Count Dracula is flying back into Salt Lake City. Ballet West is reviving Ben Stevenson's gothic ballet Dracula for eight performances at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre between October 23 and October 31, 2026, bringing back the aerial vampire brides, live orchestral score, and theatrical pyrotechnics that have made the production a Halloween fixture for local audiences.
The run carries extra weight this year. As reported by KSL.com, Ballet West Artistic Director Adam Sklute described the production as technically demanding for the dancers and the entire company. Ballet West first staged Dracula in 2011, after Sklute took the company's artistic leadership in 2007, and per The Utah Review, the 2026-2027 season marks his 20th and final season at the helm of the Salt Lake City-based institution.
A Farewell Wrapped in Gothic Spectacle
This particular run of Dracula will also serve as the final stage performances for two Ballet West Principal Artists before their official retirements from the company, including Jenna Rae Herrera, a long-standing principal dancer, the company has said.
Ballet West first staged Stevenson's Dracula in 2011 and revived the production in 2021 and again in 2023, according to the Utah Arts Review. The ballet itself dates back further still: choreographer Ben Stevenson created the work for the Houston Ballet, where it premiered in 1997. Bram Stoker's novel was published in 1897, per the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre.
Flying Vampires and a Score Built From Liszt
The production's signature visual effects come from Flying by Foy, the theatrical rigging company responsible for allowing Count Dracula and his vampire brides to soar above the stage, paired with pyrotechnics, scenic design by Thomas Boyd, and costumes by Judanna Lynn, according to Mills Publishing Inc. The full score is drawn entirely from the music of 19th-century composer Franz Liszt, including his macabre Totentanz, arranged into a three-act ballet score by John Lanchbery and performed live by the Ballet West Orchestra under conductor Jared Oaks, the Utah Arts Review reports. The Utah Review notes that Lanchbery edited excerpts from Liszt's piano and orchestral works to build the narrative score audiences hear in the pit.
The eight performances are scheduled across the October 23-31 window at the Capitol Theatre.
A Costume Contest
On Friday, October 30, Ballet West and FanX — Salt Lake City's major comic and pop-culture convention — will co-host a pre-performance costume contest featuring a red carpet and photo keepsakes, with judging led by Ballet West Director of Costume Production Jason Hadley. Prizes include season subscriptions to Ballet West's upcoming shows.
One of Two Big Halloween Dance Traditions in Utah
Dracula isn't the only Halloween dance tradition drawing Utah crowds this fall. As Hoodline previously reported, Odyssey Dance Theatre's Thriller has been a commercial Halloween staple since 1994, created by former Ballet West principal dancer Derryl Yeager as a fall revenue stream comparable to The Nutcracker, and it now generates nearly 90% of Odyssey's annual operating budget. Where Thriller leans into zombies and pop culture, Ballet West's Dracula offers a classical counterpoint — gothic horror set to Liszt, performed live, with a farewell subplot this year that gives longtime fans one more reason to show up before Sklute and two of his principal dancers take their final bows.
