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An ambitious theatre company is just days away from presenting a major UK stage premiere in Lytham.
AV Productions – named after its artistic director Andy Vitolo – is putting the finishing touches to its production of the Broadway musical Dracula, which will run at the Lowther Pavilion in Lytham on Friday and Saturday.
"I realised this wasn't just any show when I looked in my hatchback and saw a large cross, garlic flowers and holy water when I pulled into the petrol station forecourt!" said Andy "But perhaps the funniest incident was going into a hardware shop and asking for some wood. When they asked how large and what was I making I had to tell them – a stake like the ones that go through a vampire's heart – the entire shop seemed to stop and go into slow motion."
This Broadway musical written by Don Black (Sunset Boulevard/Tell Me On A Sunday), Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde/Whitney Houston) and Christopher Hampton (Atonement) is based on the book by Bram Stoker which has created a whole genre of characters from Underworld to Twilight.
As Jonathan Harker a young lawyer travels to a dark land to meet a mysterious count, he finds himself a prisoner and meets the three erotic brides of Dracula.
He eventually escapes and marries the love of his life his finance Mina, but her best friend Lucy is bitten and becomes one of Dracula's undead. Van Helsing is called to help all their friends as they fight for their lives and so ensues a classic and exciting battle of good versus evil.
Andy has produced and directed many large musicals, from Titanic to The Secret Garden, most recently directing former Coronation Street actress Suranne Jones and a top Broadway/West End cast at the West End's Savoy Theatre in a new show he has been collaborating on.
He attended a New York directors' programme and met up with the composer of Dracula at his home where he gave Andy exclusive demos of a number of forthcoming Broadway shows in development, one being Dracula.
Andy said: "Living and working on musical theatre projects in New York was really artisically rewarding and challenging, I had wonderful feedback on my skills from lots of top people in the industry which was most flattering and meeting Frank Wildhorn was very enjoyable as I had already directed Jekyl & Hyde and Scarlet Pimpernel in our region.
"When I heard the songs of Dracula, it was like love at first bite! Romantic ballads, soaring duets and very dramatic group set pieces, it's a show for everyone."
AV Productions is Andy's latest theatre company and this is its first full scale production. Musical director is George King who has worked on West End shows and is a respected jazz and classical artist. Andy and George have collaborated for more than seven years and the cast features talent from all over the region.
Performances are at 7.30pm on Friday and Saturday. Tickets from the box office on (01253) 658666 or at www.lowtherpavilion.co.uk
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Monday 13 February 2012
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