Moon in the clouds over Bran Castle, Transylvania, Romania, the home of the total character in Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.” Two theater companies are putting on different versions of the play, one comedic and one classic, this fall. Shutterstock

Fans of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” will not have to sate their appetites this fall, as two local theaters offer dramatically different takes on the gothic horror novel.

Themes tend to darken with the days, and audiences will have plenty of opportunities to see spooky stories on stage in the coming months. Both the Public Theatre in Lewiston and Footlights Theatre in Falmouth will present a play based on “Dracula.” (Portland Ballet is also offering an interpretation in dance.) But the Public Theatre will offer a comedic take, and Footlights chose a classic thriller.

Janet Mitchko, artistic director at the Public Theatre, said the titular vampire has made a lasting impression in modern culture. She saw the 1931 film starring Bela Lugosi as a child and slept with her covers pulled up to her chin for weeks.

“When you see ‘Dracula’ for the first time, it makes an impression,” Mitchko said. “Dracula is in the lexicon. People know that. Everybody has something in their head.”

The Public Theatre did a scary version 20 years ago and saw significant interest. Some theatergoers even dressed as the count himself. But Mitchko said she wanted to give people a laugh this year instead with “Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors” (Oct. 11-27). Think “Young Frankenstein” meets Monty Python, Mitchko said. The story will be both recognizable and turned on its head.

“You’ll get the lightning and the thunder and the fog and the fangs, but none of it is actually scary,” she said.

Single tickets are $15 for youth and $35 for adults with discounts and subscriptions available. For more information, visit thepublictheatre.org.

At Footlights, executive artistic director Michael J. Tobin wanted a more classic interpretation of the source material. Still, he looked for years for a version that he liked until he settled on “Dracula: Mark of the Vampire” (Oct. 24-Nov. 9). He felt that this version preserved the spirit of the story without making the dialogue too clunky.

“It’s done in such a way that it’s conversational,” Tobin said. “Sometimes with classics, they’re very wordy, and it takes you some time to comprehend everything. You don’t have to worry. It’s going to be very clear what’s happening.”

Tobin said Footlights will tap into the thrill of the original story. The 75-seat theater is an intimate space, so he wants the special effects to be just right.

“We don’t want to go for the cheap horror,” he said. “We want the terror, the horror that the book produced. There’ll be flying bats, there’ll be vampire biting, there will be all kinds of delicious things that happen on stage. I didn’t feel that we needed to have gore, that we needed to resort to what a lot of the horror flicks are today, which is just a lot of blood.”

All seats at Footlights are $20, and more information is available at thefootlightstheatre.com.

Also on stage this fall:

Ogunquit Playhouse is presenting “Little Shop of Horrors” through Sept. 21. Drag queen Latrice Royale, who has appeared on “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” is playing Audrey II, the man-eating plant often represented on stage as a puppet. Royale is a longtime fan of the show and said in an interview with the Press Herald, “I have dreamt of the day that someone would ask me to do this role.”

Latrice Royale as Audrey II. Photos by Nile Hawver / Nile Scott Studios

Next up at the playhouse is a world premiere of a musical adaptation of “My Best Friend’s Wedding” (Sept. 26-Oct. 27). The iconic 1997 romantic comedy comes to stage, and of course, the music includes “Say A Little Prayer.” Tickets to either show cost between $50 and $160, and more information is available at ogunquiplayhouse.org or by calling 207-646-5511.

Footlights starts its season with “The Dating Go-Round” (Sept. 19-Oct. 5), a madcap comedy about a new couple on their first dates. All seats at Footlights are $20, and more information is available at thefootlightstheatre.com.

Lyric Music Theatre in South Portland will stage “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” (Sept. 20-Oct. 6) with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Musical theater classics in the show include “Any Dream Will Do” and “Go Go Joseph.” Tickets cost between $25 and $30 with discounts available for groups. For more information, visit lyricmusictheater.org or call 207-799-1421.

Portland Players, the oldest community theater in Maine, also brings a romantic comedy to the stage with a production of “Legally Blonde: The Musical” (Sept. 13-29). Tickets cost between $20 and $25. For more information, visit portlandplayers.org or call 207-799-7337.

Portland Stage will tell the story of former U.S. Sen. Margaret Chase Smith with “Conscience” (Sept. 25-Oct. 13). The play, written by Joe DiPietro, centers on the leadup to her most famous speech – the “Declaration of Conscience” in 1950, when she became the first member of the Senate to denounce the anticommunist crusade led by Sen. Joseph McCarthy. The theater is planning a special event for opening night with special guests, including women in politics in Maine.

Michela Micalzio in “Angels in America: Part One” at Portland Stage Company. “Part Two: Perestroika” is on stage this fall. Photo by James A. Hadley and courtesy of Portland Stage Company

Later in the fall, Portland Stage will partner with Maine-based Dramatic Repertory Company to present “Angels in America: Part Two: Perestroika” (Oct. 23-Nov. 10). The story centers on the AIDS crisis in New York City in the 1980s. Playwright Tony Kushner’s second installment can be seen independent of the first. Tickets for both shows cost between $20 and $73, and more information is available at portlandstage.org or by calling the box office at 207-774-0465.

City Theater in Biddeford will present “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (Oct. 4-20). The spectral horseman of the classic short story arrives just in time for Halloween. Tickets are $30 with coupon packs available; more information is at citytheater.org or 207-282-0849.

Maine playwright Kevin O’Leary will stage his new work “God Less America” (Oct. 9-19) at The Studio Theatre at 25A Forest Ave. in Portland before the presidential election in November. Inspired by a conversation with his daughter, O’Leary set out to write a play about race in America, working with friends at the Indian Hindu Temple in Westbrook to develop the script. The story follows two families – one white, one Indian and Filipino – as they grapple with racism in their small town. Seats are $25, and tickets will be available on Eventbrite starting Sept. 23.

O’Leary is also directing another run of “Anonymous,” his play that premiered last year about the writer Mary Shelley. It will be Sept. 13 and 14 at the University of New England in Room 113 of the Alfond Center for Health Sciences with the original cast. And he is organizing a tribute for Joe Quinn, a longtime theater fan in Portland. “Joe Quinn: My Shakespeare” will be a one-man, one-hour performance of excerpts and personal anecdotes. The event is Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. at the Studio Theatre at 25A Forest Ave. in Portland, and it is free with donations welcome. For more information about his plays, contact O’Leary at 207-831-2434.

Mad Horse Theatre Company in South Portland will launch its season with “Witch” by Jen Silverman (Oct. 10-Nov. 3), a modern retelling of “The Witch of Edmonton.” The company follows a pay-what-you-can model for tickets, and it also launched a new subscription package for this season at $250 for two tickets to all four plays in the season. More information is available at madhorse.com or by calling 207-747-4148.

Portland Ovations will present national tours of two Broadway musicals at Merrill Auditorium in Portland this fall. The Tony-award winner “Hadestown” (Oct. 18-19), written by singer-songwriter Anais Mitchell, is based on ancient Greek myths and set in a place “where a song can change your fate.” Then, “Dear Evan Hansen” (Nov. 20-21) is a coming-of-age musical dealing with social media and social anxiety. Tickets are $55 to $125, and more information can be found at portlandovations.org or by calling the PortTix box office at 207-842-0800.

Portland Ovations is bringing the Broadway National Tour of Hadestown to Portland in October. Photo courtesy of the Hadestown North American Tour