Review: NICK DEAR'S FRANKENSTEIN at Coasters Musical Theatre

An engrossing night of theatre with sensory overload

Nick Dear's adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein premiered at the Royal National Theatre in London in February of 2011.

The play is notable for it's unique perspective, telling the story from the creatures point of view rather than Victor Frankenstein's. The shift allows the audience to experience the Creatures journey and struggles firsthand. The plot follows the Creature as he navigates a hostile world, seeking acceptance and understanding, only to be met with cruelty and rejection.

As the Creature, Martyn Tidy gives an utterly compelling performance that matched the professional performance I saw in Christchurch at the Court Theatre a few years ago. I also enjoyed Tim MacDonald's portrayal of Victor Frankenstein and Selena Te'o as his fiancee Elizabeth. It seems unfair though to single out performances as the entire cast were wonderful.

This show hit you hard right from the opening scene, with excellent lighting and sound, giving you a sense of dread from the very start. Watching the first 15 mins made me feel uncomfortable at the treatment of the Creature. The introduction of Alister Williams as the blind, kind Dr Lacy provided welcome respite and offered hope that the Creature can be accepted, yet after teaching the Creature to talk and read and being relaxed in his company, Dr Lacy made the mistake of introducing the Creature to his son and daughter in law with tragic consequences.

The material is dark and there are few light moments.  The director Sara Devcich has done an exceptional job in creating the right mood and has extracted excellent performances from the entire cast. There are no weak links, all performers were convincing.

Set design was simple, yet very effective, though I did have some issues seeing some of the action from where I was sitting in the back on a raised platform. I saw others on the floor were also struggling to see. These moments only occurred a couple of times and did not ruin an excellent production, but bringing some of these scenes closer to centre stage would have meant all could see them.

The costuming and props were both perfect for the time and added to the overall ambiance of the production.

From beginning to end, this was a polished and compelling piece of theatre that Coasters Musical Theatre should be proud of. I would highly recommend this to anyone who wants to be challenged and entertained.  

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