It was love at first bite and 130 years on from his first appearance our fascination with Count Dracula seems as strong as ever.
Academics from the University of Winchester’s Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) will be exploring Bram Stoker’s text at a special event, Dissecting Dracula, at the city’s Theatre Royal.
To give the event an extra spooky twist it’s happening the night before Hallowe’en.
Since Stoker’s novel was published in 1897, the bloodthirsty count has appeared on stage, screen and radio and in comic books and video games.
Dracula holds the Guinness World Record for being the most-played character in movies and TV. His success has also fed into an ongoing obsession with the undead as featured in Twilight, Count Duckula, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and What We Do in the Shadows.
With the aid of some expert input the event will be getting under skin of the novel and looking at its legacy.
Event organiser Glenn Fosbraey, Associate Dean of HSS, said: “Dracula is the one Vampire everyone knows and there’s so many different angles to come at the story from – literary, historical, sociological, psychological.
“I don’t think there’s a programme in HSS which hasn’t got something to say about Dracula and we hope this evening will not only demonstrate the breadth of expertise at the university but will also be accessible, fun and a little bit scary….”
The speakers will on the night will be:
Following the presentations, the audience will have a chance to dig a little deeper into the Dracula phenomenon when the Dean of HSS, Mike Bradshaw, chairs a Q&A session.
Mike said: “Count Dracula has incredible potential for adaptation and re-imagining. Not even Frankenstein or Sherlock Holmes can rival his genre-hopping presence in popular culture.
“Bram Stoker’s novel is also the perfect case study for interdisciplinary study: the story has so much to tell us about self and society, culture and history, science and superstition. Come along and see some of our brightest academic minds do battle with the evil count (garlic not included).”
To book tickets for Dissecting Dracula follow this link.
Plans are already being made for a follow up HSS event to celebrate St Valentines Day. For the Love Of… is scheduled to take place at the Theatre Royal on 13 February, 2025.
Picture top: Bela Lugosi in the 1931 film Universal Picture's Dracula.
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