Just in time for Halloween, Mary Shelley’s haunting classic Frankenstein will be screened at East Central University.
Two different versions will be shown at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 29 and Thursday, Oct. 30 in the Raymond J. Estep Center of the Bill S. Cole University Center.
ECU SCREENS, in collaboration with Sigma Tau Delta and The Honors Student Association, is conducting the screening of the exciting recorded-live production of Frankenstein, adapted for the stage by Nick Dear and performed at the Royal National Theatre of London. The screening, open to the public, is $5 for students and $10 for members of the community.
Frankenstein is the thrilling tale of a grotesque but innocent and childlike creature, which is cast out into a hostile world by his creator, Victor Frankenstein. As the creature grows more desperate and vengeful, he decides to find his creator and strike a terrifying deal. Urgent concerns of scientific responsibility, parental neglect, cognitive development and the nature of good and evil are embedded within this thrilling and deeply disturbing gothic tale.
Directed by Academy Award®-winner Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire, London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony), Frankenstein features Benedict Cumberbatch (12 Years A Slave, Star Trek: Into Darkness) and Jonny Lee Miller (Trainspotting, Mansfield Park). Miller will play the monster on Oct. 29 and Frankenstein on Oct. 30, with Cumberbatch portraying the doctor on Oct. 29 and the creature on Oct. 30. The Guardian raves that the “actors complement each other perfectly.”
Frankenstein has been described as a “theatrical coup” by the Times, a “viscerally exciting and stunning show” by the Daily Telegraph, and a “memorable production [that] will doubtless be spoken of for years to come” by The Daily Mail. The production was a sell-out hit at the National Theatre in 2011, and the broadcast has since become an international sensation, experienced by almost half a million people in cinemas and other venues around the world.
These showings will be the fourth and fifth in a series of NT Live productions that will be presented by ECU SCREENS this fall. NT Live is the Royal National Theatre's groundbreaking project to broadcast the best of British theatre to cinemas around the world. ECU SCREENS will present eight productions, including six different Royal National Theater recorded live stage performances, throughout the fall semester. The screenings, which range from classic literary masterpieces to popular contemporary works, are all open to the public.
To learn more about ECU SCREENS and the fall schedule, visit www.ecuscreens.blogspot.com. For more information about the Royal National Theatre in London and the NT Live screenings, visit https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/. Dr. Rebecca Nicholson-Weir, co-director of ECU SCREENS, may be contacted at (580) 559-5929 or rnichlsn@ecok.edu.
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