If Woody Allen were to direct a silent film about Dracula, it'd be something like "In the Curious Hold of the Demeter." Encompassing the eight-day sea voyage of Nosferatu before he embarks on his new life of blood-sucking and general carnage, "In the Curious Hold" portrays the famous vampire in quite a different light than audiences are used to seeing him in Marilyn Manson videos and after 1 a.m. at IHOP. With luxurious visuals, mask theater, puppetry and shadow play, "In the Curious Hold" illuminates the Count as an impotent insomniac, terrorized by his past and struggling to hold on to the ounce of dignity he has left.
Throughout the long journey in the Russian schooner, "The Demeter," this quickly paced, one-hour play is written and narrated in a precise gothic monotone by Jill Summers, whose ornate and repetitious prose skillfully juxtaposes the Count's misadventures, which include every kind of injustice imaginable, from getting caught masturbating to a Victoria's Secret catalogue by his un-dead brides to chasing his recently detached (and flying) penis around the room only to have it caught and smoked like a blunt by a beautiful woman standing nearby. The Count, Damien Hinojosa, does all of this without uttering a word, leaving the dialogue to the belittling voices of his past, which only adds to the impotent hilarity of his predicament. Accompanying him are the deft fingers and incredible range of expressions from Emily Tamblyn, Travis Williams, and Jason Adams, who play the Count's parents, lovers, his child self and a drunken sailor. Be sure to stick around for the surprise ending of this sinister slapstick, which is a real scream, literally.
Reviewed by Centerstage!