Review: Vampyyrien tanssi

Taste of blood at the Peacock Theatre

Where can you always find those singers here! What about set designers!

This time, the question is posed by the Helsinki City Theatre’s musical Dance of the Vampires. It is yet another example of how wide the range of professional skills in those fields can be found here.

The musical, based on Roman Polanski’s film The Vampire Killers, directed almost half a century ago, has gained popularity all over the world. The romantic horror comedy is a thoroughly composed musical. In it, most of the dialogues are conducted singing or at least speaking in notation.

In the City Theatre’s version, the melodramatic music has been spiced up with rock ingredients with a big scoop. At that time, comedy and rock opera have been produced together. It is not too much to say that it is this addition that makes the musical a memorable musical experience. It was not in vain that the actors demanded that Eeva Kontu, who conducted the orchestra, take the stage to receive the well-deserved applause.

A fairy tale for adults

The musical is a fairy tale for adults, as it is about a vampire, a dark and bloody one. But luckily the twinkle has been kept in the corners of the eye.

The plot of the story is familiar to fans of vampire stories. An eccentric professor has gone to Transylvania (there, of course) to hunt vampires, accompanied by a young assistant. They find themselves in the middle of a storm and rescue themselves in an inn hosted by a Jew. There, a love story is born between the master’s daughter and the assistant, but it is (literally) struck by a rival suitor, a bloodthirsty local count.

After a slightly slow start, the story gains tension and speed. It proceeds with all the relevant clichés – like garlic and coffins. Humour blossoms thanks to witty words and comedy, as sharp canines appear in the mouths of one or the other as the jugular veins have been punctured.

For some reason, the success of a musical requires singing skills from those who appear on stage. So there is now it, even two for the main roles. As an example of a skilled guard, I would like to mention Mikko Vihma, who played the role of the count in the performance I saw. His strange voice is tragic as if made for a part.

The City Theatre’s headquarters are being renovated. That is why the vampire story is being performed in a temporary space, at the Peacock Theatre in Linnanmäki. With this in mind, those responsible for the appearance of the musical deserve a big hat. Set designers and sound and light designers build really interesting, suitably dark views on the stage, which is laborious for technical implementation.

And the costumes. The sewing machines have been buzzing and the results are really sweet – from the count’s shiny cloaks to the villagers’ retons.