If you enjoy the Halloween season, you'll have a great time at the Canyon Theatre Guild in Newhall this month.

They are offering two very different Halloween productions: one is designed to give chills and thrills and one that's just plain fun for the whole family.

On Friday and Saturday evenings, you can find yourself transported back to the Hollywood of the 1940's, watching a film noir version of "Dracula."

This production, "Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream ," has been designed in tones of black and white.

The set is black and white; the costumes are black and white (or gray); even the makeup is designed to look like it is in a black and white film. One can almost forget that they are watching live actors on a stage; it looks so much like a black-and-white movie! Even the acting styles harkens back to those days.

This adaptation focuses on Abe Van Helsing, a self-destructive private eye played with understated cynicism by Frank Rock. His late wife was the victim of a vampire and he is haunted by his memories.

When he is approached by a beautiful, leggy blonde actress, Lucy, played with perfect 40's allure by Carole Catanzaro, to help investigate the mysterious disappearances of some of the cast members of a vampire movie, his first instinct is to decline.

He is persuaded by Lucy to at least take a look at the movie set and he reluctantly becomes more and more involved in the mystery.

The movie is being filmed in a Hollywood sanitarium, and one of the inmates, a bug-eating maniac named Renfield, disrupts the filming on more than one occasion, prompted by unheard commands from his unseen master.

Michael Keane portrays the insane Renfield with energy and makes him almost sympathetic. Dracula ( Kelly Roberts) is a newly-transplanted European who has moved into the mansion next door to the sanitarium.

He is being pursued by the movie company to help finance the floundering film, and he is only too happy to be invited in to meet the "new blood." Roberts' portrayal is chilling and understated.

Others in the cast who are worthy of mention here include Jeff Johnson as the owner of the sanitarium, Dr. Jack Seward. He is joined by Nurse Mary Westfall, menacingly portrayed by Leah Kari, and Joe Aboulafia and Janet McAnany as the orderly and nurse who assist them.

Jonathan Harker is the film's director in this version of the story, and Kasey Conde hits the right notes in this role. Travis Cook plays the sincere, ill-fated leading man in the film and the talented Amber VanLoon and Laticia Widman play multiple roles.

"Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream" was directed by Michael Davies, with an assist from Tamarah Ashton-Coombs. The set design by Michael Davies and Frank Rock sets just the right tone and do Janet McAnany's costumes and Tim Christianson's moody lighting. Vicki Lightner designed the sound and the special black and white makeup was designed by Eleazar Del Rosario.

Some audience members seated behind us on opening night commented, "Now this is getting really scary!" So, if you're into the "scary" scene for Halloween, be sure to call the CTG for reservations. The show runs through Oct. 27.

The family offering, "Phantom of the Soap Opera " is just fast-paced fun! Yes, there's a Phantom hiding in the television studio, but Bill Lively's "Phantom" is just plain fun to watch. This parody of the tragic "Phantom of the Opera" has the Phantom grooming a young actress for stardom.

The actress, Blythe, is played with just the right amount of innocence by Kristie Hoefflin. Her secret romance with the star of a rival soap opera (played by Joshua Smith) just adds to the confusion. In order to move Blythe up in the soap opera world, the Phantom arranges for the current star (played with perfect "diva" attitude by Kathy Lively) to be "accidentally" killed off during the rehearsal of one of the scenes.

Her understudy, Blythe, becomes the new star, but that doesn't satisfy our Phantom. Oh, no. Murder and mayhem continue with various supporting characters turning up dead. The Columbo-esque detective Digby Wright and his assistant Eve Potter ( Marty Gelfman and Vicki Lightner) foil his plans and all's well that ends well.

One of the more amusing characters in this play-within-a-play is Tamarah Ashton-Coombs who plays a fading soap star who jumps between a Brooklyn accent when off-screen, to a "High English" accent when the cameras are rolling. Others in the cast of this light-hearted musical include Loren Burghout, Ron Kari, Darel Roberts, Caroline Morgan, Joshua DiPaola, Kelly Bader, Kamber Moen, Ashley Russo, Cassie Schmitt, Carleen Bajgrowicz and Marina Moore.

Director Barbara Huntington keeps the action moving quickly. Jim Robinson is assistant director and set designer, Kamber Moen handled the choreography, Loretta Norton directed the vocals and Jean Paletz designed the colorful costumes.

Performances are Saturday matinees at 1 p.m. through Oct. 27 and a Sunday matinee at 1 p.m. on Oct. 21.

The Canyon Theatre Guild is located at 24242 San Fernando Road, Newhall.

Call the theater for reservations at (661) 799-2702.