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Cynthia Erivo has said she does not pay attention to online criticism following mixed reviews and audience reaction to her new stage role in Dracula at London’s Noël Coward Theatre.
The Wicked star is leading a new adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, performing 23 characters and delivering around 20,000 words of dialogue across a two-hour production. The show blends live performance with on-stage cameras projecting close-ups onto a screen.
During preview performances, some audience members commented online that Erivo appeared to still be learning parts of the script and, at times, relied on an autocue. Speaking after the opening night, she said: “I’m not paying attention to any of them, as no one knows the experience except me. It’s not for me.”
She added: “I have a job to do and I want to do it as well as I can, and I want to do it with all my heart. I don’t let the comments take the energy that I should be spending on the stage.”
Erivo acknowledged she was “still learning my lines and figuring it out” during previews, explaining that “bit by bit it’s become something that’s a part of me, and everyone’s learning process is different”.
The production has divided critics. The Standard awarded four stars, describing her performance as extraordinary. The Stage gave two stars, calling the result “bloodless”, while the Guardian also issued two stars, saying the atmosphere was “sedate”. The Daily Mail awarded three stars, and the Telegraph gave four, calling it an “incredible feat of endurance”.
Erivo said she chose the role because “It challenges me and makes me learn in a different way so I am forced to grow as an artist,” adding: “If things were easy, it would be boring, so I choose the challenges.”
Dracula is a stage play written by the Irish actor and playwright Hamilton Deane in 1924, then revised by the American writer John L. Balderston in 1927. It was the first authorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula. After touring in England, the original version of the play appeared at London’s Little Theatre in July 1927, where it was seen by the American producer Horace Liveright. Liveright asked Balderston to revise the play for a Broadway production that opened at the Fulton Theatre in October 1927. This production starred Bela Lugosi in his first major English-speaking role.
In the revised story, Abraham Van Helsing investigates the mysterious illness of a young woman, Lucy Seward, with the help of her father and fiancé. He discovers she is the victim of Count Dracula, a powerful vampire who is feeding on her blood. The men follow one of Dracula’s servants to the vampire’s hiding place, where they kill him with a stake to the heart.
The revised version of the play went on a national tour of the United States and replaced the original version in London. It influenced many subsequent adaptations.
