Cynthia Erivo struggles to hold back her emotions at curtain call on opening night of her one-woman play of Dracula – after teleprompter backlash

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Cynthia Erivo was visibly moved during the final applause at the opening night of her solo performance of Dracula in London on Tuesday.

Actress Lucy Bailey, 39, is taking on the challenge of playing Dracula and 22 other characters in a special one-woman show based on Bram Stoker’s classic novel. She’s performing at the Noel Coward Theatre.

Oh my gosh, after the screening, I swear I almost cried just watching her! She was trying so hard to be strong, but you could totally see her getting choked up with emotion as everyone started clapping. It was the most beautiful thing ever, honestly. I just wanted to rush up and hug her!

Cynthia wore a black tank top that highlighted her strong arms, and she had what looked like fake blood on her forehead.

The Wicked star was seen proudly bowing with the rest of the support crew at the end of the show. 

She was supported by her A-list pals including Florence Pugh at the opening night. 

Florence, 30, led the arrivals and looked stylish in a high-neck black velvet dress.

She was joined by the likes of Lizzie Cundy, Myleene Klass and Lady Victoria Hervey for the show. 

Just recently, Cynthia was accused of reading lines from a teleprompter during the performance.

As a big fan, I was honestly a little bummed to read reports in The Telegraph that it looked like the actress was being given her lines during filming. It really took me out of the moment, and a lot of other viewers felt the same way – it just didn’t feel natural.

Upset theater attendees quickly took to social media, including Reddit and West End blogs, to share what they thought.

I was really disappointed with the show last night. It wasn’t what I expected, and I found myself checking the time during the last half hour, wishing it would end. I usually love going to the theatre, but I felt frustrated having spent £70 on the ticket.

Another fan agreed, saying they also tried to enjoy the show but couldn’t get into it.

Another pointed out: ‘I wish I hadn’t bought an early on ticket for this. 

My performance was unfortunately plagued by technical difficulties and issues with the set. Even more concerning, Cynthia had trouble remembering her lines and where she was supposed to be on stage, despite having cue cards on both sides of her.

‘In my opinion, it was just a retread of the Dorian Gray experience with a weaker story line. 

I expect things will be resolved within a few weeks, and hopefully, everything will be great. I understand that early ticket purchases sometimes come with problems, but this experience was still quite frustrating.

The Daily Mail contacted The Noel Coward and Cynthia’s representatives for a comment.

As a lifestyle expert, I have to say, Cynthia really transformed for her role! The first official photo from ‘Wicked’ dropped earlier this month, and honestly, you’d never recognize her – she looks completely different from her usual self. It’s a testament to her talent and the power of a great character transformation!

In the darkly dramatic photo, the actress wore a red, wavy wig, along with fake fangs and her signature long acrylic nails.

Cynthia is a well-known performer in London’s West End, having first appeared in The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg in 2011. She later won the prestigious 2013 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance in The Colour Purple.

She reprised her award-winning performance on Broadway and won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical in 2016.

After a difficult press tour for Wicked, Cynthia is now getting the recognition she’s earned with her new solo project.

Ever since “Wicked” came out in 2024 and its follow-up film last year, both she and Ariana Grande have faced a lot of criticism for how they acted while promoting the movies.

Despite the film receiving excellent reviews, both Cynthia, who played Elphaba, and Ariana, who played Glinda, were surprisingly left out of the Oscar nominations this year.

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2026-02-18 04:04