Dracula Premieres at Rowan University

People enter Tohill Theater to see Dracula. (Taken by Kristin Guglietti)

GLASSBORO, N.J. – People like going to haunted hay rides and watching horror movies this time of year. Some people may enjoy reading horror novels like Bram Stoker’s “Dracula”.

Instead of reading Stoker’s “Dracula” this month, I went to see the play.

“Dracula” premiered at Rowan University on Oct. 20 in Tohill Theater, which is located in Bunce Hall.

The theater was packed with people. Some were there to support the people on stage. Others came to enjoy the show.

I didn’t know what to expect.

The play opened with Robert Renfield played by Charlie Barney. Renfield is an insane person in an asylum, and the “brides” gathered on stage around him.

It took me a little while to figure out who was who. At first, I thought the play opened with Jonathan Harker played by Matthew Basen trapped in Dracula’s castle because the novel starts with Harker’s narrative.

However, the play does not follow the novel.

In the playbill’s director’s note it reads, “We read several scripts and chose this version, originally staged at Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, because we feel it honors the original novel. Nevertheless, as with all scripts, this production takes some liberties in translating the story into flesh.”

In the novel, Lucy Westenra becomes a vampire and Mina Murray is Harker’s fiancée. However in the play, Mina Grant played by Zulfiya Asquino becomes a vampire and Lucy Westphal played by Courtney Jarmush is Harker’s love interest.

This is just one aspect of the play that differentiates itself from the novel.

Instead of imagining who the characters are in the novel, the play shows an interpretation.

The cast in “Dracula” was phenomenal.

Robert Mora played as Count Dracula. He is a powerful vampire who has power to control characters like Margaret Sullivan who is played by Ileana Fortuno.

I read The Whit’s profile on Mora before the show started. His hard work shows in the play.

I also enjoyed Renfield’s character played by Barney. There was a part where Renfield describes how flies taste like, which reminded me of the novel.

Fortuno who played as Sullivan, the doctor’s assistant, did a great job showing her struggle when attempting to resist Dracula’s mind control.

Abram Van Helsing played by Russell Palmieri had the accent and the mannerisms like a Dutch doctor.

Along with talented actors and actresses, the play used special effects to create an amazing experience. Gun shots were fired and fog created a spooky atmosphere.

I can still hear the women screaming and picture the crimson blood splattering in the vampire’s coffin.

The cast of Dracula receives a standing ovation. (Taken by Kristin Guglietti)

If you missed “Dracula” last weekend or want to go see it again, you can experience it on Oct 27-29 at 8 p.m. and Oct 30 at 2 p.m. in Tohill Theater.

I suggest getting a seat in the aisles near the front to see the characters up close as they enter and exit.

Students get free tickets with their Rowan ID. For faculty, alumni, military, children under 17, and seniors over 65, tickets are $10. General admission tickets are $15.

Jackson Pollock’s Male and Female Spotlight

Jackson Pollock’s Male and Female (1942-1943) (Taken by Jim on flickr)

PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia Museum of Art on March 12 featured a spotlight on Jackson Pollock’s Male and Female. Megan Boomer, the spotlight lecturer, engaged over 20 museum visitors to converse about Pollock’s masterpiece.

Most of the visitors attending the spotlight were adults young and old. Most of them attended due to a love or interest in art, and many contributed their interpretations on Pollock’s painting during the spotlight.

Male and Female was first shown in New York City in November 1943 at Peggy Guggenheim’s Art of This Century gallery.

The painting depicts two columns. The left column is thought to be a female due to the curves and long eyelashes. Meanwhile, the right column is thought to be male because the numbers are attributed to being masculine. However, the sexuality of the columns are debatable.

One listener pointed out that Pollock associated red with male and yellow with female. The left column often thought to be female consists of a red torso. The right column thought to be male bears a yellow head.

Pollock said, “Any attempt on my part to say something about it . . . could only destroy it.”

Boomer said, “Male and Female is a work that is requesting interpretation as much as resisting interpretation.”

Megan Boomer answering questions from the audience. (Taken by Kristin Guglietti)

Boomer provided background information and encouraged listeners to give their interpretations. One listener thought the painting was ugly compared to the other beautiful art in the room.

Roksana Filipowska, a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania for art history, said Pollock’s Male and Female is an earlier work that is the key to his later work. She came to the spotlight on Saturday because she is a close friend with the speaker, and she enjoys watching people interpret art.

“I see paintings quickly, so I like how the spotlight allows to focus on a piece for a long time,” said Filipowska.

According to the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s website the “random burst of streaks and splotches foreshadows the ‘drip’ painting that would become Pollock’s signature style.”

According to Boomer, Male and Female has not been through X-ray analysis. Much of the piece is largely based on visual analysis.

Boomer said, “The spotlights are a wonderful opportunity to focus on a piece and see a variety of interpretation.”

Each spotlight lecturer spotlights five works of art in one year at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. This is Boomer’s last spotlight.