“When you have 1000 people, and you can hear a pin drop that is the best sound of all because that’s when you know you have absolutely got them,” Producer Sonia Freidman says of this Stranger Things theatre production.
Director Jon Halperin had made a fascinating, insightful and brilliant documentary. He uses a timeline to show (Workshops, rehearsals, tech, previews and then opening night) the behind-the-scenes story of how they bought this masterpiece of the sci-fi universe to life at the West End Stage.
This documentary is eye opening because it shows the stress and manic preparations needed to produce the magic that audiences get to see. How they transformed the setting of Hawkins, Indiana is a sight to see, truly a piece of theatre genius. They go into detail to recreate the TV show but make sure you don’t have to be a Stranger Things fan to be able to enjoy it.
This Doc will be of interest for the theatre goer, or a person who likes the production aspect of being in the entertainment industry, and of course, Stranger Things fans.
I have more of an appreciation now of the work and artistry that goes into creating elaborate sets, exceptional visual effects and choreography needed to make the scenes work.
In 2019, Director Stephen Daldry pitched the idea of a Stranger Things theatre production to creators the Duffer Brothers, which was the spark that began the journey from TV to theatre. They soon realised they needed Justin Martin who is codirecting it and Kate Trefry to write the script if it was going to live up to the original concept.
In the first ten minutes you get to see the Directors, writers, technical team, visuals (I could go on and on) and you are in the middle of the organised chaos. Kate, Justin and Stephen are under constant pressure from the Duffer Brothers, Netflix and trying to live up to fan expectations. However, when you see cast and crew act with such professionalism and feel the camaraderie between everyone you know they will see this through and make it the best it can be.
What I loved about the documentary was seeing the actors in the workshops, such as Ramona Marquez, Louis McCartney, Ella Karuna Williams and Isabella Pappas to name a few. You got to see how the casting worked and who auditioned for who and then who made the final cast.
You saw how Kate Trefry had to keep rewriting the script right up to one of the last previews before opening night. I really liked how they showed the challenges in production design and stage continuity that as a theatre goer you take for granted. For example, some of the spiders for one scene had to be deleted, because depending on where you were sitting in the theatre you wouldn’t be able to see them.
The action had to be the same for every member of the audience. I found the work done in the special effects department fascinating, because you realise if one effect is slightly miss timed the whole scene is ruined, or even worse, looks silly. “Petunia”, is is a standout moment where disaster or success hangs in the balance.
What makes Behind the Curtain so intriguing is the genuine respect it has for theatre and the craft needed to bring peoples vision to life. Stranger Things, The First Shadow is groundbreaking and is in a different league in terms of breaking new ground in terms of special effects and creativity. What I love is that it is trying to be different from the series while keeping the characters true to the spirit of the original. They don’t just repeat the story, they have created something new that elevates it.
The visuals depicting the countdown to opening night, as time ticks away is clever and puts the viewer right in the middle of the process. The film doesn’t just document the creation of a show, it delves into the struggles and spirit of creativity needed to thrive under pressure.
Jon Halperin delivers a great 1 ½ hours of entertainment. It is a documentary that is engrossing and puts you in the middle of the action of a theatre experiment. It honours the original series and is a must for Stranger Things fans, but by making it a stand-alone show too, it is fantastic entertainment for everyone.