‘Dracula’ comes to PiM Arts with secrets, stakes and a whole lot of blood

The Performing Institute of Minnesota Arts High School (PiM Arts), a tuition-free public charter school in Eden Prairie specializing in arts education, will bring an adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 Gothic horror classic “Dracula” to the stage over Halloween weekend, Oct. 30-Nov. 1, in the school’s White Box Theatre at 7 p.m.

The play, adapted by playwright Steven Dietz, follows a group of residents as they try to stop Count Dracula’s reign of terror in late 19th-century England, culminating in a final showdown between the hunters and the Count.

Rob Thompson, the director of communications and development at PiM Arts and director of the production, chose this show because he has loved it since he was young and the school has not done an explicitly scary show in a long time.

“As a society, we’ve probably shied away from scary things for a while, because life itself is scary enough,” Thompson said. “I wanted our students to have that opportunity to do something that will put a little fright in our audience.”

Thompson said one of the biggest changes in Dietz’s adaptation is that the characters of Lucy Westenra and Mina Murray are given more agency, rather than being overlooked as just devices to tell the story. Instead of the male characters figuring out the mystery behind Dracula’s appearances — a common literary narrative from the time period when “Dracula” was written — Murray puts together the pieces and maps out what the characters have to do.

“Mina is a really strong character who pries for the truth,” Thompson said. “‘You can’t keep us all in the dark. We have to stop having all of these secrets from each other, or else we’re going to end up doomed.’ And I just — I love that message.”

Claudia Jullie, left, and Bridget Rock, both seniors at PiM Arts High School, practice a scene during technical rehearsals for “Dracula.” Jullie portrays Lucy Westenra and Rock plays Mina Murray. Photo by Maddie Robinson

Bridget Rock, a senior at PiM Arts who plays Murray, said the character is a change from the “fighter” roles she has normally played in the past. A challenge that comes with playing Murray, Rock said, is reconciling her expected role as a woman during the Victorian era while simultaneously trying to help find Dracula by piecing together letters, journal entries and newspaper clippings — all while partially transforming into a vampire herself.

“It’s a really fun stretch to play such a different character, and I really enjoy seeing my range grow in this show and pushing myself to do something new, and I think that’s one of the things I love about acting is seeing how I can create something new,” Rock said.

Along with Rock playing a thematically rich character with its own challenges, Hanna Osman, a PiM Arts junior who plays vampire hunter Professor Van Helsing, and Nolan Taylor, a senior at PiM Arts who plays Dracula, are also being creatively pushed through this show.

Osman’s character Van Helsing is traditionally played by a male actor, but the role was gender-bent for her. She said this has created an acting challenge with her character’s movement and demeanor and added that she has never been in a show where this much movement is required, which is amplified by the need to adjust her actions when playing a gender-bent part.

Hanna Osman, a junior at PiM Arts High School, plays Professor Van Helsing in “Dracula.” Photo by Maddie Robinson

“Having to portray a woman when, in the script, all the things that she’s doing is man-like, and this is the Victorian era so it’s improper to yell and things like that, it’s very hard to figure out if I’m doing it correctly or if the actions that I choose are, you know, ‘Does this work?’” Osman said. “But I think, day by day, seeing the show being put together and seeing my castmates make these specific choices that, like, tie it all together, I think in my head, I’m like, ‘OK, yeah, I think I’m doing well. I think I’m making it work.’”

Taylor, who plays the title role in the play, shares a similar sentiment with Osman about having to play a character with a stark difference in demeanor than himself.

“The thing with Dracula is not just that he’s not human, but that he was once human, and I found that the terror and the creepiness comes from that he’s almost human, like that kind of ‘uncanny valley’ is what I’ve talked about a lot,” Taylor said.

While Taylor has added actions like moving at “weird paces” or talking in different ways, he said he is also trying to incorporate the more animalistic aspects of Dracula into his own version in order to best scare the audience, one of his main goals from his performance.

Senior Nolan Taylor plays the title character in PiM Arts High School’s production of “Dracula.” Photo by Maddie Robinson

The production has also provided the opportunity for students on the technical side of the show to gain valuable learning experiences that they can transfer to a career after PiM Arts, according to Thompson. 

On top of the period costumes and props, which include a large black cage and the iconic wooden stake, there are many different special-effects components, and students get to help lead the charge. For example, Thompson said he has students working on the smoke and fog that persists throughout the show, as well as all of the blood elements.

Students also get to do a lot with intimacy coordination with a licensed coordinator in this production, as well as with fight choreography, which opens the door for important conversations, according to Rock.

“… It’s setting boundaries and being open with your castmates, and that’s the only way we can do it well is knowing what people are comfortable with and what people aren’t comfortable with, ‘cause we’re doing some uncomfortable things that you necessarily wouldn’t do,” Rock said.

Students practicing during the first technical rehearsals for “Dracula” on Oct. 20, 2025. Photo by Maddie Robinson

Along with the show itself, an on-theme addition to “Dracula” is a blood drive being hosted by the school’s International Thespian Society chapter from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Not only is the blood drive a way for PiM Arts to do something blood-related with their “Dracula” production around Halloween, but Thompson said it was a way for the school to stand for something bigger and give back to the community.

“I think (the blood drive is) a really great way to give back in a show that’s about someone who takes all the time,” Thompson said.

Appointments for the blood drive can be scheduled by visiting mbc.org/searchdrives and entering the code 3732, emailing Thompson, or scanning the QR codes found around the PiM Arts building. Every donor will be entered to win a pair of tickets to PiM’s production of “Dracula.”

The actors in “Dracula” want the audience to leave with a variety of lessons or emotions, from Taylor wanting attendees to feel creeped out to Rock wanting people to realize the power in telling the truth and being open with each other. Osman hopes audiences take this open-minded mentality with them long after the curtains close.

“I want the audience to leave with a sense of, ‘I don’t know everything, and that’s what’s gonna keep me on my toes,’” Osman said.

Tickets for “Dracula” are available online. Student tickets are $10 and adult tickets are $20. The performances are PG-13 and no late seating will be permitted.

As of Monday, tickets for the Oct. 30 performance were sold out.