Imitating the Dog, a company known for weaving live theatre seamlessly with digital invention, have been on a fascinating journey over the past four years, exploring stories of the undead. It began in 2020 with a revolutionary version of Night of the Living Dead, George A Romero’s definitive zombie movie, and now, via Dracula (2021) and Macbeth (2023), culminates with perhaps the ultimate undead creature in this new telling of Mary Shelley’s extraordinary work.
But unlike the company’s previous work reanimating the dead over the past half-decade, here there are no live cameras on stage. You may or may not not miss the trademark Imitating the Dog symbiosis of live action and live film-making – and there is still plenty of digital innovation to fascinate, among Hayley Grindle’s impressive set. But you will likely miss the narrative clarity that the company mastered in previous productions, but which is less evident this time.
