Frame of Reference Productions

Chicago’s Book & Lyrics Theatricals will premiere a new stage adaptation of Gods and Monsters, based on Christopher Bram’s ​1995 novel “Father of Frankenstein” and its 1998 screen version. The work will play a limited run beginning on May 9, 2024

The project is a collaboration between writer-actor Paul Oakley Stovall and director Tom Mullen. In a role reversal, Stovall will ​direct the premiere while Mullen is writing the script. The mostly fictionalized story centers on the final days of real-life film ​director James Whale, noted for his work on the classic horror films “Frankenstein” and “Bride of Frankenstein,” along with the first ​full-screen adaptation of the Broadway musical Show Boat. The work tracks the director as his health is failing while ​simultaneously falling for a young landscaper, Clayton Boone (Whale was openly gay throughout his career, a trailblazer ahead ​of his time).