Theatre review: Dracula (Lyric Hammersmith)

We've already had a camp comedy version this year, a starry monologue version is coming to the West End in 2026, and in between the two we get the feminist version of Bram Stoker's Dracula courtesy of Morgan Lloyd Malcolm at the Lyric Hammersmith. Lloyd Malcolm's premise is that the original novel's story hinges on a couple of memorable women, but does tend to sideline what they actually think or say about the gothic horror story they've found themselves in, in favour of the men presenting themselves as heroes who save the day. Mina (Umi Myers) here becomes the narrator in a framing device that keeps breaking wide open: She tells us she's the sole survivor of the original story, touring the world with this cautionary stage show in which her troupe of actors play all the other roles.

Theatre review: The Wonderful World of Dissocia

Anthony Neilson is certainly a playwright of extremes - I've seen plays of his that have ranged from horror to panto, occasionally within the same scene. Sometimes this is a response to mental illness, like Edward Gant's Amazing Feats of Loneliness, the surreal freak show he wrote as an antidote to a bout of depression. A play that deals even more directly with the theme is one I'd heard of but never had the chance to see before: The Wonderful World of Dissocia, which Emma Baggott revives at Stratford East. Lisa (Leah Harvey) has been feeling out of sorts for a while, and the reason is revealed when she tries to get her watch mended. Watch repairer Victor (Hollywood Body Double Leander Deeny) reveals that there's nothing wrong with the timepiece, it's Lisa who's an hour out of time: She was on a delayed plane when the clocks went back in October, and she never got back the hour she lost when they went forwards the previous March.