REVIEW: BINBROOK LITTLE THEATRE’S “FRANKENSTEIN: THE MONSTER PLAY”
A large velvet red curtain hides what lurks beneath it at Binbrook Little Theatre as the company stages the classic monsters and morality tale adapted by Christopher O’Neil from the 1818 gothic novel by Mary Shelley. While Frankenstein: The Monster Play hints at the promise of layered emotions, questionable moralities and, of course, horror, the script and uneven performances within the cast lack the spark needed to deliver the intended impact on its audience.
Set in the Frankenstein manor, in an attempt to defy death, an ambitious Victor Frankenstein creates a living man from reanimated dead tissue. Unable to control or love his creation, the scientist decides to destroy it instead. However, The Creature escapes Frankenstein’s wrath before returning to take its revenge.
The set design is one of the production’s highlights and a great deal of attention has gone into ensuring the set construction works alongside the technical components skillfully handled by stage manager Danielle Wise and crew. There’s plenty of eerie lighting effects, especially during the creation scene. Similar praise must go to the costume and makeup team who deliver impressive gowns, tattered rags and extremely detailed makeup on the characters of Igor and The Creature in particular.
Director Brad Fortman has selected a cast with varying levels of theatrical experience which grants great opportunities for this community theatre production. The show’s greatest strength, quite literally, comes from The Creature portrayed expertly by Mark Rogers. Rogers is equal parts terrifying and sympathetic whenever he is on stage and it is a shame his character is not seen more in this production. There are moments of palpable tension between him and the innocent, young Willa (Kailee Sach-Anderson) during their scene together and for a character that barely gets out more than a few words amidst guttural noises of confusion and fear, audiences will empathize most with his plight, despite his horrific actions.
Mrs. Frankenstein (Sue Blackman) and Henry (David McEachern) portray their roles well as a cane banging, demanding matriarch and level headed but conflicted friend of the family. Igor is charmingly grotesque and Robert Moore does the best he can with the limited material given to the iconic character. The ensemble of servants and villagers also contribute to the growing fear and tension as characters like Henry expose most of the details of The Creature’s actions.
The two lead roles are portrayed by Drew Caissie as Dr. Victor Frankenstein and Jeannine Ryan as Frankenstein’s fiancée Elizabeth. It is difficult to know whether Caissie’s performance was impeded by his own choices, the melodramatic nature of the script or direction from Fortman. His delivery and body language is often over-exaggerated with little nuance to balance it out. There is also an unfortunate lack of chemistry with others on stage, particularly with Ryan, who does her best to appear loving and concerned but these emotions are more authentic when she shares scenes with The Creature instead.
Despite some uneven performances, many of the issues of Frankenstein: The Monster Play come from the adaptation by O'Neil. The narrative doesn’t flesh out the father/son/creator/creation dynamic that is extremely important in Shelley’s novel. Frankenstein and his creation do not share the stage to confront one another which is a huge detriment. In this version, The Creature is massively underutilized and so its revenge feels tacked on and unsatisfying. There’s too much melodramatic monologuing and not nearly enough development with the only character we come to care about, which is, ironically, The Creature. The first act feels too long and the second/third acts rush to the final fiery attack and abrupt blackout concluding the play.
Frankenstein continues to be adapted and still creates intrigue over 200 years later. The longevity of this science fiction horror story, in various mediums, proves that people are still very curious to see what happens when we follow our ambitions too far. There are plenty of details to like about Binbrook Little Theatre’s production including a few standouts from The Creature's performance, the detailed set design and technical elements but overall, this monster play and its particular adaptation needs more spark to truly come alive.
Image One, left to right: Drew Caissie as Dr. Victor Frankenstein, Jeannine Ryan as Elizabeth, David McEachern as Henry Clerval, Rachel Rogers as Nurse/Servant, Sue Blackman as Mrs. Frankenstein, Kailee Sach-Anderson as Willa and Tomikah Morrell as Justine
Photo by: Erika Fairservice
Image Two, left to right: Drew Caissie as Dr. Victor Frankenstein and David McEachern as Henry Clerval
Image Three, left to right: Drew Caissie as Dr. Victor Frankenstein and Sue Blackman as Mrs. Frankenstein
Image Four, left to right: David McEachern as Henry Clerval, Drew Caissie as Dr. Victor Frankenstein and Jeannine Ryan as Elizabeth
Photos by: Brad Fortman
