose Marie Sweeney as Lady Harwood; Joanna Bourne as Mrs. Kent; Hayden Scott as Aubrey; Gabe Frey as Bones; Marcus Magdalene as Lord Ruthven; Robert Silva as Durward Lennox; Mark Mautner and Brooklyn Santiago as Artemas Corso; Mary Ewart as Tess; Patte Quinn as Constance Holstein; and Bob Kays as Roger Holstein. Stage manager is Krisi Pilkington.
The production opens with a gala Friday night at 8 p.m. All seats are $25 for this night. Wine and hors d'oeuvres will be served. Other performances are Oct. 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30 and Nov. 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 18 and 19.
Show times Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. Doors open one hour before show time.
Ticket prices (other than the gala) are $18 regular, $15 for seniors, students and military. Groups of 10 or more are $15 per person.
Dey Laboratories are Diamond sponsors for "The Vampyre." Gold Sponsors C. Michael Quinn, Charles de Lorimier, John R. Pappas, Jeffrey D. Politz and James S. Bird.
Dreamweavers has also announced its 2006 season. Coming up next year: "On Golden Pond" by Ernest Thompson opening Feb. 3; "Lie, Cheat and Genuflect" by Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore, opening April 7; "Deathtrap" by Ira Levin opening June 9; and "Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille" by Bruce Graham, opening Aug. 18 and "Broadway Bound" by Neil Simon opening Oct. 20, 2006.
From the Napa Register's website - © 2003, Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc.
