Dance of the Vampires
Tags: cult, psychedelic, gothic, dark, humor

Plot synopsis:
This synopsis applies to the European and Japanese productions only. The Broadway version was heavily rewritten. In addition, portions of this synopsis may reflect later changes to the European show, which will become clear when one reads the song list below.
=== Act I ===
Some time in the late 19th century, Professor Abronsius and Alfred, his young but bumbling sidekick, arrive in a small Jewish shtetl somewhere in the Carpathians, where they hope to prove the Professor's theory that vampires actually do exist. Naturally, the villagers are in deep denial and refuse to confirm his beliefs. Nearly freezing to death in the nearby woods (He, Ho, He), the two are taken in by Chagal, an inkeeper who spends most of his free time lusting after Magda, his beautiful chambermaid, much to the disdain of his long suffering wife, Rebecca (Knoblauch - Garlic).
After exploring the rooms upstairs in which they are staying (Bitte, meine Herren - Please, Gentleman), Alfred discovers and is smitten by Chagal's beautiful seventeen-year-old daughter, Sarah. Chagal is very protective of his child, going as far as boarding up her room so she wouldn't bathe around the two guests (Eine schöne Tochter ist ein Segen - A Beautiful Daughter is a Blessing). That night, Alfred and Sarah sing of their mutual attraction, while Chagal does some more fooling around with the maid, and Abronsius is swiftly knocked on the head by Chagal's wife (Nie geseh'n - Never Seen). Unknown to Alfred, late at night Sarah is serenaded by a mysterious stranger, promising her eternal life and power (Gott ist tot - God is Dead).
The next morning, the Professor bears witness to a small business exchange between Chagal and Koukol, a hideous hunchback living somewhere in the woods (Alles ist hell - Everything's Bright). He inquires about the odd man (Wahrheit - Truth), but Chagal refuses to discuss the matter. That same night, Sarah tricks Alfred into giving up his bath for her (Du bist wirklich sehr nett - You're Really Very Nice) and as she joyfully soaps her sponge, Count von Krolock, an aristocratic vampire breaks into the bathroom from the roof above and invites her to a midnight ball at his castle (Einladung zum Ball - Invitation to the Ball). He is about to bite the girl, but Alfred, who has been spying on Sarah's bathing ritual, screams for help. Chagal and Rebecca arrive, furious. Sarah's father spanks her and forbids her to ever go outside.
However, later that night, Koukol arrives by the inn and leaves a red bundle for Sarah on the doorstep. She sneaks outside and discovers it to be a pair of expensive red boots. Alfred comes outside as well and professes his love to her (Draußen ist Freiheit - Outside is Freedom). The two plan on running off together and Sarah asks Alfred to go back into the house to fetch her sponge. With Alfred gone, Sarah fantasizes about the fantastical, romantic vampire ball she could be missing and decides to accept the Count's invitation (Stärker als wir sind - Stronger Than We Are). She runs off into the woods. Alfred starts a panic, Chagal and Rebecca rush outside, but it's too late and Sarah's gone. Chagal wraps himself in garlic and runs into the woods after his daughter.
The next morning, Chagal's frozen body is found; Rebecca is devastated (Trauer um Chagal - Mourning For Chagal). Professor Abronsius discovers small puncture wounds all over the body, but the villagers, still in denial, assume they came from wolf bites. The Professor hands Rebecca a wooden stake and explains she must puncture Chagal's heart in order to prevent him from becoming a vampire. Hysterical, Rebecca chases him and Alfred out of the room, covering her husband with a bedsheet and swearing that she would never let anyone violate his corpse.
In the middle of the night, Magda sneaks downstairs to look at Chagal's corpse, expressing mixed feelings about his death and the sexual advances she was forced to endure while Chagal was alive (Tot zu sein ist komisch - To be Dead is Strange). Suddenly, Chagal sits up, now a vampire. Magda tries to fend him off with a crucifix, but being a Jewish vampire, he manages to overpower her and feed on her blood, killing her in the process. Alfred and the Professor sneak into the room as well, planning to stake Chagal, but they find Magda's body there instead. A chase ensues and the two finally corner Chagal, who begs for mercy and promises to show them the route to the vampire's castle where his daughter supposedly is held if he's spared.
