BITE MARKS AND
BATTLE CRIES

Kate Hamill’s revisionist take
offers a few fresh ideas, but Dracula
remains the real attraction

Susi Damilano as Doctor Van Helsing

Since its publication in 1897, Bram Stoker’s gothic horror novel Dracula has been regarded as one of the most famous books in English literature and is certainly the original vampire novel. The subject of vampires has remained part of popular culture ever since. Other vampire books, most famously those by Anne Rice, have followed. Movies and television series such as Twilight and True Blood have depicted Count Dracula and other vampires as nocturnal creatures who prey upon vulnerable people. Vampires stalk their victims, drawing them in through charm and good looks. Their prey discovers too late that they are being hunted and eventually drained of their life’s blood so the vampires can survive.

Miller (Elizabeth Cowperthwaite) guards Renfield (Stacy Ross)

Playwright Kate Hamill has written her own version for the new millennium. A self-described feminist, she wanted to put a different spin on this classic horror story. In Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Really, the basic story remains intact, but Hamill was struck by the idea of women empowering themselves and standing up to vampires—or, in her words, serial predators.

Dracula (Johnny Moreno) threatens Jonathan (James Aaron Oh)

In this version, we are introduced to the Harkers, Jonathan (James Aaron Oh) and his pregnant wife Mina (Sharon Shao). Jonathan has legal business to conduct with the mysterious Count Dracula (Johnny Moreno) in Transylvania. As the classic story unfolds, Jonathan arrives at Dracula’s dark and ominous castle. Count Dracula is suave, well-spoken, and wears an elegantly detailed cape over a white shirt and black trousers. He shares his home with two young female vampires, Drusilla (Elizabeth Cowperthwaite) and Marilla (Charisse Loriaux). Wearing tight-fitting bustiers, their hair tied back in long braids and bright red lipstick, they cut an intimidating figure. Jonathan is apprehensive about the precarious situation he has entered. He agrees to spend the night but keeps his door locked. Waking the next morning with a fever, covered in sweat and experiencing chills, he feels trapped and frightened. Did he dream that Dracula attacked him during the night, or did it really happen?

Drusilla (Elizabeth Cowperthwaite), Marilla (Charisse Loriaux), and Dracula (Johnny Moreno) are eager to feed on Jonathan (James Aaron Oh)

Meanwhile, Mina spends the weekend with her former schoolmate Lucy Westenra (Nemma Adeni), who is engaged to Dr. George Seward (Josh Schell), head of the local insane asylum. There we meet Renfield (Stacy Ross), a madwoman in a straitjacket who worships Dracula and issues dire warnings about the evil about to descend upon innocent people. Dracula claims another victim, and it is here that the play takes its biggest departure from the familiar story. Enter vampire hunter Van Helsing (Susi Damilano), now reimagined as a female adventurer. While everyone else runs about in fear, she rises to the challenge of hunting down the vampires and ending their reign of terror. Wearing a cross around her neck, khaki trousers, and a utility belt stocked with stakes and garlic, she resembles a female Indiana Jones. She recruits Mina and a very reluctant Dr. George to assist in the search. As they scour tombs and the asylum for traces of the undead, a pregnant Mina embraces the challenge while the doctor cowers in fear. An inevitable confrontation follows. Who survives is anyone’s guess.

Susi Damilano as Van Helsing and Sharon Shao as Mina Harker

The second act takes a while to build suspense. Too much backstory tends to bog down the proceedings on the way to the climax. Overall, the feminist angle doesn’t necessarily change the outcome, nor does it significantly add to it.

The cast embraces the material with exaggerated bravado and tongue-in-cheek humor. Johnny Moreno‘s Dracula fulfills all the requirements of the sexy and alluring lead. He’s tall, dark, handsome, and easy to understand as an object of fascination. His two vampire companions are equally seductive and provide comic relief from his foreboding presence. Stacy Ross delivers the strongest supporting performance as Renfield. Even when lurking silently in the background, her facial expressions and mannerisms steal every scene she occupies.

Van Helsing (Susi Damilano), Mina (Sharon Shao), Seward (Josh Schell), and Miller (Elizabeth Cowperthwaite)

The feminist angle is most evident in Mina’s character arc. Sharon Shao begins as a dutiful wife worried about her husband’s mysterious illness and changing behavior. Recruited by Van Helsing to track down the vampires, she gradually transforms into a more confident and empowered figure determined to confront the carnage left behind.

Mina (Sharon Shao)

Jackie Scott‘s impressive rotating set keeps the action moving, and the actors navigate it effortlessly. Michael Palumbo‘s lighting design, assisted by Tristan Fabiunke, along with Carl Erez‘s projections, provide the necessary supernatural effects at key moments. Scott also serves as the production’s blood designer. Director Bill English has clearly encouraged his cast to fully embrace the physical and vocal extremes of the material.

Seward (Josh Schell) is threatened by Mina (Sharon Shao)

With any production of Dracula, the ending is hardly a mystery. The appeal lies in the perilous journey getting there. Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Really occasionally feels like a gimmick designed to attract a new audience. In the end, however, the core story—and Dracula himself—remain the true stars of the show.

✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦

photo by Jessica Palopoli

Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Really
San Francisco Playhouse
450 Post St. in San Francisco
ends on June 27, 2026
for tickets ($52–$145), call 415.677.9596 or visit SF Playhouse

✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