Aiken Civic Ballet promotes upcoming show with blood drive
October 3 – Halloween is still four weeks away, but Laurens Street had a gruesome twist on Saturday with help from the Aiken Civic Ballet.
The cast members of the company’s upcoming “Dracula” production have been stationed downtown outside of Vampire Penguin, to support the Shepeard Community Blood Center campaign, which has resulted in 22 pints.
“It really made sense for Vampire Penguin to partner with ballet,†said Jeannette Moseley, owner of the company, whose establishment focuses on light, fluffy and creamy shaved ice. She added that “collecting blood … is a fantastic thing for everyone to do.”
The cast members took on the challenge of encouraging potential blood donors to participate while not completely breaking away from character, in the spirit of the classic character created in the 1890s by author Bram Stoker (an ancestor by Aiken resident Dacre Stoker). Perhaps the most prominent member of the group was Scott Ewald, as Count Dracula himself, and yet able to withstand the occasional blast of the midday sun on his face.
Among the donors who met the “vampire brides” and “dark creatures” on duty were local resident Bart Little and family friend Kate Dooley of Danville, Virginia. “She’s visiting town, and we just got off, we walked around town and the opportunity arose, and we gave,†Little said.
“We love that we can help others in any way we can… It would actually help the ballet. It’s Halloween. Halloween is Vampire Penguin’s birthday, so it was just a win-win for everyone. . “
Tara Reeder, president of the ballet company, said the activity was part of the troupe’s outreach tradition. Plans had been in place for a variety of awareness events this year, but fell victim to COVID-19 precautions.
She also reported that 80% of Saturday’s donors are said to be newbies – an unusually high percentage, according to Shepeard.
The ballet will take place October 15-16 at the USC Aiken Etheredge Center. The production “can scare children under 8”. Performances take place from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Details are available at [email protected]