Chagal leads the two heroes to a giant castle in the woods (Durch die Wildnis zum Schloß - Through the Wilderness to the Castle), where they are greeted by the mysterious Count von Krolock and his flamboyant son Herbert, who is instantly attracted to Alfred (Vor dem Schloß - In Front of the Castle). Von Krolock invites the two men into his domain and the two reluctantly accept his invitation.
=== Act II ===
Sarah is indeed at Count von Krolock's castle, wandering the dark empty halls and considering what her relationship with the Count truly is. The Count appears to welcome her and manages to resist biting her, planning to save her for the ball the next night (Totale Finsternis - Total Eclipse). At the same time, Alfred is asleep with the Professor in a guest bedroom in another part of the castle, suffering from terrifying nightmares in which he loses Sarah to bloodthirsty vampires (Carpe noctem).
The next morning, Alfred wants to find Sarah and flee the castle (Ein perfekter Tag / Für Sarah - A Perfect Day/For Sarah), but Professor Abronsius is more concerned with staking Von Krolock and Herbert. Alfred and the Professor make their way to the crypt (In der Gruft - In the Crypt), where they locate the two vampires. The Professor becomes stuck on a bannister as he attempts to get into the crypt and assigns Alfred to kill von Krolock and his son, but Alfred can't bring himself to drive a stake through their hearts. Before the Professor can think of something else, he hears a noise and the hapless duo flee the crypt just as Chagal arrives with Magda's coffin. Magda climbs out, now a vampire, and finally concedes to having a sexual relationship with Chagal.
Alfred and the Professor continue searching the castle and separate in the library (Bücher, Bücher - Books, Books). Alfred comes across a small bedroom where he finds Sarah in the bathroom, apparently unharmed. Alfred begs for her to leave, but Sarah refuses, saying she wants to stay for the midnight ball. She coaxes Alfred to leave the room (involving another encounter in the library, Noch mehr Bücher - Even More Books) while she gets dressed, but when Alfred returns, Sarah is gone and Herbert is in her place. Herbert tries flirting with the confused and terrified "hero" (Wenn Liebe in dir Ist - When Love is Inside You), which culminates with him lunging at Alfred's neck, but the Professor comes in the nick of time and hits the young vampire with an umbrella
As Alfred and the Professor make it outside, the sun sets and they are confronted by von Krolock, who mocks the Professor's naive attempt to destroy him (Sie irren, Professor - You're Wrong, Professor). To their horror, the two watch a whole mob of vampires rise up from a nearby church yard and head towards the ballroom (Ewigkeit - Eternity). As the vampires leave their resting places, von Krolock reflects on his painful damnation as a member of the undead (Die unstillbare Gier - The Insatiable Greed), which Alfred overhears, but the Professor dismisses von Krolock as nothing more than a monster.
The vampires arrive in the castle and the ball begins (Tanzsaal - The Dance Hall). Alfred and Professor Abronisus sneak their way inside dressed as members of the undead. Count von Krolock appears at the top of the stairs to introduce his "guest," whom he forbids the other vampires to touch. Sarah enters the ballroom in an elegant red ball gown and approaches von Krolock. He is quick to embrace her with a bite, draining her blood. The Count then proceeds to dance with the weakened Sarah as the other vampires join them in a menuet. Alfred and the Professor plan to sneak Sarah out during the dance, but unfortunately for them, a mirror is unveiled, blowing their cover since they're the only ones reflected. Von Krolock commands his vampire flock to attack Alfred and his mentor, but the former manages to form a makeshift cross out of two candelabras, causing a diversion. The three humans make their escape as von Krolock, furious, sends Koukol chasing after the girl.
