Something to sink your teeth into

The theater department at Calvert High School is bustling with excitement as students are working hard to prepare for their fall production of “Dracula: The Vampire Play,” which begins tomorrow. 

Many students are putting the finishing touches on the stage set and design. Actors are running through their lines one last time, while costumes are being finalized. Everything is ready for a great show. 

“Students have been working very hard on this production,” Calvert High School Theater Director Cortney Costello said. “We had two summer workshops and have rehearsed every day after school, plus worked on set design and costumes on the weekend.” 

Many of Calvert High School’s fall shows are comedic, but this modern take on the ageless classic is more serious. 

Actress Isis Shrader is in her third year of theater with Calvert High, and “Dracula” is unlike any she has done before. 

“This year’s play is a challenge for me because it’s so serious,” Shrader said, “but I have used this opportunity to expand my acting.” 

Shrader is not the only one that feels that way. Many of the actors who have been with Calvert High School’s Double Edge Productions have experienced the play as a challenge and are looking forward to the performance. 

“This show is different,” said actor Fletcher Tracy, who has also helped with the construction and design. “But it’s my first high school play, so I’m very excited.” 

Several components have gone into the development of the production. 

Besides actors going over their roles, the light and sound crews have set up everything to make the show come to life. 

The production and design crew have pieced together the layout of the show and spread the word about coming to see it, while most of the crew and cast have worked on the construction of the set to make it seem realistic. 

“When people come out to see our production, I want them to expect a modern feel matched with a classic tale,” Costello said. 

“Also, I want the audience to suspend their knowledge of pop culture versions of Dracula because the characters in the show do not exist in the world created by Bram Stoker, or with Twilight.” 

Calvert High School will stage “Dracula” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25; Friday, Oct. 26, and Saturday, Oct. 27. Tickets are $10, $7 for students and seniors, and $5 on student night Thursday, Oct. 25. 

For more information, go to http://chsweb.calvertnet.k12.md.us/news/what_s_new/dracula. 

The writer is part of the Young Journalists Program, a partnership between Calvert County Public Schools and The Calvert Recorder. This article was originally published in the Calvert Recorder on October 24, 2018.