Frankenstein - A New Musical
Encyclopedia
Frankenstein — A New Musical is a musical with music by Mark Baron, lyrics by Jeffrey Jackson, and a book by Jackson and Gary P. Cohen, based on the Mary Shelley
novel of the same name
. In this version of the famous story, when Frankenstein rejects his hideous Creature, the Creature takes its revenge on his creator's family; eventually both creator and Creature learn a lesson about love.
The musical premiered off-Broadway
in 2007, with a cast including Hunter Foster
and Christiane Noll
. Tours, regional and international productions have followed.
, he claims the body of a condemned criminal and uses it as a basis for his experiments into reanimating the dead. He successfully creates a living Creature - but it is so hideous in appearance that Victor, terrified, sets fire to his laboratory, and believes the Creature has perished in the flames.
But the Creature has survived. Confused, lonely, and in pain, Creature seeks out his creator, expecting a father's love, only to find himself an object of hatred and fear. He embarks on a mission to rob Victor of his happiness and loved ones in an attempt to make Victor realise the pain of loneliness, and to persuade him to create an equally hideous female companion for him. As part of his campaign, the Creature murders Victor's younger brother, William, ensuring that the blame falls on the family's faithful servant, Justine, who is hanged for William's murder.
Finally alone and as desolate as his Creature, Victor chases the Creature across Europe to the Arctic Ocean
, where, finally realising his paternal obligations to the Creature, he begs the Creature's forgiveness on his deathbed, accepting him as his "son."
Act II
, starring Drew Sarich
as Victor. Starting on September 29, 2006, Ron Bohmer and Davis Gaines appeared in staged concerts of Frankenstein at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center
. The run ended on October 1, 2006.
An off-Broadway
production directed by Bill Fennelly
opened at the 37 Arts Theatre on November 1, 2007, starring Hunter Foster
, Steve Blanchard, and Christiane Noll
, but closed a month later on December 3, 2007, after only 70 performances, including 25 previews. An original cast recording
of the off-Broadway cast was released by Friends of Ghostlight on September 2, 2008.
The off-Broadway production of Frankenstein spawned a U.S. national touring company in fall 2007. A new production then opened at the Civic Theatre
in Fort Wayne, Indiana
, on March 3, 2009, closing on March 22, 2009, after a limited engagement.
The first Europe
an production took place in the United Kingdom
in May 2009, playing at The Stables Theatre, Hastings
, East Sussex
, starring Ashley Wright and Mike Barber. An October 2009 London
production won several "Kenny Awards", including the award for Best Show of the Year.
Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, and travel writer, best known for her Gothic novel Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus . She also edited and promoted the works of her husband, the Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley...
novel of the same name
Frankenstein
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel about a failed experiment that produced a monster, written by Mary Shelley, with inserts of poems by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley started writing the story when she was eighteen, and the novel was published when she was twenty-one. The first...
. In this version of the famous story, when Frankenstein rejects his hideous Creature, the Creature takes its revenge on his creator's family; eventually both creator and Creature learn a lesson about love.
The musical premiered off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
in 2007, with a cast including Hunter Foster
Hunter Foster
Hunter Foster is an American musical theatre actor/singer, librettist and playwright.-Early life:Foster was born in Lumberton, North Carolina, but raised in Augusta, Georgia and Troy, Michigan. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Studies from the University of Michigan in 1992...
and Christiane Noll
Christiane Noll
Christiane Noll is an American singer and actress known for her work in musicals and on the concert stage. She is perhaps best known for originating the role of Emma Carew in Frank Wildhorn's Jekyll & Hyde, as well as her roles in Urinetown and City of Angels.-Life and career:Noll was born in New...
. Tours, regional and international productions have followed.
Synopsis
- In a narrated prologue, Robert Walton, captain of a polar exploration ship, discovers the dying Victor FrankensteinVictor FrankensteinVictor Frankenstein was born in Napoli, is a Swiss fictional character and the protagonist of the 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, written by Mary Shelley...
adrift on a floe of ice. The remainder of the show tells Victor's story in flashback.
Act I
A child prodigy, Victor is inspired by the death of his mother to research the secrets of life and death. Whilst studying in IngolstadtIngolstadt
Ingolstadt is a city in the Free State of Bavaria, in the Federal Republic of Germany. It is located along the banks of the Danube River, in the center of Bavaria. As at 31 March 2011, Ingolstadt had 125.407 residents...
, he claims the body of a condemned criminal and uses it as a basis for his experiments into reanimating the dead. He successfully creates a living Creature - but it is so hideous in appearance that Victor, terrified, sets fire to his laboratory, and believes the Creature has perished in the flames.
But the Creature has survived. Confused, lonely, and in pain, Creature seeks out his creator, expecting a father's love, only to find himself an object of hatred and fear. He embarks on a mission to rob Victor of his happiness and loved ones in an attempt to make Victor realise the pain of loneliness, and to persuade him to create an equally hideous female companion for him. As part of his campaign, the Creature murders Victor's younger brother, William, ensuring that the blame falls on the family's faithful servant, Justine, who is hanged for William's murder.
Act II
Victor, anxious to appease the Creature and end his family's suffering, begins to create the female creature, but eventually destroys her, fearing the horror that two such creatures might bring to the world. In retaliation, the Creature murders Victor's best friend Henry and, finally, his bride, Elizabeth. Victor's father, Alphonse, the last surviving member of Victor's family & friends, is grief-stricken by the latest tragedies, and dies of shock, leaving Victor to "walk this world alone". The Creature, meanwhile, has been emotionally touched by the love Victor's family have for him, and powerfully expresses his remorse for his deeds and his hatred for the impulse which has driven him to kill.Finally alone and as desolate as his Creature, Victor chases the Creature across Europe to the Arctic Ocean
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
, where, finally realising his paternal obligations to the Creature, he begs the Creature's forgiveness on his deathbed, accepting him as his "son."