Koukol chases Alfred, Sarah and the Professor through the woods, but is attacked by wolves and killed. The three heroes stop on a small hillside to rest. Alfred once more professes his love to Sarah and the two lovers embrace (Draußen ist Freiheit - Reprise - Outside is Freedom - Reprise). However, Sarah is already turned and bites Alfred mid-song, turning him into a vampire as well and both of them flee into the woods. Professor Abronsius, too consumed by his note taking, does not see what is happening behind him, until it is too late. In the epilogue, all vampires rejoice in their eternal dance. (Der Tanz der Vampire - Dance of the Vampires).

Review: I loaned it to a work colleague who thought Polanski only made horror films like 'Rosemary's Baby', she was amazed when confronted with this one.
I love Roman Polanski's "The Fearless Vampire Killers," which is surprising to me now because for most of my life I thought it was dreadful.
I've read that the movie was considered an almost complete fiasco because the executive producer, Martin Ransohoff, best known for "The Beverly Hillbillies," wanted a very different film and cut 16 minutes out of Polanski's 107 minute cut, inserted a short cartoon before the titles (so people would know it was supposed to be a comedy; Ransohoff thought Polanski botched it that badly), and even re-dubbed some of the actors.
However, despite its flaws "The Fearless Vampire Killers" gained a cult following over the years, to a degree due to the morbid fascination with the murder of Sharon Tate, but also because the movie is really very good.
I can't remember when I started to appreciate it, but now "The Fearless Vampire Killers" is one of my favorite movies.Right from the main title sequence this film is really quite wonderful.
Sharon Tate was probably never lovelier than in this movie, and Roman Polanski is very good as Alfred, in fact amazing when you consider he was also directing.
The title "fearless vampire killers" it's not  so good as "Dance of the Vampires",outside U.S. this is the original titleI always will remember this film as "Dance of the Vampires" ALSO,CONGRATULATIONS to Mr Polanski for the Palme D' Or, he deserves it(without him  just cinema "boring")I enjoyed poetic scenes such as like moment in Sarah's bath comparing the textures of first soap bubbles, then falling snowflakes, and finally crimson blood.
Krystof Komeda's wondrous music, with its weird choral effects and little melodies Komeda's score communicates the Kafka-like isolation of the setting and the charactersPolanski chose some of the finest English cinema craft artists to work on the film: cameraman Douglas Slocombe, production designer Wilfrid Shingleton Polanski engaged noted choreographer Tutte Lemkow, who played the actual Fiddler in FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, for the film's climactic Danse Macabre minuet.Sharon Tate as Sarah was delightful(we should remember her in a good way,as a decent actress and person,her scene with Polanski  is really cool ,especially "the bite scene") Jack MacGowran as  Professor Abronsius is just great Polanski's films often deal in contrasts of master and servant, the empowered and the powerless.
You got the wrong vampire" and bite her anyway Count Von Krolock  (Ferdy Mayne, who plays the Count)he looks really as a Nosferatu or a man that needs Transfusion!.Also funny is Herbert, the openly gay vampire who is interested in Alfred rather than Sara, the sexual deviations implicit in early Hammer films like The Brides of Dracula (1960) and Kiss of the Vampire (1964) are brought out.
Because this really is a great horror-comedy, far better and far more important than the studio hacks at MGM who released this film (after chopping it up) could ever have understood.There is unfortunately no rumor that there's a director's cut in the vaults; it is well to remember that Polanski nearly disowned this film on release, and really only reclaimed it after the brutal slaying of his wife, who plays such an important role in the film.But even as shredded as it is (pay especially close attention to the discontinuities involving the Professor), this is still marvelously written, directed, and photographed - truly frightening at moments, utterly hilarious at others, but always grounded in a particularly Polish sensibility which is now, alas, a thing of the past; - the preservation of a culture that, at its best, was among the best in Europe..
When I think about R.Polanski the first thing coming to my mind is - "the master of fear and horror", and I knew it that "Fearless vampire Killers" is rare example of comedy by this great director.
The famous Professor Abronsius (Jack MacGowran) and his clumsy assistant Alfred (Roman Polanski) travel to the remote Transylvania to research vampires.
