PORT HURON, Mich.–It’s the prime time of year for everything spooky, spine tingling and haunted, on stage as much as anywhere else. A creepy feeling was in the air as Enter Stage Right presented the classic Dracula on The Citadel Stage in Port Huron. The script by Steven Dietz is adapted from the novel of Bram Stoker, and directors Regina Spain and Scott Joseph give it a classical treatment.

The story is mainly set in London, and the mood is somewhat lighthearted early on as we meet Mina (Brittany Bowman) and Lucy (Libby Kronner), two young ladies giddy with love. Mina reads a letter from her fiancée Jonathan Harker (Gonzo Gonzalez), a solicitor who has traveled to eastern Europe to conduct business with Count Dracula (Brennan Fisher). Lucy, who has several suitors, has rejected the latest one, Dr. John Seward (Owen McIntyre), promising him friendship instead.

Lightheartedness soon heads down a dark path when we meet one of Dr. Seward’s patients, an insane inmate named Renfield (Avery Bolt), who consumes insects and other vermin in her cell, and can detect the approaching presence of one she calls “Master.” We see the mysterious master appear to Renfield and to Lucy, who soon succumbs to disturbing dreams and begins wasting away. Dr. Seward struggles to explain Lucy’s symptoms, which include puncture marks on her neck, and he calls in an old friend, Professor Abraham Van Helsing (Daniel Williams). Van Helsing has an extensive background studying vampires, and determines the real cause of Lucy’s ailment.

Faced with the symptoms of Lucy and Renfield, Harker’s knowledge of the Count and Van Helsing’s knowledge, Seward, Van Helsing, Harker and Mina realize they are facing a grave evil, and vow to track down Count Dracula and destroy him, but many become prey to the count before the end.

The tale of Dracula is a classic because it checks all the boxes of good horror—increasing suspense, dramatic revelations, real threat and loss, and the idea that the monsters we are afraid of could arise from within ourselves. This production remains consistent with those hallmarks. Confusion becomes discomfort, which evolves into dread and then terror as the characters put together the pieces of this puzzle. There is not a lot of high action in this tale, but the dramatic emotional tension rises throughout the show.

The performances of the cast improve as the tension increases also. While some of the line delivery could benefit from a more natural cadence, and some of the early scenes feel like something of a formality, cast members hit their groove when the really creepy stuff begins. They seem more at home in disaster than in normalcy. Some performances that are consistent throughout: Avery Bolt as Renfield vacillates easily back and forth between her disgusting form of insanity, her lucid and provocative manner with Seward, and her fear and awe of Count Dracula. Williams brings a Van Helsing that is serious and determined, using the fears of Seward, Harker and Mina to help him in his quest to destroy Dracula. And Brennan Fisher as Dracula conveys the look—and voice—of pure evil.

The look of the set in this black box theatre is minimal but effective. Black and red crushed panne panels surround the stage, which features a simple bedroom, a barred cell, and a large window. Little is required in the moving of set pieces, making scene transitions were nearly seamless. Some of the costumes are well-chosen, while others appeared less thought out, and costuming as a whole could have been more cohesive. Lighting and a few effects with mist were used well, and a barely-there soundtrack of somber music playing in the background contributed to the mood. The use of stage blood made a few of the scenes especially creepy, but not all-out gory.

Audiences who enjoy the macabre will appreciate Dracula, but leave the kids at home; the mental fear factor is best served to an adult crowd.

Dracula is playing at The Citadel Stage in Port Huron through October 28, 2018.