Our quick introduction to Liam Scarlett’s new full-length ballet, inspired
by Mary Shelley’s Gothic masterpiece.
An enduring tale
Written during a famous sojourn by Lake Geneva in the company of Lord Byron andPercy Bysshe Shelley, Frankenstein has fascinated people ever since it was first published in 1818. The student Victor Frankenstein discovers the secret to creating life – but he is unable to face up to his own abominable creation. His fiancée Elizabeth, his friends and his family are all caught up in the tragedy that unfolds as Victor battles with his Creature and his conscience.
Written during a famous sojourn by Lake Geneva in the company of Lord Byron andPercy Bysshe Shelley, Frankenstein has fascinated people ever since it was first published in 1818. The student Victor Frankenstein discovers the secret to creating life – but he is unable to face up to his own abominable creation. His fiancée Elizabeth, his friends and his family are all caught up in the tragedy that unfolds as Victor battles with his Creature and his conscience.
A new take on an old story
Royal Ballet Artist in Residence Liam Scarlett has created numerous works for the Company, from abstract pieces such as Asphodel Meadows to the narrative Sweet Violets and Hansel and Gretel. But his adaptation of Frankenstein is his first full-length work for the main stage. Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic novel forms the basis of a three-act ballet for the full Company that will interpret this famous story afresh.
Royal Ballet Artist in Residence Liam Scarlett has created numerous works for the Company, from abstract pieces such as Asphodel Meadows to the narrative Sweet Violets and Hansel and Gretel. But his adaptation of Frankenstein is his first full-length work for the main stage. Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic novel forms the basis of a three-act ballet for the full Company that will interpret this famous story afresh.
Love and responsibility
Frankenstein has been adapted countless times, and the Creature has become a familiar presence in horror movies. But for Scarlett, Frankenstein is about more than this stock character. There is a tender love story at the story’s heart featuring Victor and Elizabeth, and the Creature is no straightforward villain but rather someone deprived of a family who is never taught how to behave. Can we feel sympathy for a monster? ‘I think when the curtain goes down you’re not going to know who to feel more sorry for’, say Scarlett.
Frankenstein has been adapted countless times, and the Creature has become a familiar presence in horror movies. But for Scarlett, Frankenstein is about more than this stock character. There is a tender love story at the story’s heart featuring Victor and Elizabeth, and the Creature is no straightforward villain but rather someone deprived of a family who is never taught how to behave. Can we feel sympathy for a monster? ‘I think when the curtain goes down you’re not going to know who to feel more sorry for’, say Scarlett.
Period settings
Designer and artist John Macfarlane has collaborated with Scarlett many times before, and his other designs at the Royal Opera House include Giselle for The Royal Ballet andDie Zauberflöte and Gianni Schicchi for The Royal Opera. With lighting designer David Finn and projection designer Finn Ross, Macfarlane’s designs create a period setting forFrankenstein, complete with a lavish manor for the Frankenstein family and a detailed re-creation of a 19th-century anatomy theatre.
Designer and artist John Macfarlane has collaborated with Scarlett many times before, and his other designs at the Royal Opera House include Giselle for The Royal Ballet andDie Zauberflöte and Gianni Schicchi for The Royal Opera. With lighting designer David Finn and projection designer Finn Ross, Macfarlane’s designs create a period setting forFrankenstein, complete with a lavish manor for the Frankenstein family and a detailed re-creation of a 19th-century anatomy theatre.
A close choreographic collaboration
Scarlett has choreographed a number of works by American composer Lowell Liebermann, including his abstract ballet Viscera. Frankenstein is Liebermann’s first commissioned score for Scarlett. There has been a close collaboration between composer and choreographer, with especially beautiful music reserved for the Creature. ‘I described to him that I wanted something hauntingly beautiful’, Scarlett said, ‘and I think he really has done that.’
Scarlett has choreographed a number of works by American composer Lowell Liebermann, including his abstract ballet Viscera. Frankenstein is Liebermann’s first commissioned score for Scarlett. There has been a close collaboration between composer and choreographer, with especially beautiful music reserved for the Creature. ‘I described to him that I wanted something hauntingly beautiful’, Scarlett said, ‘and I think he really has done that.’
http://www.roh.org.uk/news/ballet-essentials-frankenstein
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