Roman Polanski performing an awkward assistant; Jack MacGowran in the role of the dedicated professor that accidentally "spread the evil around the world"; Alfie Bass in the role of the wolf inn-keeper Shagal; Terry Downes and his unforgettable servant Koukol; Ian Quarries and his performance as Herbert, the gay vampire-son of the count; and Ferdy Mayne in the role of the creepy Count von Krolock, all of them are still awesome in their stunning performances.
Excellent comedy and horror film , compellingly directed by Roman Polanski.
The movie centers upon an old man (Jack McGowran) and a young (Roman Polanski) who go to track down a vampire count (Ferdy Mayne) who has abducted a countrywoman (Sharon Tate) and he hides her into his castle.The film mingles terror , tongue-in-cheek , rip-roaring , humor , action and a lot of amusement .
The suspense (yes, suspense is plentiful in this comedy) was building so well during that climactic sequence, and it doesn't pay off.And I really don't want to give too much away, because everything is best experienced freshly (I hadn't even heard of this film before I saw that it was to be on TCM), but, man, watch out for the dance scene.
The film finally gets moving in the last 40 minutes, and a few scenes attain slapstick comedy heights; most notably the scene in which Ian Quarrier's vampire makes a pass at Roman Polanski's vampire hunter.
Much like Mel Brooks's YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN and Tim Burton's SLEEPY HOLLOW, THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS boasts production values on a level most of the films they parody could never hope to match.
You have to love the U.S.A. title to this movie: "The Fearless Vampire Killers or: Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are In My Neck"I will say this for the 1960s: it had mostly crap movies but it had some of the best film titles ever (i.e. Dr. Strangelove: or How I learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb." ) Sadly, outside of gaping at the beautiful Sharon Tate, there wasn't much to enjoy after the opening title.
However the bawdy schoolboy humour and cleavage on display reminded me forcefully of Benny Hill at his best/worst.I watched on cable so I lost any sense of spectacle that the film may have but the only thing I found worth looking at was the exquisitely beautiful face of poor doomed Sharon Tate.
While nowadays his best remembered film of that period is the superb tale of horror "Rosemary's Baby", just a year before of that tremendous achievement he crafted a hysterical spoof on the Gothic horror of the era that has gained a cult fan-base over the years, "The Fearless Vampire Killers".Named originally "Dance of the Vampires", the movie is the story of Professor Abronsius (Jake MacGrowan), a brilliant scientist who has fallen from grace due to his belief in vampires.
While spending the night on a small Transylvanian village, they find that the Inn-keeper's daughter Sarah (Sharon Tate) has been kidnapped by a vampire, so they go on to her rescue in a series of bizarre and wacky adventures.The first noticeable thing about "The Fearless Vampire Killers" is its beautiful and detailed setting.
The writers even manage to make fun of the sexual repression of old and like the immortal vampire myth, it has many subtle sexual connotations.Jack MacGowran as Professor Abronsius is simply wonderful, and completely owns the movie.
Roman Polanski may not have a wide range as an actor, but his performance is adequate and is the involuntary source of most of the comedy in the movie.Ferdy Mayne and Iain Quarrier complete the cast with very good performances as the vampire family our unlikely heroes will fight.
Ferdy Mayne makes the vampire's role his own in a part that seems obviously inspired by Cristopher Lee. The late Sharon Tate has a small but important role as the lady in distress in this sexy adventure and gives not only her beauty, but also her talent to the role.If the movie has a problem, is that it probably has dated a bit badly, as it has a style that may not be appealing to new generations of viewers.
This is definitely not a flaw in the movie, but viewers expecting non-stop laughs are warned."The Fearless Vampire Killers" is a terrific comedy tailored for fans of 60s Gothic horror.
With a tremendous cast and stunning visuals this movie remains one of Polanski's best films and one that has been sadly overlooked all these years.
British character actor Ferdy Mayne is a wonderful vampire count, and Sharon Tate is beautiful and funny as the dizzy heroine, Sarah.
