My expectations yesterday were low to start with, and as the review in Helsingin Sanomat had been mildly put unenthusiastic, they got even lower, especially as the two previous ballets last autumn - both Messa da Requiem and A Christmas Carol were OK as such - didn't really inspire me. What a mistake! Dracula captivated me from the first second! And after that there wasn't a dull moment. To judge from the applause the rest of the audience thought the same.

The audience was, by the way, a little different from the usual. I must have seen enough black lace yesterday to last for decades.

Apparently the HS reviewer Jukka O. Miettinen was unfamiliar with the subject as he was confused and had to spend much time reading the synopsis. I found the ballet clearer than the novel it is based on. The one thing we agree about is that Atte Kilpinen as Renfrew was remarkable. Otherwise the cast I saw was different from the one mentioned in the review, but good. The switches between the "old" and "young" Dracula were neat. Also I'd like to mention the tango Dracula danced with Jonathan Harker in the castle. It might have been comical, but it steered well clear of that.

Some basic facts: Choreography is by Krzysztof Pastor, music by Wojciech Kilar, and libretto by Pawel Chynowski. The ballet was originally made for West Australian Ballet in 2018, and the production is rented from the Polish National Ballet. And of course it is based on Bram Stoker's novel and Francis Ford Coppola's film.