Frankenstein - Court Theatre

“Manual Cinema is talent incarnate” —Helen Shaw, Time Out New York

“Incredibly ingenious … Manual Cinema has invented a new genre” —Alison Flett, InDaily

Love, loss, and creation merge in unexpected ways in this thrilling classic gothic tale conceived by Manual Cinema. Stories of Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein, and his Monster expose how the forces of family, community, and education shape personhood—or destroy it by their absence.

In a special world premiere presentation, internationally-renowned multimedia company Manual Cinema stitches together the classic story of Frankenstein with Mary Shelley’s own biography to create an unexpected story about the beauty and horror of creation. Manual Cinema combines handmade shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques, and innovative sound and music to create immersive visual stories for stage and screen.

Approximate running time: Act One 53 minutes, 15-minute intermission, Act Two 43 minutes.

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Frankenstein sponsor

Photo: Julia Miller and Sarah Fornace of Manual Cinema (Joe Mazza).

Tickets

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Artistic Team

Concept, Puppet Design
Drew Dir
Puppet Design, 3-D Puppet Design
Lizi Breit
Sound Design/Original Music
Kyle Vegter
Sound Design/Original Music
Ben Kauffman
Scenic/Projection Design
Rasean Davonte Johnson
Costume Design
Mieka van der Ploeg
Lighting Design
Claire Chrzan

Ensemble

Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
Sarah Fornace
The Creature, Elizabeth Frankenstein, Fanny Imlay
Julia Miller
Caroline Frankenstein, Percy Shelley, Vocals
Leah Casey
Alphonse Frankenstein, William Godwin
Sara Sawicki
Ensemble
Myra Su
clarinets, aux percussion
Zachary Good
flutes, aux percussion, piano
Deidre Huckabay
cello, aux percussion, vocals
Lia Kohl
percussion
Peter Ferry

Videos

Articles and Interviews

Live Cinema

To learn more about Manual Cinema’s unique approach to creating theatre, we interviewed Sarah Fornace, Co-Artistic Director of the performance collective and performer in Frankenstein. She shares her thoughts on theatrical adaptation, the legacy of Mary Shelley’s work, and Manual Cinema’s “live cinema” aesthetic.

The Music of Frankenstein

We spoke with two of Manual Cinema’s Co-Artistic Directors, Ben Kauffman and Kyle Vegter, about the role of music in Frankenstein. Both Kauffman and Vegter bring considerable experience in the worlds of composition and sound design to their work with Manual Cinema, helping to immerse audiences in their storytelling with live instrumentation. Read on to learn about their approach to creating the auditory world of Frankenstein.

Q&A: MANUAL CINEMA

We spoke with Manual Cinema about their innovative, interdisciplinary creative process and how it adds new possibilities to a classic story.

Manual Cinema’s FRANKENSTEIN captures lightning in a bottle

Press throughout Chicago are praising Manual Cinema's Frankenstein, with many critics Highly Recommending the production. See why they think you shouldn't miss this show.