Craigdarroch Castle will be alive through the month of October with the sights and sounds of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, thanks to Victoria actor Jason Stevens.
Known for his annual one-man productions at the castle on Joan Crescent, Stevens will tackle 10 characters from Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel in his abridged version. “I’m trying to be as faithful as I can be, in the limited time I have,” Stevens said of the 50-minute performance.
His month-long Frankenstein run at Craigdarroch Castle gets underway at 6 p.m. on Thursday. Subsequent performances will be staged each Thursday through Oct. 29 in the castle’s dance hall, located on the fourth floor.
The performances are designed to be upbeat and energetic. “I don’t like long theatre,” Stevens said with a laugh. “With three-hour shows I get restless. I like to do it as quick and dirty as possible, and to quickly give people an idea of what’s going on.”
The first half of the story is told from the perspective of the mad scientist Victor Frankenstein. Stevens switches during the second half to the viewpoint of the monster that has been created.
The play he’s written has moments of horror, which is why it’s staged at Halloween, but it’s a tragedy more than anything else, Stevens said. “The monster doesn’t have a name. One of the fundamental things about being human is your name — it’s the first thing you get. But he is denied that, and is treated universally with horror and contempt, and knows it. He’s been mistreated badly.”
Stevens is known for his one-man A Christmas Carol, a seasonal staple based on the Charles Dickens classic. He has performed both Frankenstein and A Christmas Carol for years at Craigdarroch Castle, and says Frankenstein is a little easier than A Christmas Carol, which has 17 characters. “This is really just two monologues, broken down into several parts.”
Stevens was one performance into his version of Treasure Island at Craigdarroch Castle when COVID-19 led to the shutdown of live theatre around the city in March. (“I only got to do it once, but it was great,” he said of the Robert Louis Stevenson tale.)
Now that socially-distanced theatre is a possibility, organizers have taken steps to ensure Frankenstein checks all the necessary boxes. Stevens said he will be repositioned on the stage to ensure sufficient space between himself and the audience. Seating is provided on a first-come, first-served basis.
“Usually, it’s a nice tight, packed group. That will be different this time. I don’t know what to expect. But that’s the thing about live theatre. You adapt. We shall see.”
Tickets to Frankenstein are available for $30 in advance from thecastle.ca. For more information, phone 250-592-5323. Craigdarroch Castle is located at 1050 Joan Cres.
