How do you make a vampire hilarious without breaking the spell? Actress Susana Cordón—currently playing Lucy in the Straz Center’s Dracula: A Comedy of Terror—argues the laughs land when the characters stay human. She and host Avery Anderson dig into the craft of treating chaos and camp like life-or-death reality, why artistic community equals belonging, and what it feels like to find “home” in a rehearsal room. They also swap first impressions of Tampa Bay (murals, heat, bridges) and nerd out over Audra McDonald—from Gypsy to gardens.

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Episode Highlights

• “When an actor tries to be funny it’s not funny.”
• “We are constantly reminding ourselves to root into the realness and the crisis, the humanity of these characters because then that’s what makes the humor funny.”
• “Artistic community is a space of creation, a space of collaboration, and a space of belonging.”
• “I just want every community, and especially Tampa, to… explore new stories, explore new ideas, and to take that leap.”
• “I kind of hate the timeline we’re living in, but I’m blessed to be living in Audra’s.”

How to Engage

• 🎟 Go see Dracula: A Comedy of Terror at the Straz Center.
• 💌 Subscribe to the Arts Passport newsletter for weekly picks, discounts, and book club invites.
• 🌟 Become a member to fuel local arts journalism (and get perks).

Transcript

Avery Anderson: Welcome to the Tampa Bay Arts Passport podcast. It’s our new podcast—congratulations, you found us! My name is Avery Anderson. Today we have a really exciting conversation with Susana Cordón, who is currently in the Straz Center production of Dracula: A Comedy of Terror. What I love about speaking with artists is you get to see the duality living within them. This show really exemplifies that: it’s not just scary Dracula—it’s comedy, heart, camp. She dives into what that’s been like as a performer—the joy of getting to hear people laugh. And then we nerd out over Audra McDonald for probably way too long… but honestly, forever would be fine. So enjoy, tune in, and welcome to the Tampa Bay Arts Passport podcast.

Avery: I am so excited to be here talking with Susana Cordón, who is currently in the Straz Center’s production of Dracula: A Comedy of Terror. How are you?

Susana Cordón: I’m so happy to be here! Oh my gosh, so happy! I love it!

Avery: You are newly in town for the show—first time in Tampa Bay. What are your first impressions of our beautiful, sunny, beachy city?

Susana: I mean, it is really beautiful. I did forget an umbrella, and that was a rookie mistake. The moment I got off the plane it was pouring, and I said, “Oh, I’ve made a dire mistake.”

Avery: Florida was like, welcome to our soppy, soaky weather.

Susana: Exactly, exactly! I did have a moment where I thought, “Will I ever be dry?”

Avery: No, you actually won’t. There’ll always be a little moisture around you. A little damp—but with your curls, it’s going to be great.

Susana: This is not a hair podcast, although we could talk about curls forever.

Avery: True. But this is about you and your time at the Straz. Big-picture question to ease in: you’re an actor—what drew you to theatre in the first place?

Susana: I was about 13, and I’d been given a tour of a performing arts school. I thought, “This is crazy! This is so High School Musical. I’m never going to do this.” People pretending! And then I took my first voice lesson. There was something about it… and once I got into the community aspect, I was like, “Oh, this is a family.” We are like-minded, brave people telling stories in a kooky way. I got bit by the bug. I’ve been doing it ever since—I went to college for it. When I was prepping for college, I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. And I didn’t want to do anything else. The community and the storytelling—it’s something special.

Avery: Community is everything. As someone who found it young, what did it feel like to realize, “Oh—I’m home”?

Susana: The joy of having somewhere to go, something to work toward. That performing arts school became a safe haven. It’s where all my friends were—the people I wanted to tell first when something amazing happened, or if I booked a role. I wasn’t afraid to be exactly what I was that day—sad, tired, something happening at home. I could just be myself, unapologetically. And also… you pretend to be animals and sing songs. It’s a crazy atmosphere, and I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Avery: Let’s talk Dracula. You’re playing Lucy. This production is campy, chaotic fun—not exactly “I vant to suck your blood.” What were your first thoughts about the role and the show?

Susana: When I first read the title, I was like, “What’s happening?” Then I read it—and I was laughing just reading the script on my laptop. I thought, “I have to audition,” because if I’m laughing this hard reading it, imagine it on its feet and in costumes. It’s truly 90 minutes of chaos and wit. The group of actors is a joy. Lucy is fun—she’s a brave woman, very adventurous. She has a fiancé who’s a little fearful—kind, loving, but she’s known him all her life. She’s excited to marry him, but she wonders what it would feel like to go through life with a partner who’s ready to jump head-first into the ocean with her instead of watching from the shore. She’s incredibly brave. She was a microbiology major—she’s incredibly smart. She loves nature and adventure. I relate to that.

