From imitating the dog and Leeds Playhouse, the creators of last year’s critically acclaimed unique shot-for-shot stage recreation of George A. Romero’s classic 1968 zombie movie – Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix comes a radical new adaptation of Bram Stoker’s classic gothic horror novel. Dracula: The Untold Story will bring audiences this enduring tale from the perspective of Mina Harker, the novel’s heroine.
Written and directed by imitating the dog’s co-artistic directors Andrew Quick and Pete Brooks, Dracula: The Untold Story will open at Leeds Playhouse from 25 Sept – 9 Oct ahead of a UK tour.
New Year’s Eve, 1965, London, England. Just before midnight, as revellers celebrate the beginning of another year, a young woman enters Marylebone Police Station and confesses to a brutal murder.
She claims to be Mina Harker, the last living survivor of the intrepid group that brought about Count Dracula’s destruction some 70 years before. But Mina Harker has not been seen since 1901. And if she were alive, she would be ninety years old.
Unfolding on stage as a live graphic novel and using the latest digital technologies imitating the dog are known for, Dracula: The Untold Story is a chilling new version of the classic gothic vampire tale that you thought you knew so well.
Andrew Quick, Co-Director and Artistic Director of imitating the dog said:
“It’s extremely exciting to be working on this new adaptation of Dracula. We are doing something quite different with the story, coming at it afresh. We have great respect for Bram Stoker’s original storyline, and we do revisit it a lot in our production. But I think this version is relevant to our times and we cannot wait to be in front of audiences again. It’s been too long.”
The production’s creative team will feature design by Laura Hopkins (Black Watch and Peter Pan, National Theatre of Scotland, The Divide, Edinburgh International Festival and The Old Vic), projection and video design by Simon Wainwright (Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix, imitating the dog and The Kid Stays in the Picture, Royal Court), lighting by Andrew Crofts (Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix, imitating the dog and Trash Cuisine, Belarus Free Theatre and The Young Vic) and original music composed by James Hamilton. The production’s casting will be announced in the coming weeks.
imitating the dog have been making ground-breaking work for theatres and other spaces for 23 years. Their work, which fuses live performance with digital technology, has been seen by hundreds of thousands of people in venues, outdoor festivals, and events across the world. Past productions have included Hotel Methuselah, A Farewell to Arms, Heart of Darkness, Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix and most recently Dr Blood’s Old Travelling Show. Last year the company produced Airlock, a live action graphic novel as part of the BBC, The Space and Arts Council England’s Culture in Quarantine programme.
Leeds Playhouse is one of the UK’s leading producing theatres; a cultural hub, a place where people gather to tell and share stories and to engage in world class theatre. It makes work which is pioneering and relevant, seeking out the best companies and artists to create inspirational theatre in the heart of Yorkshire.
Dracula: The Untold Story will premiere at Leeds Playhouse from 25 September till 9 Oct. It will then tour to Liverpool Playhouse, Dukes Lancaster, Watford Palace Theatre, Mercury Theatre Colchester and finally The Lowry, Salford Quays.
For further information on the tour visit www.imitatingthedog.co.uk
