Preview: Dracula by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm at Pier Pavillion, South Shields

 Dracula adaptation with stories of the women at the heart comes to South Shields

Dracula by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm

Pier Pavillion, South Shields

Wednesday 4th - Saturday 7th November 2026

The Westovian Theatre Society are bringing the horror to South Shields this Halloween with their latest production of Dracula. 

Nicola Richardson as Lucy

Far from a simple retelling of the incredible Bram Stoker story, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm’s 2025 adaptation sets the women at the heart of the gothic tale, as Mina Harker tells her own version of Dracula’s infamous journey from Transylvania. Lloyd Malcolm has carefully crafted the story into an exciting new, powerful and terrifying psychological thriller, dripping with atmosphere and tension.

In a departure from the epistolary novel, this adaptation takes on the uniquely theatrical form of a play within a play, with Mina’s assembled band of players leading the audience through the story. The sense of dread builds throughout the piece, with the question of whether the retelling of Dracula’s story may in fact resurrect the Count himself hanging over the audience throughout. 

Michael Caygill as Jonathan Harker

The show had its world premiere just last year, with a successful run at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre in London, with critics describing the ‘dark and menacing show’ (London Standard) as a ‘revolutionary take on Bram Stoker’s Dracula with a twist that redefines the original’ (Broadway World) and ‘delivering bucketloads of scalp-crawling shocks’ (London Standard). 

The show runs at the Pier Pavillion in South Shields from Wednesday 4th until Saturday 7th November, the second show of another exciting season for the Westovians. 

Fresh from directing his first show at the Westovians, the dark comedy Home I’m Darling, Mike Harrison discussed what it was like to take on a completely different challenge of a dark thriller. 

“In a complete departure from the idyllic 50s stylised lifestyle of Home I’m Darling, this play has been an exciting challenge to direct. The technical elements of the play have presented many challenges to a small amateur theatre such as ours, but it has been great to work out how to stage the show, with its many special effects and hundreds of lighting cues. It has been a joy to work out how to maintain the suspense and mystery throughout the piece, and how to surprise and unnerve the audience without necessarily needing to lean on gory horror. The fantastic cast and crew have worked incredibly hard to bring this tale to life in the manner Morgan Lloyd Malcolm intended, and I can’t wait for audiences to see what we have created.”

Rachel Craig as Mina Harker

The Westovians have built a reputation for producing a diverse programme of new writing and classic plays in South Tyneside. Last season, the society won 7 NODA North District awards, including Best Villain in a Pantomime for Rachel Craig, who leads the Dracula cast as Mina Harker.

Craig said: “I have absolutely loved being involved in this production. It has been quite a challenge, with lots of tech and sound building the tension, but it has been a brilliant experience, and lots of fun. This isn't a Dracula you have seen before, it's a re-telling of the old classic, but beware the teller as much as the tale!”

Show: Dracula by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm

Location: Pier Pavillion, South Shields

Dates: Wednesday 4th - Saturday 7th November. Evening shows 7.30pm, Saturday matinee 2pm

Tickets: £15. Available online: https://www.ticketsource.com/westovians/dracula/e-zpjgov

Tickets can be purchased in person at Sanddancer Clothing, The Word and at the Box Office (open one hour before show & subject to availability)

Suitable for: 14+
Content Warnings: Contains scenes of blood, gore, horror, themes of infant mortality, themes of psychological distress.

Running time: 2 hours 15 (including interval)

Access: Theatre is fully wheelchair accessible, with an accessible toilet and designated wheelchair spaces in the auditorium.