Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein' by Cassandra Penalver - City News Group, Inc.

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Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein'

By Cassandra Penalver, Community Writer
March 5, 2014 at 11:21am. Views: 57

Creation, art, and horror all came to life at the California Theater of Performing Arts in San Bernardino during a recent showing of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Audience members shared that within the first five minutes of the show, they were drawn in. The intense use of strobe lighting set different moods for the different scenes. The modern twist on Frankenstein was reminiscent to the feel of a contemporary dance show. Body language was used to evoke emotion in the audience As if the play did not set a dark tone on its own, the pairing of the somewhat morbid story line and the controlled atmosphere of the California Theater seemed to be a match made in heaven. The California Theater of the Performing Arts in San Bernardino was founded in 1929 as a vaudeville theater. According to Frankenstein director Joseph Henson, many people traveled to the California Theater to perform. There was even a saying that if you did not make it in San Bernardino, it was off to the tumble weeds for you. The theater was the largest in Southern California and if someone did not do well there, then they probably would not have much luck in the performing industry. A while after vaudeville acts, the theater also housed many silent film screenings. To this day, around Halloween, the California Theater shows silent films to pay tribute to the theater's unique history. The main area of the theater is decorated with a real theater organ, and a few Degas paintings. The California Theatre is equipped with a full bar and a medium bar. The full bar is symbolic of a typical saloon or speakeasy that were popular back when it was founded in the late 1920s. The interestingly new age twist on Frankenstein definitely fit the theater appropriately and served as a great liaison to bring theater-goers back for more performances in the future.

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