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| MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night | |
| Last Edit: sergius 10:01 am EST 01/07/18 | |
| Posted by: sergius 10:00 am EST 01/07/18 | |
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| The intention here is to develop some correspondence between Shelley's horrendous personal experiences with childbearing--four of her children died in infancy or were miscarried and her own mother died consequent to giving birth to her--and her Frankenstein fantasy. In this view, the Monster is alternately an expression of Shelley's wish to reanimate the dead and her fear that what inhabits her is heinous and murderous. The Monster, of course, is both tender and fearsome. It's well worn territory to see the fervent imagination that inspired him as an outgrowth of Shelley's experiences. But the collaborators here haven't been able to make this intersection of material and psychic reality compelling let alone especially coherent. Fairchild manages best. He's too handsome by far to be Frankenstein's monster but his presence alone suggests that beauty is often a form of terror which is interesting to consider. But that's about it. The rest of the proceedings are marred by bad acting--the actor playing Mary Shelley is unbearable--muddied intentions, and aimlessly hectic direction. | |
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| re: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night | |
| Last Edit: writerkev 11:50 am EST 01/07/18 | |
| Posted by: writerkev 11:50 am EST 01/07/18 | |
| In reply to: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night - sergius 10:00 am EST 01/07/18 | |
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| Plus there’s the important fact—as was raised in the NY Times review—that Mary Shelley wrote the book in her late teens, long before she experienced all this grief. So the attempt to paint her creation as a response to her tragedies is a specious premise. I had trouble with the hodgepodge of components. It tries to be a play, a symphony concert, a ballet, and an opera all at once, so it ends up being none of them persuasively. I dont think I’ll see another show by this company. |
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| re: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night | |
| Posted by: lowwriter 06:19 pm EST 01/07/18 | |
| In reply to: re: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night - writerkev 11:50 am EST 01/07/18 | |
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| The Dreyfus Affair by the same company was more coherent and less amateurish. A large group of us went to see Frankenstein and I'm glad my friends didn't get mad at me for bringing them. We all liked seeing Robert Fairchild but he deserves better than this. I wish my friends had been able to see him in Brigadoon. | |
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| re: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night | |
| Posted by: Peg 11:08 am EST 01/07/18 | |
| In reply to: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night - sergius 10:00 am EST 01/07/18 | |
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| I was there last night as well and agree with your assessment 100%. Aside from Fairchild, the young pianist was excellent. And I’d much rather see Fairchild dancing than doing this. I’ve seen a few productions now by Ensemble for the Romantic Century. They’re well-intentioned and take on interesting subjects but the results are very uneven. |
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| re: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night | |
| Posted by: Jackson 11:01 am EST 01/07/18 | |
| In reply to: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN Last Night - sergius 10:00 am EST 01/07/18 | |
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| I think this group is a vanity project. The artistic director and playwright are the same person. Her husband is the director. J |
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