National Theatre At Home: introducing Frankenstein

Have you heard about National Theatre At Home? It's the brilliant new way of streaming the best live productions into your own front room – entirely for free.

Every Thursday at 7PM UK time, they will be releasing one NT Live title on the National Theatre’s YouTube channel that can be watched for free, on-demand for seven days only.

It's exactly what we all need during this time of stringent, nationwide lockdowns. This week, we're introducing Danny Boyle's adaptation of Frankenstein, including all the details of where you can stream it.

What is the story of Frankenstein?

Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle and playwright Nick Dear adapt Mary Shelley's forbidding and prescient story of one man playing god. First published in 1818, Shelley's story, subtitled The Modern Prometheus, recounts scientist Victor Frankenstein's doomed attempt to create life. When his experiment goes horribly wrong, Victor pays the price in more ways than one.

Shelley's groundbreaking story of hubris and tragedy gets an electrifying adaptation under Boyle's typically kinetic visuals. The roles of Frankenstein and the Creature are split between Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch and Elementary's Jonny Lee Miller, who alternate on different nights. It's a formidable duo, combined with an energetic director and timeless source material – not to be missed.

How was Frankenstein received?

Upon the production's debut in 2011, it was described by The Guardian as "Bravura... The actors complement each other perfectly rather than provide a contest".

Cumberbatch and Miller shared both the Olivier Award and London Evening Standard Award for Best Actor for their respective performances. Cumberbatch also won the Critics' Circle Theatre Awards' Best Performance by an Actor in a Play.

Here's a personal intro to the show from Cumberbatch himself.

How long is Frankenstein available to stream for?

It is available to stream for one week from Thursday the 30th of April.

Where can we stream Frankenstein?

For more details, visit the National Theatre website and the National Theatre YouTube channel.

What other productions are streaming as part of National Theatre At Home?

Coming up next is Shakespeare tragedy Antony and Cleopatra, starring Ralph Fiennes and Sophie Okenedo. It's available to stream from Thursday the 7th of May.