Musical numbers
Act I- "Prelude" –
- "A Golden Age" –
- "Find Your Way Home" –
- "Amen" –
- "Birth to My Creation" –
- "Dear Victor" –
- "The Hands of Time" –
- "Your Father's Eyes" –
- "The Creature's Tale" –
- "The Waking Nightmare" –
- "The Music of Love" –
- "Why?" –
- "The Proposition" –
Act II
- "A Happier Day" –
- "The Modern Prometheus" –
- "The Workings of the Heart" –
- "These Hands" –
- "The Chase" –
- "The Coming of the Dawn" –
- "Amen" (Reprise) –
Roles and original cast
| Character | Original Cast |
|---|---|
| Victor Frankenstein Victor Frankenstein was born in Napoli, is a Swiss fictional character and the protagonist of the 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, written by Mary Shelley... |
Hunter Foster Hunter Foster is an American musical theatre actor/singer, librettist and playwright.-Early life:Foster was born in Lumberton, North Carolina, but raised in Augusta, Georgia and Troy, Michigan. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Studies from the University of Michigan in 1992... |
| Frankenstein Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel about a failed experiment that produced a monster, written by Mary Shelley, with inserts of poems by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley started writing the story when she was eighteen, and the novel was published when she was twenty-one. The first... |
|
| |
Christiane Noll Christiane Noll is an American singer and actress known for her work in musicals and on the concert stage. She is perhaps best known for originating the role of Emma Carew in Frank Wildhorn's Jekyll & Hyde, as well as her roles in Urinetown and City of Angels.-Life and career:Noll was born in New... |
| |
Jim Stanek Jim Stanek is an American musical theatre, film and television actor.-Early life:Stanek was born in Havre de Grace, Maryland and raised in Cranberry Township, Butler County, a suburb of Pittsburgh. He attended the Seneca Valley School District where he performed in such musicals as Grease and... |
| |
Mandy Bruno Mandy Bruno is an American Emmy-nominated actress.-Career:She has been playing the role of Marina Cooper on Guiding Light from May 2004 to September 2009 and received her first nomination for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2006 for Outstanding Younger Actress.Bruno has a BFA in Theater from Otterbein... |
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|
| |
|
Productions
Readings for the musical were held in December 2006 in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, starring Drew Sarich
Drew Sarich
-Biography:Sarich received a BFA in Musical Theatre with a concentration in Directing from Boston Conservatory in 1997. Sarich made his Off-Broadway debut in Tony n' Tina's Wedding, followed by a tour as a backup singer for Liza Minnelli with the Cortes Alexander Trio...
as Victor. Starting on September 29, 2006, Ron Bohmer and Davis Gaines appeared in staged concerts of Frankenstein at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center
New Jersey Performing Arts Center
The New Jersey Performing Arts Center , in downtown Newark, New Jersey, United States, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States...
. The run ended on October 1, 2006.
An off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
production directed by Bill Fennelly
Bill Fennelly
Bill Fennelly is the head women's basketball coach at Iowa State University. He is the dean of the Big 12 and is considered by many to be one of the best women's basketball coaches in the nation. He has an all time coaching record of 503-202 , coming from tenures as the head coach of the Toledo...
opened at the 37 Arts Theatre on November 1, 2007, starring Hunter Foster
Hunter Foster
Hunter Foster is an American musical theatre actor/singer, librettist and playwright.-Early life:Foster was born in Lumberton, North Carolina, but raised in Augusta, Georgia and Troy, Michigan. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Studies from the University of Michigan in 1992...
, Steve Blanchard, and Christiane Noll
Christiane Noll
Christiane Noll is an American singer and actress known for her work in musicals and on the concert stage. She is perhaps best known for originating the role of Emma Carew in Frank Wildhorn's Jekyll & Hyde, as well as her roles in Urinetown and City of Angels.-Life and career:Noll was born in New...
, but closed a month later on December 3, 2007, after only 70 performances, including 25 previews. An original cast recording
Cast recording
A cast recording is a recording of a musical that is intended to document the songs as they were performed in the show and experienced by the audience. An original cast recording, as the name implies, features the voices of the show's original cast...
of the off-Broadway cast was released by Friends of Ghostlight on September 2, 2008.
The off-Broadway production of Frankenstein spawned a U.S. national touring company in fall 2007. A new production then opened at the Civic Theatre
Civic Theatre
Civic Theatre may refer to one of the following theatres:*Auckland Civic Theatre, Queen St, Auckland, New Zealand*Bedford Civic Theatre, Bedford, England*Newcastle Civic Theatre, Wheeler Place, Newcastle, Australia*Civic Theatre, Doncaster, England...
in Fort Wayne, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, on March 3, 2009, closing on March 22, 2009, after a limited engagement.
The first Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an production took place in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in May 2009, playing at The Stables Theatre, Hastings
Hastings
Hastings is a town and borough in the county of East Sussex on the south coast of England. The town is located east of the county town of Lewes and south east of London, and has an estimated population of 86,900....
, East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
, starring Ashley Wright and Mike Barber. An October 2009 London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
production won several "Kenny Awards", including the award for Best Show of the Year.