With a hypnotic and sensual take on the Bram Stoker classic, South Carolina Ballet sweeps into Columbia County for its Evans’ debut with Dracula: Ballet With A Bite! on Oct. 18.
“It’s a great introduction to ballet If you’ve never been to the ballet before and you don’t know if you’re going to like it,” said William Starrett, CEO and Artistic Director of the South Carolina Ballet, formerly known as the Columbia City Ballet.
Vampires have the ability to mesmerize their intended victims in such a way that it almost seems romantic, he said. Those elements are at the heart of the choreography and the music.
“It’s very adult, very sensual. It’s absolutely not for children. It’s an adult thing to do for Halloween,” he said.
Starrett is in his 38th year with the South Carolina Ballet, which is South Carolina’s largest professional, performing arts organization.
This is the 27th year for Dracula: Ballet With a Bite! With each season, there’s a new twist either with variations on choreography or music to keep it fresh for both the dancers and audience alike, but the story of the quintessential bloodsucker remains unchanged.
Headquartered in Columbia, the South Carolina Ballet performs regularly at the Koger Center for the Arts, but the company also has a rigorous touring schedule. Last year, the dancers traveled to seven different states performing in cities such as Atlanta, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Savannah and Orlando, Florida.
Expanding to the Augusta area made sense.
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“We just saw in our records that so many people were coming here. I love Augusta. It’s a great town. (Also,) I was seduced by how beautiful the theater is,” he said.
The audience at the Columbia County Performing Arts Center will have the opportunity to see the newest incarnation of Dracula: Ballet with A Bite! before Columbia patrons as the Oct. 18 date in Evans is the company’s season opener.
Starrett said for some theaters, they have to pare down the production due to the size of the stage or other technical limitations, but not for Evans.
“The bigger the stage, the more elaborate the production,” he said. “We’re bringing two trucks. It will be a full stage. We want to bring out all the stops.”
After Hurricane Helene, he said he hopes the ballet will provide an escape for area audiences and a breath of fresh air.
“We’re bringing a spectacular production to them, trying to celebrate Halloween, and to put their worries aside for a moment to escape the traumas of the storm. The arts often bring us together. It’s a great time to celebrate what we are grateful for. We’re just hoping we can bring that to Augusta, and we’re thrilled to start our 64th season there,” he said.
For ticket information, visit thecenterofcc.com.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years and is a Georgia Press Association award winner. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