The Fearless Vampire Killers is one of Roman Polanski's best films.
THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS (4 outta 5 stars) Roman Polanski directed and co-stars in this unique horror-comedy about an isolated European village which is plagued by visits from the living dead, who live in a castle nearby.
While probably not everyone's cup of tea, Polanski's loving spoof/tribute to Hammer Films' vampire movies of the late fifties/early sixties (specifically BRIDES OF DRACULA)  is often hilarious and superbly on-target.Like most successful spoofs of the horror genre (YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN, et al), FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS maintains a high amount of reverence for its subject matter, treating it with a certain amount of respect amidst all the pratfalls and silliness.
I saw this movie when I had 15 years, it looked like to me one of the best that one had seen, the black humor, and the metaphors are magisterial.The following one that I saw ,Rosemary's Baby ,confirmed to me, that was knowing, one of the directors most important of my time..
The first half of the film is almost entirely silent, with Polanski playing the part of a retarded man-child to a daft, Einsteinian vampire killer who looks like Mark Twain on acid.
I first saw The Fearless Vampire Killers a year ago and it is one of my most favourite films of all time, it is a combination of romance and comedy, what drew me to watching the movie is because Sharon Tate stars in it and I adore her, she was the most beautiful woman that ever lived, Sharon gives the film all that she has got and when Sarah, Sharon's character, says her first words she lights up the screen with her beauty, Sharon was a very talented actress and what happened to her in 1969 was a tragedy which breaks my heart, I have her pictures all over my home and I love her so much.
Roman Polanski is a very gifted movie director and I must say his acting in The Fearless Vampire Killers was wonderful, he certainly was a very lucky man having Sharon as his wife and I don't think people realise what a tragic life he has had from surviving the holocaust, losing his mother, almost being the victim of a serial killer and then losing his beautiful wife, it is amazing he has managed to go on and be so successful.
The Fearless Vampire Killers is a brilliant movie because of Sharon and Roman..
He then made Repulsion and Cul-de-sac, which must have made people think he was unique but talented, but after he let loose with Fearless Vampire Killers in 1967, critics and studio bosses alike must have thought this kid was raving mad!With one of the funniest subtitles you could think of for a horror comedy: Fearless Vampire Killers, or: Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are in My Neck, and credits that rival those in Dr Strangelove for giving you the feeling that anything could happen in this movie, Polanski's 1967 film promises riotous farce.This is a little misleading: it takes twenty minutes to find its groove, but it doesn't go for total farce.
Music is great too.This movie evokes a wonderful fantasy world of Transylvania with matronly wives, bawdy drunken inns, busty beauties, doddery bat-hunters and professors, and mischievous vampires - yet, like all Polanski films, it uses a principle invented by Erich von Stroheim, through 100% location shooting and lighting (though colours are exaggerated here for the fairy-tale world) we are convinced this seemingly improbably world is utterly authentic.Fearless Vampire Killers is an endearing, fun horror comedy.
The photography is so big and so beautiful that only a genius like Polanski could pull it off (let's not forget how influential this director is).'The Fearless Vampire Killers' is funny, scary and weird at the same time.
Granted, Roman Polanski can tackle every genre with great talent from Rosemary's Baby to Pirates and Knife In The Water to Bitter Moon, and there again, he manages to do something that resembles none of his other movies, but it will take more than a goofy Buster Keaton / Charlie Chaplin sense of humor for me to find this movie funny.Yet the set is great and the atmosphere unique and faithful to the great vampire films with Christopher Lee and Bela Lugosi.I believe I would've liked it better if it had been spookier.
Director Roman Polanski's satire of (or, tribute to) the popular Hammer horror films which came out of the UK in the early-1960s looks so much like a Hammer entry (with perhaps a higher budget) that today's audiences probably won't get the visual joke.
Released in 1967 and directed by Roman Polanski, "The Fearless Vampire Killers" stars Jack MacGowran and Polanski as an elderly bat researcher and his young assistant who go to Transylvania where the latter falls in love with an inn-keeper's daughter, Sarah (Sharon Tate).
