WILTSHIRE theatre company The Last Baguette wanted their new show, Dracula - A Terrifying Comedy, to have a truly authentic feel, so recruited four European actors to join the cast.

Dracula - A Terrifying Comedy is now beginning a three-week tour of the area, with sneak previews given to youth groups at Halloween-themed workshops, after three weeks of rehearsals at Pound Arts in Corsham.

The Last Baguette is a group of international theatre performers who met while studying in Paris in 2009, at the renowned Jaques Lecoq school of mime and the infamous Philippe Gaulier clown school.

“We were students from eight different countries who knew we wanted to make comedy together. We are inspired by Monty Python, Buster Keaton and vintage horror films” said producer Sidney Robb. After performing in Europe and North America the Last Baguette are now company-in-residence at The Pound.

Sidney, who grew up in Malmesbury, said: "Coming back to live and work in Wiltshire is very important for me. I love being part of the strong sense of community here, and I think that art has an important role in making that community.

“We are really excited to continue working with this iconic Gothic story, and are really grateful for all the support we've been given to make this project happen. Having lived abroad, we believe in the importance of cultural exchange, especially at a point where projects like this may become more difficult.”

Russ Tunney, the director of Pound Arts, says: “We are really excited by the ambition to bring high quality theatre with an international element to rural areas.” Pound Arts runs the Rural Arts Wiltshire and South Gloucestershire touring scheme, which allows village halls to host professional performances, and several will be turning out the lights and waiting for the screams during this show.

Dracula is described as 'a thrilling comedy performed by a cast of four using shadow puppetry, physical storytelling and dark comedy to tell a story of love, blood and gore that you can really get your teeth into. A hilarious, dark and splurting production, mostly in English but with morsels of French and Italian.'

As part of the project the Baguettes have been leading Halloween-themed theatre workshops for teenagers in Bradford on Avon, Corsham and Malmesbury. The workshops, funded by the Local Youth Networks in each area, are free and include a ticket to see Dracula at a venue nearby.

The tour opens tomorrow (Friday oct 7) and includes Dilton Marsh, Compton Bassett, Trowbridge, Malmesbury, Collingbourne Ducis and Corsham. For full details of dates/venues/times and to book tickets see www.lastbaguette.com