Review: 3rd Act Theatre Company's FRANKENSTEIN is Electric

3rd Act Theatre Company's production of Vincent Hannam's Frankenstein runs until September 26th at their Northpark Mall location. Directed by Dakota Lee Bryant, this take on Mary Shelley's 1818 novel is presented in black and white and is the first in this season's Noire series. The actors wear gray and black makeup, complete with black costumes, and pops of red appear throughout the show. A white screen on stage casts stark shadows on the back wall, reminiscent of a black and white movie.

Long seen as the defining story of the science fiction genre, Frankenstein tells a harrowing tale of a doctor gone mad by his own creation. Ford Filson is Dr. Victor Frankenstein, a scientist and student who experiences a tragic death. Becoming obsessed with the idea of bringing a person back from the dead, Dr. Frankenstein decides to experiment on dead flesh, attempting to reanimate it with electricity.

The idea is gruesome, and the doctor stops at nothing. Crazed by arrogance and desperation, he resorts to pulling a dead man from his grave to complete his mission. Filson portrays the young doctor as a refined gentleman who quickly cascades into madness. Filson is a sympathetic figure. Driven by his own desire to find the key to unlocking death, he quickly realizes the error of his ways. But what has been done cannot be undone, and Filson carries this weight for the remainder of the show.

Kat Adams is Elisabeth, the doctor's childhood friend and later fiancé. She helps him as much as she can, but can see him tumbling down a path she can't follow. Adams is stirring in this role. Torn between the morbid fascination and utter disgust of the doctor's ideas, she can't help but follow him and watch. Ravaged by fear at what they've made, the experiment becomes their undoing.

Peter Fischaber portrays the monster, the man raised from the dead against his will. In vernacular, the creation is known as Frankenstein, but this is an error. Frankenstein is the doctor who creates the monster, and the creature is never given a name. It's important to correct, because the moment of realization when the creature discovers who did this to him is a powerful scene. It speaks to deeper ideas of abuse and consent, and when a person's abuser is named, a new kind of freedom is found.

Fischaber is beautiful in this role. At times terrifying, the creature does not know what he is or why he's been brought to life. Fischaber is the embodiment of pain. He longs for knowledge, friendship, and love. He learns, slowly, how to speak, how to communicate, how to live. But he's completely alone, and the persistent hunger that he speaks of throughout the show is not just a physical need. It would be too easy to slip into a caricature of this well-known monster, to make him lumbering and dumb. What Fischaber does is create a relatable character who is anything but empty-headed. His portrayal is deeply moving, and the transformation the creature makes leaves you wondering who the real monster is.

This cast of three takes several turns as other characters throughout the show. Filson is also seen as a blind man who comes upon the creature. Unable to see the monster's disturbing appearance, the two become friends. Adams is also seen as the blind man's daughter and a ship captain at the culmination of all things. Fischaber is briefly seen as Dr. Frankenstein's father, the man who sets the ideas of death and experimentation in motion. All three transition seamlessly, and together they create a full show with the small ensemble. This is smart use of a small cast, and each gets a chance to showcase their wide range of skills.

Dakota Lee Bryant re-establishes himself as a brilliant and nuanced director, bringing to the forefront the humanity of these fabled characters. Bryant's costumes are also mesmerizing, layered in tones of black and gray, and those pops of red- a coat, a bird, a ribbon- are made all the more striking.

The story of Frankenstein is a tragedy. It forces all of us to look inward, and shows us that to hide the darkest parts of ourselves only leads to our own destruction. It's the quintessential tale of horror and fear, but the monstrous one is not the creature. Frankenstein's monster is an innocent victim in his own story. He seeks understanding, friendship, and love. The ones who wish to destroy that curiosity and to reject those desires in others- they are the real villains. And they can be found within ourselves, if left in the shadows, and not named for what they are. Monsters.

* * *

Vincent Hannam's adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein runs until September 26th, 2020 at 3rd Act Theatre Company inside Northpark Mall. The closing performance is streamed online only on September 27th. Tickets are still available for both, and this show is worth watching any way you can. Performances inside the mall require masks for all patrons. For tickets, visit 3rdacttheatreco.com.

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