The Blood Is the Life in the Lasdon Theater

By Benji Cutler

On Feb. 3 and 4, 2023, “Dracula,” inspired by Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, was performed at The Harvey School. Ms. Virginia Holmes led the winter production, and the script was written by Steven Dietz. Starring wonderful talents across the board and backed up by a hard-working crew, the play ran in a thrilling and entertaining manner.

For those who are not familiar with Stoker’s work, “Dracula” is about a bloodthirsty vampire lurking around Transylvania and London, hoping to attack, or bite, anybody he can find. Dracula is surrounded by Jonathan Harker, Dr. Seward, Renfield, Mina, and Lucy, and none of them are safe from the Transylvanian Count.

To say the least, Ms. Holmes’s production perfectly captures the essence of Stoker’s “Dracula” and Dietz’s script. Ms. Holmes’s direction, the entire cast, the fantastic set and costume designs, and many more essential aspects truly made Harvey’s “Dracula” come to life.

To begin, the entire cast of “Dracula” worked phenomenally together, but the huge standouts were Łukasz Daszcynski and Mara van den Tol. Mara’s performance as Count Dracula was brilliantly unsettling and haunting, giving the audience a true “Dracula” experience. Mara’s chilling voice and gothic costume built such an ominous mood on the stage as well.

Additionally, Łukasz was a star in his role as Renfield, stealing every single scene he was in. His emotional range nailed both hilarious and haunting moments, making the audience simultaneously laugh and sit back in their seats. Łukasz opened and closed the play with ease, smoothly bringing us in and taking us out of the fantastic production.

The true hero of the “Dracula” production was undoubtedly Eli Klagsbrun. The same day as the first performance of “Dracula,” Eli found out that he would be playing one of the biggest roles in the play, Dr. Seward. He had very little time to learn his character, in terms of dialogue, costume, behavior, and motivations, but Eli somehow pulled it off. Through strong determination and hard work, Eli stepped up to the challenge and succeeded with ease and passion.

Outside of Łukasz, Mara, and Eli, the entire cast helped to create a dark and chilling mood that was so entertaining from start to finish. Alex Silverman and Ava Lazaroff shared fantastic chemistry together as Mina and Lucy respectively, and they each were brilliant on their own. Alexa Williams played a charismatic Van Helsing to perfection, and Ari Klein’s role as Harker was powerful and emotional as well.

Alongside the play’s spectacular acting, the entire production surrounding the cast was unbelievable. Even before the show began, it was clear to the audience that the set design was beautiful and unique, thanks to Mr. Alexander’s care and hard work.

Additionally, the costumes added unmeasurable visual appeal to the play, as Ms. Merola’s designs fit each character perfectly. For instance, Mara’s dark and gothic costume enhanced Dracula’s character so nicely. Each outfit was filled with detail.

With the costumes, the makeup for certain roles was fantastic. Mara’s white face juxtaposing with dark lipstick was so effective during Dracula’s haunting scenes. The memorable moments of the three Vixens, played by Olivia Barsky, Chloé Ramsey Lavoie, and Stella Runyan, were elevated by their unsettling makeup and costumes.

To add, several students other than the actors got involved in the production in a wonderful way. Ninth grader Jesse Baron worked effectively and phenomenally as Light Board Operator, never missing a beat during the play. Junior Tracy Wang also added a fantastic off putting tone in key scenes as Sound Board

Operator. Not to mention, sophmores Daniela Rynott and Tinsley Valenti were very efficient as stage managers as well. “Dracula” would not have been possible without these students’ hard work, and it did not go unnoticed by anyone.

All in all, “Dracula” was a huge success at Harvey, with every single member of the production putting in amazing work and effort. The entire cast and crew should be so proud of themselves, as they transformed the Lasdon Theater into a haunting and chilling atmosphere.

Leahy: Leading Lacrosse, Lifting, and Lateness

The Pulse had the opportunity to interview Nick Leahy, The Harvey School’s new attendance and bookstore coordinator. While interviewing Mr. Leahy, The Pulse learned about his life and his contributions to Harvey.

Some of you may also know Mr. Leahy from his work in our athletics program. In the spring, he is one of the coaches for the varsity boy’s lacrosse team. In winter term, you would have seen him leading the afterschool Weight Room activity.

Mr. Leahy grew up in Patterson, New York and attended Brewster High School. From there, he continued his education at Western Connecticut State University and majored in History. When asked about his reasons for choosing this major, Mr. Leahy said that he was “led by his interests,” as he was always “big on American history” and “ancient Greek and Roman civilization.”

Mr. Leahy stated that he grew up playing soccer and football. But after 13 years of playing

By Bradley Lederer

soccer, he switched over to football full-time. He then went on to play football in college at Western Connecticut State, and he continues to play semi-professionally.

Before working for Harvey, Mr. Leahy was employed by the Bedford Highway Department. He also worked as a part-time substitute teacher last year before getting hired for the bookstore coordinator job. Then, Mr. Phillips, Harvey’s prior head of security, told him about a job opening at Harvey, and the rest was history, as Mr. Leahy was then hired by the school.

Mr. Leahy said that he wants to make the bookstore at Harvey have a college bookstorelike feel. He and administration are currently in the beginning stages of this process, with food and clothing currently for sale. Mr. Leahy hopes to expand it to fit the needs of dorm students by selling items they might need such as deodorants, shampoo, toothbrushes, etc., and making it more accessible for students to buy things they need for class.

When asked what Mr. Leahy likes most about Harvey, he said, “I enjoy the flexibility as well as the familytype community that the school offers and also the explorative nature of always wanting to take on new ideas and building on them.”

Outside of work, Mr. Leahy enjoys hiking, hunting, and fishing as well as going to the gym and playing Xbox.

When asked what else he wants Harvey students to know, Mr. Leahy said jokingly that he wants people to “go to class” and make his job easier.

On a different note, some of you may remember Mr. Leahy’s participation in our Winter Pep Rally. He played in the race to wrap rolls of tissue paper around his arms. Mr. Leahy fell short of first to a student, but he certainly put his fun-loving nature on display.

The Pulse thanks Mr. Leahy for getting a chance to interview him and learn about his life, and we wish him well with this new endeavor.