Labor of Love in "Frankenstein"

In 1818, the 18-year-old Mary Shelley published “Frankenstein,” but some scholars say her novel had significant input from her young husband Percy Bysshe Shelley. The relationship between the couple and their supposed collaboration on “Frankenstein” is the subject of “Sea Change,” the new play by director and writer Daniel J. Giles ’13, opening on the Loeb Mainstage on April 26.

In the play, actors, musicians, and puppeteers alike chronicle Percy Shelley’s early death and Mary’s attempt to reanimate her love for her late husband through her own memories.

“This is the way grief works,” Giles says. “Mary Shelley is trying to recreate her memories of her life with him so she creates this younger version of herself.”

The older, grieving Mary (Emily B. Hyman ’13) watches as a younger version of herself (Rebecca E. Feinberg ’13) experiences a relationship with both Percy and the the process of writing “Frankenstein.” Eventually, the younger Mary becomes frustrated with the way the older Mary is telling the story, and the two fight for control of the memories.

The play only has four named roles—the two versions of Mary, an older Percy (John L. Pizzato ’16), and a younger Percy (Bryan D. Kauder ’14)—but the rest of the performance is populated by puppets and their puppeteers. These eerie string-and-cardboard puppets created by Georgina B. Parfitt ’13 and Jacob A. Brandt ’14 play out scenes from “Frankenstein” as Mary and Percy’s relationship develops in parallel, all accompanied by original music by Samuel G. Ruchman ’15.

“There really is no art form that isn’t represented in this production,” stage manager Magdalene M. Zier ’16 says.

With elements including painted-on costumes designed by Anne E. M. McGrath ’13, live musicians on stage, and the silent, tender motions of the uncanny puppets, Zier and Hyman say that “Sea Change” will be exceptional because of the range of talented undergraduates working on the production.

Giles took his previous show “CryHurtFood” to a drama festival in the U.K. When asked if he is thinking of doing something similar with “Sea Change,” Giles is hesitant.

“They’re young people, and they’re brilliant, and they want more than anything to be geniuses,” he says of his play’s Mary and Percy. “This one feels like it belongs here.”

—Staff writer Virginia R. Marshall can be reached at virginiarosemarshall@college.harvard.edu.