Avery: Any microbiology slang you want to drop?

Susana: Absolutely not. I looked into it a little bit, but absolutely not. Lucy skated through those courses. It was already there—in her bones.

Avery: Dracula is “scary,” Comedy is “funny.” What has living in that duality taught you about yourself as a performer?

Susana: It’s been a wonderful challenge, because when an actor tries to be funny it’s not funny. We constantly remind ourselves to root into the realness and the crisis—the humanity of these characters—because that’s what makes the humor funny. The extremes are funny when people are just trying to live their day-to-day lives… and there are bats flying around and vampires. Treat it as real as possible, and the extremes become hilarious.

Avery: Liam Neeson said something similar promoting Naked Gun: he played it like a serious action film so the absurdity popped. Was that new for you?

Susana: I did Young Frankenstein last summer and dabbled in that sketch-comedy style, so I was comfortable. But this is straight comedy for 90 minutes. At that extreme level, you have to dig that much deeper. It’s a wonderful challenge—and wildly rewarding when you’re like, “Oh, I’m following these humans through their life; the circumstances are just crazy.”

Avery: Live performance means the train sometimes goes off the rails. Any moments—here or in other shows—where you had to hold tight?

Susana: Absolutely. The audience is a variable every night. Sometimes they’re rowdier, sometimes they laugh at moments where we’re like, “Okay, we’re laughing at that.” We clock it and keep going. In Young Frankenstein, a sound cue was off—it was a boat horn instead of a werewolf. The audience clearly knew it was wrong and they were laughing because they saw us trying to navigate it. We turned and were like, “Oh, the boat is coming. The boat is coming.” Then—get back on!

Avery: Welcome to the beauty of live theatre—you don’t press play. Living humans performing for living humans.

Susana: Exactly. That’s what makes theatre so special. You go to a place to experience something—joy, laughter…

Avery: First time at the Straz—our biggest performing arts venue. What does it mean to work there?

Susana: Thrilling. Coming into this space, it was everything I thought and more—beautiful. Friends told me, “That’s the theatre I grew up in. That’s where I saw my first Broadway tour.” It feels special—a hub of creation. I feel honored to be looking at it outside my window—that’s where I get to work.

Avery: First impressions of Tampa beyond the heat?

Susana: I’m grateful a few on our creative team are locals—they’ve given us a food and go-see list, and as a cast we’ll explore when we can. Something I clocked immediately: the murals are beautiful. That tells you so much about a city—how it lets visual artists express themselves in public. Within three days, my camera roll was full.

Avery: If you think Tampa’s murals are beautiful, wait till you hop the bridge to St. Pete—Shine Mural Festival, new walls every year. Also: beach day, the Pier.

Susana: Yes! Lots to do. Maybe Disney, too—the five of us in a car is a play in itself.

Avery: Rapid fire. What does artistic community mean to you?

Susana: A space of creation, a space of collaboration, and a space of belonging.

Avery: One word—your hope for art in Tampa Bay?

Susana: Explore.

Avery: Explain the word?

Susana: There’s so much to explore through art and across mediums. Theatre blurs with tech, design, television in beautiful ways. I want every community—especially Tampa—to have the means and bravery to explore new stories and ideas, and take the leap.

Avery: One artist, living or past, you’d have dinner with?

Susana: Audra McDonald! I have to figure out how she does eight shows a week and is also a mother. And I want to know how she maintains that garden. I saw her as Mama Rose—one of the most incredibly rewarding, masterful pieces of acting I’ve ever seen. After “Rose’s Turn,” everybody was on their feet for minutes. Goosebumps everywhere.

Avery: She’s one of those performers who stops the crowd in its tracks.

Susana: And navigating a role traditionally belt-dominated as a “soprano” actor—with such ease and grace. She cracked the code of acting-first musical theatre—where the music is what needs to happen to express further.

Avery: I kind of hate the timeline we’re living in, but I’m blessed to be living in Audra’s.

Susana: Amen. That’s my mantra for the day.

Avery: Thank you for taking the time to chat. If you haven’t seen Dracula: A Comedy of Terror, go enjoy the laughs and the fun. And welcome to Tampa!

Susana: Thank you so much!

Avery: Final thanks to Susana Cordón—what an incredible artist. And thanks to Palm Tree Content and the Straz Center. Don’t forget to like/subscribe and consider becoming an Arts Passport member—you help support content like this, local artists, and you get discounts and free tickets around town. We’ve got events coming up: October Book Club (Lies and Bone at freeFall Theatre, with author Natalie Symons joining), November Book Club at the newly renovated Florida Holocaust Museum reading Night by Elie Wiesel, and our movie series kicking off with Hidden Figures at Greenlight Cinema—plus a 1925 Phantom of the Opera screening with live organ. See you there.