At just 18, Mary Shelley gave birth to what would become the first iteration of the Gothic in western literature. Originally titled Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus, Shelley’s creation came from a combination of ghost stories told on a dreary evening in Switzerland, as well as the diary entries she wrote during her many pregnancies, and after the shattering losses of her own children.

Published anonymously in 1818, Frankenstein is, like the hideous monster at the core of its text, an amalgamation of parts. It is both an allegory and a fable, written as a fictional autobiography and in the form of an epistolary novel. There have been countless adaptations and variations of Frankenstein since, most recently Yorgos Lanthimos’ 2023 Poor Things, for which Emma Stone won her second Best Actress Oscar.

Now the Brisbane-based independent Theatre Company Shake and Stir adds its bold and faithful telling of Shelley’s story to the canon.

Darcy Brown and Jeremiah Wray in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Photo © Joel Devereux

Brought to life on stage with searing visuals, this adaptation propagates notions of our modern relationship with the things we create. As Shelley’s Frankenstein dealt with...