Rewriting Frankenstein

by Michelle Meng

A Note on Staging
a small lake trees surrounding lake Grass beside the lake Props a small pocket knife for William a pitchfork for Charlotte Costumes Monster - a torn plain white t-shirt with a torn grey jacket and a green pants William - white button up short sleeve shirt and dark blue pants Charlotte - red and white plaited country dress Lighting, Sound, Special Effects Warm colors (orange, yellow, red) - during scenes with William Spot light on William when he dies Dark blue during the scenes with Charlotte Birds chirping when William talks to the Monster Dogs barking sounds from backstage Characters Monster: Calm when hes not angry or frustrated. The Monster is green, his clothes and body is bloody and has scratches. He seems tired, worried and miserable. His voice is soft but rough and deep. William: A young 10 years old boy. He is Frankensteins brother. Pale skin, blonde hair and has bright eyes. His voice is gentle but has a slightly serious tone to it. He is caring and sacrifices his life to save the Monster. Charlotte: Is about the same age as William and is Williams friend. Has dirty blonde hair with a skinny and fragile figure. Her voice is sweet. Attempts to stab the Monster with a pitchfork. Does not appear much in this scene.

Rewriting Frankenstein
by Michelle The lake is silent and the sounds of the birds chirp, the sunset has just about risen. Beside the lake, William sits playing with the grass. In comes the Monster, walking slowly towards William. Monster: Hello. I dont harm, dont be scared. Walks closer to William. William does not notice him yet. William: looks up. Woah. Excuse me sir, were you talking to me? He squirms a bit, uncomfortable of the Monsters appearance. Monster: Yes, can I sit? The Monster points to the space next to William. William: Gulps. How rude I was, Im sorry I didnt notice you before. Yes, of course..bites his lips, shifting. Feel free to sit. Monster: Sits down slowly, glances at William. William looks at the Monster from the corner of his eyes. Its nice, yeah? The lake, I mean. Gasps, my name is Monster. I dont like my name too much. Whats yours? William: Me? Turns to look at the Monster and smiles. My name is William, sir. William Frankenstein. Mons- gets cut off by the Monster. Monster: Frankenstein? You and Frankenstein...family? I dont like Frankenstein, he is a destroyer! Are you.destroyer? William: Indeed, my brother is Victor Frankenstein. Hes acting a bit weird these days, isnt he? Cousin Elizabeth is really worried about him. So, Im guessing he created you? Points at the Monster. Thats alright, Im not going to destroy you, thats a terrible thing! Its okay, lets give you a new name, shall we? William smiles even brighter. Monster: Smiles. You know, this is my second time smiling! Starts to talk faster. Yes, yes, yes, we shall give me a new name. Thats wonderful, please, continue. He stops to let William proceed talking.

William: Lets give you a fancy name or maybe just a simple one, kind of like mine. Thomas, Jack, Oliver...Harry! He giggles. Lets name you Harry, is that alright? I love the name, Harry! He starts to jump up and down, then sits back down. Monster: Yes, hello I am Harry. William...you, me...best friends? We leave this place and move to another place. Somewhere...peace...nice, no destroyer. We leave, we happy. Me no hurt, we have fun! He claps his hands but pauseswhats happening to my hand? He rubs them roughly on the grass. Lets out a grunt of frustration. William: Stop it, Harry, youre just clapping. He lets out a soft groan. What do you mean, Harry? I cant leave this place, this is my home. My family is here, Im happy here. Im sure youll find a safe place for yourself, here, in Ingolstadt. Im sure youll clear things up with my brother. No one can hurt you, I wont allow it. Okay? Youre going to be okay here. We dont have to move. He picks a strand of grass. I just wont let them hurt you. Monster: They will! I am a Monster, they kill me. They tear me apart. Please leave with me, we will be happy. We no go far, we just move. You visit your family sometime, I will not disturb them. Frankenstein hates me, he betrayed me. He left me alone, everyone hates me. He starts to tear up and reaches to hold Williams hand. Please? William: I suppose I can try. I will move with you but you promise youll let me visit my family? I promise I wont let them hurt you, were best mates now. Ill be with you, even when people and their dogs are trying to tear you apart. He smiles weakly and hugs the Monster. Youre part of my family now. Harry: Thank you...I..love you...Will--- He gets cut off by the sounds of the dogs barking. Theyre here, the dogs. They will tear me apart and rip my flesh. Lets go. Harry runs backstage, and attempts to fight off the dogs. You can hear noises from backstage, along with the barking noises. Harry: Groans. Go William, run! If I dont go to you in the next 20 minutes, dont come back. yells Go! William: No! I told you I wont leave you. Pulls out his pocket knife. Runs backstage. Run, Harry! Go! The dogs are still barking. Harry runs back on the stage and looks frightened. Harry: Oh my God! Looks at William. Oh no. Oh no. Runs backstage again. The barking noises stop.

 Harry appears again but this time, he is holding the body of a slightly unconscious William. He places Williams body on the grass gently and kneels beside him. He untangles the pocket knife from Williams hands and lay it on the ground. The spotlight are on them, other than that, everything is dark. Harry: whispers. Im sorry, William. William: I told you, I wouldnt leave you...remember? Were family..as.long as youre okay..Im o-- William stops and his eyes closes. Harry lays his own head gently on Williams body and cries. In comes a little girl (Charlotte), the dark blue lights come on too. Little girl: Hes dead. You killed him..why? Who are you? She looks at Harry and screeches. Harry: He covers Charlottes mouth with his hands. Hush now, little girl. Me, Harry. Harry didnt kill William. William saved Harry. He takes his hands off her mouth. Little girl: Manners! My name is Charlotte, not little girl! Youre a liar! You killed him - with the pocket knife (she points at the pocket knife), didnt you? She reaches for her pitchfork from behind and quickly motions it towards Harry. He grabs it first. Im going to tell Herr Frankenstein! Harry: Growls. No! I did not kill him! He pushes her down and holds her by the neck. I..did...not...kill...him! Charlotte: Okay! Stop.. He pushes down really hard until Charlotte is not breathing. Her eyes, wide open and the blue light fades. The spotlight are on the Monster and the two dead bodies of William and Charlotte. Harry: Oh no! He tugs at his own face and sobs silently. The lights go off.