NT Live Screenings of Frankenstein, with Benedict Cumberbatch, Jonny Lee Miller, Begin March 17

By Andrew Gans
March 8, 2011

National Theatre Live — the National Theatre's initiative to broadcast live performances onto cinema screens around the world — will continue with Academy Award winner Danny Boyle’s acclaimed production of Frankenstein, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller.

Frankenstein, a new play by Nick Dear based on Mary Shelley’s novel, will be filmed twice to allow cinemagoers the chance to see Cumberbatch and Miller alternate in the roles of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature.

Broadcasts in the New York City area will be held at the Brooklyn Academy of Musica (BAM), NYU’s Skirball Center, City Cinema 123, Kew Gardens Cinema, Fairfield University (CT), the Shakespeare Theatre Company (DC) and more.

The broadcast will also be shown on screens across the United States, including the Music Box Theater in Chicago, Downtown Independent in Los Angeles, Amherst Cinema in Massachusetts, the Angelika Film Center in Dallas, Cedar Lee Theatre in Cleveland Heights, OH, and more.

"Childlike in his innocence but grotesque in form, Frankenstein’s bewildered creature is cast out into a hostile universe by his horror-struck maker," according to press notes. "Meeting with cruelty wherever he goes, the friendless Creature, increasingly desperate and vengeful, determines to track down his creator and strike a terrifying deal. Urgent concerns of scientific responsibility, parental neglect, cognitive development and the nature of good and evil are embedded within this thrilling and deeply disturbing classic gothic tale."

Screening schedule in major markets follows:

● NYU Skirball Center for the Arts (NY, NY) – Thursday, March 24 at 7 PM
● Cinema 123 (NY, NY) – March 17 at 7:00pm & March 20 at 2 PM
● Mann Chinese (Hollywood, CA) – March 17 & 22 at 7 PM
● Brooklyn Academy of Music (Brooklyn, NY) – March 24 at 2 PM and 7 PM
● Guild Hall (East Hampton, NY) – March 26 at 7:30 PM
● Kew Gardens Cinema (Queens, NY) – March 17 at 3 PM and 7 PM; March 31 at 2 PM and 7 PM
● Fairfield University (Fairfield, CT) – March 17 at 3 PM and 7 PM; April 6 at 2 PM and 7 PM
● Coolidge Corner (Brookline, MA) – March 17 at 6:30 PM & April 4 at 6:30 PM
● Shakespeare Theatre Company (DC) – March 21 at 7:30 PM & April 23 at 8 PM
● Angelika Film Centre (Dallas, TX) – March 23 & 24 at 7 PM
● Guthrie Theater (Minneapolis, MN) – April 3 at 1 PM
● SIFF Cinema (Seattle, WA) – April 11 at 7:30 PM
● Bryn Mawr Film Institute (Bryn Mawr, PA) – April 3 at 1 PM & April 6 at 7 PM
● Ambler Theater (Ambler, PA) – March 20 at 12:20 PM & March 31 at 7:30 PM
● Third Rail Repertory Theatre (Portland, OR) – April 2 & April 3 at 2 PM and 7 PM
● Jacob Burns Film Center (Pleasantville, NY) – March 17 at 3 PM & April 19
● Music Box (Chicago, IL) – April 27 at 7:30 PM, April 30 at 2 PM, May 4 at 7:30 PM, May 7 at 2 PM

Ticket prices vary by venue. The average ticket price is $20. For a complete list of U.S. dates, times and locations, visitwww.ntlive.com.

The season will continue June 30 with Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard.