OSC secondary musical ‘The Vamp Draculina’: A melodrama (with bite)

A tongue-in-cheek adaptation of the musical ‘Dracula Spectacula’ based on injustice, and a fishy tale of mistaken identity, premiered on World Theatre day.

Student ownership of learning was dramatically highlighted in the Overseas School of Colombo’s most recent production, The Vamp Draculina an original black comedy rooted in melodrama. Senior IB Theatre Arts students devised the plot, designed lighting, sound, special effects, costumes and choreography. The students created an unforgettable experience, with a large ensemble cast of 200 students, who performed to appreciative audiences.

The journey begins in a not-so-abandoned London underground station, Aldwych. Draculina. A night club singer down on her luck, moves into squat after her dysfunctional mother has squandered the family fortune on research into garbology. They are joined by a love struck minion, Genghis. Fate ensnares a gullible governess and her precocious charge within this underground world as their educational trip to the Tower of London is unexpectedly interrupted. Hungry and cold, they are rescued by a Coast Guard who guides them to sanctuary in a nearby cabaret bar, owned by an irrepressibly happy Hansel and Gretel, both seeking sparkles of a very different kind. An Omniscient Chronicler, and his companion Mary, foretell the future and liberally grant wishes to these colliding characters as they strive to escape their own personal labyrinths. The music and lyrics were written by the IB Theatre Arts teacher, Bryan Lee. All music was performed live in the school’s fantastic experimental theatre by the students of OSC.