STAGE REVIEW : Elvis Is Alive, Playing “Dracula” in Fullerton : Theater: College production of horror classic plays it straight--and the laughs just come naturally.

The “Dracula” at Fullerton College takes a little getting used to.

Christopher Laurence, starring in the campus production of Bram Stoker’s horror staple, strolls out of the shadows sporting a prize pompadour: The slight, angular actor looks as much like a Transylvanian Elvis impersonator as the Count.

And, at first, he is more ingratiating than intimidating, almost soft instead of scary. But that’s OK; not everybody can pull a Frank Langella. Or a Bela Lugosi. After you stop giggling, Laurence becomes interesting, curious. And by the end of the first act, when he puts the big bite on Lucy (Irma Lozano) in the play’s most eerie and erotic scene, he has put starch into the role as well.

Director Tom Blank plays this “Dracula” pretty straight but he’s aware that any production is bound to be amusing, intentionally or not; everything that happens in this story is just too arch, too predictable. So Blank has a bit of fun, with everything from Laurence’s hairdo to Renfield’s (Kyle Myers’) bug-eyed contortions to some sexy shenanigans between the maid (Mary Wilson) and the guard, Butterfield (Michael Garcia).

Then there’s the unwanted humor that creeps in, like the rigged-up “broken” mirror that doesn’t behave as gracefully as it should, or the “gee, that smarts!” expression on Jonathan Harker’s (Lloyd Thompson’s) face while Lucy nibbles on his neck in the second act. That bat business, flying back and forth, back and forth, brings snickers after a while, too.

Still, planned and unplanned silliness aside, this is basically an earnest treatment, a well-rehearsed, moody response to Halloween. “Dracula” may not be able to frighten us anymore but it can still treat us to a slice of dark camp.

Blank’s cast does get hyperventilated every now and then, especially Randolph Bogan Christian-Stripling as that always excitable vampire-killer, Prof. Van Helsing. But the overall effort is a plus, not a minus.

Marvin Torrez’s Dr. Seward is appropriately worried-but-steady; Thompson’s Harker, when not overly flabbergasted, is romantic and dutiful; Garcia is the needed comic relief that Butterfield can be, and Lozano is able to show both Lucy’s innocence and, after she’s infected by Dracula, her thirsting evil. She also faints well.

The technical staging is nicely done. Steven Wolff Craig’s detailed scenery is especially impressive; the last set--Dracula’s crypt--is an eye-opener. Steve Pliska’s dank, doomy lighting provides well-tuned accompaniment.

‘DRACULA’

A Fullerton College production of the stage adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel. Directed by Tom Blank. With Christopher Laurence, Marvin Torrez, Mary Wilson, Lloyd Thompson, Randolph Bogan Christian-Stripling, Kyle Myers, Michael Garcia and Irma Lozano. Sets by Steven Wolff Craig. Costumes by Mela Hoyt-Heydon. Lighting by Steve Pliska. Sound by Brad Williams. Special effects by Jim Book. Makeup by Garry Christiansen and Sandy Kirn. Plays Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., with an 11 p.m. show on Saturday, and on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Campus Theatre, 321 E. Chapman Ave., Fullerton. Tickets: $5 to $7. (714) 871-8101.