Found Stages Brings Immersive Theater To Atlanta With FRANKENSTEIN Adaptation

Found Stages is changing the theatrical landscape of Atlanta. Inspired by such groundbreaking productions as NYC's Sleep No More, Found Stages' Frankenstein's Funeral offers Atlanta audiences a one-of-a-kind immersive, site-specific experience without the cost of a flight or hotel.

From Oct. 4 through Nov. 3, Frankenstein's Funeral brings suspense and wonder to Druid Hills. Mary Shelley's 200-year-old classic comes to life across the entire campus of St. John's Lutheran Church through holograms, original music, magical special effects, epic fight choreography, heart-wrenching ballet and intricately elaborate costumes.

"I've never been in a show where the costume, props and lighting effects gave me so many tools to play with in order to tell the story," says actor Joseph Jong Pendergrast, who plays The Monster. "We had a professional magician come in and teach us how to do real slight-of-hand, and we have [a ghost that appears as] a hologram, which is unbelievably haunting and spooky. My costume is effectively a body puppet, and I can articulate different organs and vessels on it to accentuate and inform my physical work."

Envisioned as an intimate experience for only 40 audience members at a time, attendees are mere inches from the performers. Guided by the characters, audiences explore the play's tangible world with all five senses, including opportunities to taste and touch. The collective actions of the audience even move the plot forward.

"When I go see a show, I want to feel like my presence matters," shares director and concept creator Nichole Palmietto, who is also a co-founder of Found Stages. "Everything that we create through Found Stages starts with that idea. We put the audience experience at the heart of our work, and because of that, our audience members become integral to the story."

Frankenstein's Funeral was created specifically for St. John's Lutheran Church. The story moves throughout the entire church campus in a promenade style, with each scene taking place in a new room. Originally built in 1914 as the Stonehenge Mansion, the building's Domestic Gothic Style lends immense character to this Gothic tale.

"The exciting thing about designing for an immersive experience like Frankenstein's Funeral is the way the audience becomes part of the show," explains environmental scenic designer Chrissy Culver. "You want to transport the audience into the living, breathing environment occupied by the characters and add just enough detail to create a new, special world just for them. The challenge comes from knowing how much to alter and how much of the original space to let shine through - almost like creating a mirror into an alternate universe where this story resides, at once both familiar and different."

Frankenstein's Funeral runs Oct. 4-Nov. 3, 2019 at St. John's Lutheran Church. (Press Opening is Friday, Oct. 11 at 8:00 p.m.)

Tickets start at $45 and are available online at www.foundstages.org/frankensteinsfuneral