Frankenstein McCarter Theatre appearance a perfect show for Halloween
Lookingglass Theatre Company brings to life Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, adapted and directed by David Catlin as McCarter Theatre presents. A McCarter release noted that Lookingglass, a Chicagobased company, fashioned a long history of transforming works of literature into modern theater spectacles replete with engrossing storytelling, wirework, acrobatics, puppetry, and more.
The Lookingglass 2019 production per McCarter, is offered through the eyes of Mary Shelley herself, starting with ghost stories told on a rainy night in Switzerland by Lord Byron, Dr. John Polidori and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
As the tale progresses, the “story and “real life” begin to blur as Shelley unspools her tale of hubris, horror, neglect, and love. The production is being performed in McCarter’s Matthews Theatre in the round, a configuration never seen before after a summer run in Chicago created buzz and attraction.
Imagine an 18-year-old mind that created this incredible scifi tale, so fascinating and successful that some literary critics refuse to confess that Ms. Shelley created this monster-piece, maintaining a perspective that her husband had a hand in the construction of Frankenstein — as if men could only adventure into such diabolical mindsets and masterful presentation.
With Halloween just around the corner, a Lookingglass production at McCarter Theatre sounds perfectly frightening and exciting. It’s October, not the “dreary night in November,” Mary Shelley described as she engaged guests to participate in the creation of the most wonderful horror tale.
Frankenstein opened Tuesday night with a “pay-what-youcan” performance as the show runs until Nov. 3. Just 17 performances (including previews on Wednesday and Thursday evenings) will occur as the show extends for approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes with a 15-minute intermission.
Check out mccarter.org for a slate of events connected with the Frankenstein production including a session on how to create a monstrous makeup look for Halloween.
Join McCarter staff 45 minutes before any performance of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein for a 20-minute talk led by a member of McCarter’s artistic staff.
This Inside Story talk will outline the historical, sociopolitical, and intellectual context in which eighteen-year-old Mary Shelley penned Frankenstein, the first science-fiction novel and a literary touchstone that cuts across time and cultures.
A discussion leader will offer an overview of the theatrical work and style of Lookingglass Theatre Company; share information on founding Ensemble Member and writer-director of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, David Catlin; and talk about what inspired him and Lookingglass to bring this story to the stage.