Similar horror comedies that came out later, like 1971's "The Vampire Happening" and especially 1974's "Young Frankenstein," far surpass it.The movie was originally butchered by the studio without Polanski's permission; they took out 19 minutes and added an animation sequence for the opening titles.
I haven´t seen anything else of Roman Polanski.I only knew a couple of things from his private life.I could never belive that this film would have been as Funny and beautiful on the same time.It´s as entertaining as it could get,The slapstick comedy makes you laugh loud and I do not really know what to say about the end less then: I AM IMPRESSED.I thought that the screenplay was great and Polanski´s direction was amazing.It also creat a perfect atmosphere.The acting was good too specially by Polanski himself as the funny idiot Albert.Sometimes it still could get a little too much of everything.It definitely gets a 9/10..
Alfred falls for a local woman (Sharon Tate) and of course she's also wanted by the main vampire.Polanski's DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES is without question one of the worst comedies that I've ever seen.
Director Polanski co-stars as Alfred, the bumbling assistant to dotty vampire-hunter Professor Abronsius (Jack MacGowran), as they infiltrate the decaying castle of dreaded Count von Krolock to rescue a beautiful village girl (played by Sharon Tate) with whom Alfred has become smitten (fiction presaging fact, as Tate later married Polanski).
Sandwiched between the harrowing psychological drama Repulsion (1965) and the chilling Satanic classic Rosemary's Baby (1968), The Fearless Vampire Killers sees Polanski deftly combining comedy and horror, his film possessing a chilling, dark fairy-tale atmosphere, interspersed by expertly handled moments of low-key humour.Roman also stars in the film, playing Alfred, assistant to eccentric Professor Abronsius (Jack MacGowran), whose belief in the undead has led the pair to a remote European village that is under threat from Count von Krolock and his bloodsucking acolytes.
Making their way to Krolock's castle, Alfred and Abronsius attempt to rescue pretty villager Sarah (tragic Manson Murder victim Sharon Tate) and prevent the vampires from spreading their evil around the world.With smart direction, an efficient script, superb cinematography and a truly haunting score, the film is a real treat for vampire film fans and delivers several outstanding scenes that easily rival the Euro-horror/Hammer movies that clearly provided Polanski with his inspiration.
Fun and funny vampire movie from acclaimed director Roman Polanski.Plot is reasonably basic, and not entirely watertight.
Jack MacGrowan and Roman Polanski (who also directed the film) are fantastic as the bumbling want-to-be vampire hunters.
Although Polanski's first studio film has a great deal in it deserving of praise & attention, as a comedy it simply hasn't managed to survive the test of time.Like most films with double-barreled titles (Dr Strangelove being an exception), the humour in 'The Fearless Vampire Killers' is just too dated & broad to be funny.
Yet he's at all times utterly believable, even when the movie is hamming up the parody.The Fearless Vampire Killers is an excellent movie to check out if you're looking for a good vampire film, if you've liked other Polanski films or if you're merely looking for a smart comedy with great production values..
By this point, a slapstick horror seemed like nothing more than natural progression.Director Roman Polanski is known for his dark and dingy looking thrillers, but when he was a young film student in the 50s several of his short pictures took on a silent comedy style, even if they were not especially funny.
Polanski seems having a great time directing and acting in this film, with a horror subject that he uses a lot.
The Fearless Vampire Killers a.k.a. Dance of the Vampires (1967) was a very enjoyable film from director Roman Polanski.
Are these fearless vampire killers up to the task at hand?Polanski has managed to create a fun horror film with comedic elements.
I was so excited about finding a Polanski film I had never seen, and to top it off it was about vampires.After starting the movie, I had to turn on the English subtitles because it was hard to understand.Summary: Great Cinematography, Great Score, Funny Moments, I love Polanski but please stay away from comedy..
The Fearless Vampire killers is an excellent parody of a horror film.
Polanski's Fearless Vampire Killers is a great mixture of comedy and horror!