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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

In the end, it doesn't change the impact that the combination of Jim Steinman and Bonnie Tyler has had on countless listeners, or the shock of recognition experienced by many first-time viewers of both versions of Vampires. But it sure does illustrate that the truth is stranger than fiction. (10/10)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

And we'd hasten to add that its first appearance as a duet in the unproduced Bat Out of Hell 2100 (sung here by Marcus Lovett and the late Laurie Beechman) suggests that what ultimately became the vampire version of the song was already fairly fully developed: www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBBg... (9/x)

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Eclipse the bat

YouTube video by Under Obsidian Skies

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

In truth, as was often the case, Steinman may have exaggerated the Nosferatu connection. His other Vampires-era statement seems more truthful: "If anyone listens to the lyrics, they're really like vampire lines. It's all about the darkness, the power of darkness, and love's place in the dark." (8/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

(It gets weirder!! Apparently, the terminally self-referential Steinman even subliminally implanted a loose reference to the lyrics' original setting when constructing the instrumental break of Total Eclipse roughly a decade later, including symbolic musical "blasts" to punctuate each phrase.) (7/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Get this: "turn around, bright eyes" in its original context was a reference to the blast flash of nuclear explosions. You can hear it in this tape of Jim (unsuccessfully) auditioning the Dream Engine score for Warner Bros. Records, as a potential concept album: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_O3S... (6/x)

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Jim Steinman's THE DREAM ENGINE - 1970 Warner Bros. Audition (Restored)

YouTube video by MLBF

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Well, we don't know the exact origin of *Total Eclipse*, but we do know a huge portion of it (the verse melody and "Turn around, bright eyes" motif) fully pre-dates even the notion of a vampire musical. That material was first written for The Dream Engine, his college version of Brecht's Baal. (5/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

There is no doubt that Steinman claimed he wrote it for a Nosferatu musical. Bonnie said so; *he* said so in interviews for the launches of both the European and American versions of Vampires. Plus, it's a neat story. As Jim himself said, the lyrics sound like vampire language. But is it true? (4/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

They've also re-told a popular origin story second-hand from Bonnie, namely that its creator Jim Steinman originally wrote it for a Nosferatu musical, later embedding the number *deeply* within the fabric of *our* podcast's subject, the (in)famous Dance of the Vampires, as a twisted love duet. (3/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

In this case, it's the recent death of the great Bonnie Tyler. A one-of-a-kind voice paired with a unique songwriter created a legacy. The world will never know the likes of them again. And as a result, many have been uplifting a certain song about a tortured heart totally eclipsed by emotion. (2/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Hiya, folks! In case you haven't guessed, the podcast that inspired this account (and the Twitter account before it) is unfortunately pretty dead for a variety of reasons. But... every now and then, we find a reason to resurface. (1/x)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

Full article (though no other DOTV mentions, fair warning) at davidives.net/wp-content/u....

davidives.net

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

From David Ives' brilliant article on collaborating with Stephen Sondheim on his final musical. All we can say is, David, *we'd* gladly write the book. We take dictation... ;)

Excerpt from David Ives' article about collaborating with Stephen Sondheim on his final musical, the relevant portion of which reads: "...when Steve and I started work on All Together Now, my entire musical resumé consisted of my Encores adaptations to that date, the libretto for a children’s opera that had premiered in Philadelphia 20 years previously, a small out-of-town musical I’d written with Phyllis Newman using Comden and Green songs, and White Christmas and Dance Of The Vampires on Broadway. (Yes, Dance of the Vampires, which I believe at the time constituted the most expensive flop in Broadway history. There’s a funny and instructive book to be written about working on the production. I don’t want to write it.)"

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 09/12/2024

22 years ago today, the citizens of Lower Belabartokovich first graced the stage. Happy DOTV-ersary, one and all! (If you're reading, welcome to Bluesky; we'd love to interview you!)

A collage of images from the Broadway production of Dance of the Vampires, both onstage and behind the scenes, coupled with the show poster.

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Reposted by A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely

carlotta giudicelli VEVO @angelaslamsbury.bsky.social · 27/11/2024

SO IF YOU CARE TO FIND ME LOOK TO THE WESTERN SKY

Drew Sarich as Graf von Krolock being lifted above the audience with giant bat wings

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 17/11/2024

Playlist number three: perhaps the most exciting offering, this contains never-before-seen non-replica productions, the cream of an admittedly small crop, comprising performances from Poland, Slovakia, Japan, and the (in)famous modern-dress St. Gallen take from Switzerland!

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Tanz der Vampire (Non-Replica) - YouTube

For fans of A Good Nightmare..., and for further edification on our hosts' part, here is a collection of upscaled and/or decent-quality videos of rare non-re...

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 17/11/2024

Playlist number two: the "revival" replica. Starting with the 2007 Hungarian production, and in slightly revamped flavors from the 2009 Vienna revival to future productions in Russia, this features Cornelius Baltus' refresh of the Polanski staging, with designs by Kentaur.

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Tanz der Vampire (Revival Replica) - YouTube

For fans of A Good Nightmare..., and for further edification on our hosts' part, here is a collection of upscaled and/or decent-quality videos of the "reviva...

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 16/11/2024

An exclusive for Bluesky followers only: as part of researching for our podcast, we have collected upscaled and/or decent-quality videos of both Tanz and DOTV, and assembled them into YouTube playlists for ease of use by our co-hosts. Tonight, we share the goodies for those with post-election blues!

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 14/11/2024

Thank you kindly! We only have two episodes (we haven't gotten very deep into the story), but we plan to cover everything from the movie to Tanz to DOTV and beyond.

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 14/11/2024

¡Podemos ayudar con eso! (Si te refieres a videos de versiones anteriores, claro está.)

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 14/11/2024

A sampler CD, distributed to interested critics and VIPs before the Broadway production began previews.

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A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely @garlicgothic.bsky.social · 14/11/2024

Dance of the Vampires. Overseas, it means 9,500+ performances, in 13 languages, in 15 countries, selling over 10 million tickets. In America, it's "proof" that "vampire musicals don't work on Broadway," a money-hemorrhaging flop on the Carrie/Spider-Man level. How'd it happen? This is our story.

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