With a cast of five switching costumes and roles at the drop of a hat, Dracula, A Comedy Of Terrors is 90-minute freewheeling send-up that plays with sexuality and gender norms in the spirit of comedy legends Charles Ludlam, Monty Python and Mel Brooks – and celebrates goth, camp, and the magic of live theatre itself. James Daly plays Dracula and he spoke to QX about the show, his role, and a career in TV and on stage.
Dracula calls on your talents as an actor and comedian. When did you first know that you wanted to act and be funny as a career, and who inspired you?
I think I’ve always known, as cliché as that sounds. As far back as I can remember, I only wanted to be an actor. Jim Carrey was, and is, my favourite actor. He most definitely inspired me to want to make people laugh and make comedy a big part of my career. I would do impressions of his characters for my parents’ friends and I quickly realized I had a knack for entertaining and fell in love with it.
As a laugh-out-loud reimagining of this gothic classic, what makes this Dracula funny rather than scary? What’s your Dracula character like?
Our version of Dracula is fast-paced and raunchy. There is a lot of physical humour, and it parodies the source material as well as other classic horror-drama films. It’s a lot of fun to see where the line is between taking ourselves seriously but not too seriously. I think my Dracula character is funny because he is constantly being foiled. He sees himself as a smooth, irresistible gentleman, but in reality, he is a bit clueless, and things don’t often pan out the way he expects. He also often puts his foot in his mouth while trying to conceal his true identity, which is fun to play.
You’ve gone with this show from Montreal to Off-Broadway and now to London. How has the show and your character evolved?
I think the queerness of the show has been brought out the more it has developed. This is one of the things I like most about the story, the character of Dracula, and particularly our adaptation. Dracula is pansexual. But he never openly “comes out” or has to explain himself to anyone. To him, it’s perfectly natural to be attracted to any and all genders and to close yourself off from that experience would be to deny yourself of truly living.
I also love that the characters can be, and are, played by actors of opposite genders. It blurs the line between what is considered masculine and what is considered feminine, and I think that’s true to life. Things are not black and white, and the less we try to put people and groups of people into boxes and accept them for who they are, the happier we all will be.
Tell us about your other favourite roles on TV and on stage.
I play another silly queer character on the hit Canadian comedy “Letterkenny” and I had a fun cameo on another Canadian series “Workin’ Moms”. On stage, I just recently finished a production of La Cage aux Folles at the Stratford Festival in Canada. I’ve also done Joe Hardy in Damn Yankees, Cliff in Cabaret, Gabe in Next to Normal and Rocky in The Rocky Horror Show.
You’re also a singer-songwriter. Tell us about your love of music. Is this an aspect of your career that you want to develop?
Absolutely! I hail from St. John’s, Newfoundland and I was surrounded by music growing up. It was a big part of my education as well. I started playing guitar and writing songs in high school and during the pandemic I released some of them onto Spotify/Apple music. You can check out my stuff there!
What are you most looking forward to doing off-stage while in London?
Seeing other shows, definitely. This is my first time in London and I’ve always wanted to visit the West End and I’m so looking forward to soaking up as much theatre as I can while I’m here.
What projects do you have in the pipeline?
More music, actually! I’ve got some meetings with my producer this week to work on some new songs, and I hope to keep releasing music while I’m here, so stay tuned for that!
Dracula, A Comedy Of Terrors, 8 March – 3 May 2025, at The Menier Chocolate Factory, 4 O’Meara Street, London SE1 1TE, United Kingdom.
