It seems fitting to present Dracula at The Lion and Unicorn Theatre. You enter through the rowdy pub, up the spiralling staircase and into a small, dark and misty room, where you can vaguely make out a cloaked figure in the corner. If that doesn’t set the scene enough for you as it is, the small intimate room is perfect for keeping you on the edge of your seat as the characters roam along the aisle and among the audience throughout the show.

The show is relatively true to the book, with the exception of an unexpected ending. The cast work together brilliantly and easily encapsulate the cleverness of the book into their performance. If you haven’t read the book, Bram Stoker’s Dracula starts when Jonathan Harker (Mark Lawson) must leave his new fiancée Mina (Josephine Rattigan) to attend to business with the mysterious Count Dracula in Transylvania. After an uncomfortably prolonged stay the story returns to England, where Mina’s friend Lucy (Connie Jackson) has inexplicably fallen ill; even more strange occurrences bring Professor Van Helsing (Mitch Howell) to solve all these mysteries….

With such a small space, the lighting impressively sets the atmosphere for the play. Poorly lit areas suggest things lurking in the shadows and the pitch black had me grabbing my companion’s arm on several occasions. Equally, the small venue gives an eerie atmosphere but the use of space is so well done that actors emerge from places that you aren’t even aware of – excellent for a Gothic horror.

Despite being a very enjoyable production, the acting is quite hit and miss. Grant Leat gives a phenomenal performance as the insane Renfield, with perfectly timed lines and bizarre movements around his small area of stage. Jackson’s Lucy brings a new dimension to the soft, timid character from Stoker’s book and makes her far more likeable. Yet sometimes the acting becomes too melodramatic, which does not seem fitting in the scenes. They become so excitable that the suspense before their confrontation with the count is lost. Howell plays an excellent Van Helsing but some of his lines tend to get lost when he is yelling, and Rattigan’s Mina doesn’t really match up to Stoker’s, with some of the delivery feeling a bit forced.

If you are a fan of the novel, then you will most certainly enjoy this play. Everything from the direction and the casting to the lighting and sound give true credit to Bram Stoker. If you like a bit of a chilling tale, then this is definitely the production for you.

Dracula is playing at The Lion and Unicorn Theatre until 14 March. For more information and tickets, see The Lion and Unicorn Theatre website.