The 1931 classic Frankenstein will come to life in a new way this month when the Binghamton Philharmonic presents the film with a full orchestral score by composer and conductor Michael Shapiro. The screening takes place Saturday, October 25 at 7:30 p.m. at The Forum on Washington Street in downtown Binghamton.
Although Frankenstein is a sound film, Shapiro points out that it originally had no musical score. “It did not happen until 1933 with King Kong, when Max Steiner wrote a through-composed film score,” Shapiro said. “The original celluloid after The Jazz Singer only had one track for sound. They didn’t figure out how to add music until 1933—and then we were off to the races.”
For Shapiro, the project is also a lifelong passion. “I’ve always loved this movie. Boris Karloff’s depiction of a creature put together with disparate dead parts—he brings out a soul in the ‘other’ that is breathtaking,” he said. “The film has great depth and resonance because of his acting and, of course, that iconic makeup by Jack Pierce.”
Shapiro wrote his Frankenstein score in 2002. Since then, it has been performed more than 75 times around the world. “It continues to have unsolicited performances, including this one,” he said. “And it brought Sarah and me together, which I love—we have a lot of fun talking about this image and what has happened.”
Sara Karloff, the daughter of Boris Karloff, will give a pre-concert talk about her father and the film’s legacy. She noted that by the time her father starred in Frankenstein, he had already been in Hollywood for a decade. “It was his 81st film, and he said hardly anybody saw the first 80,” she said. “He was very modest.”
She also explained how deeply her father connected to the character. “My father felt such a debt of gratitude to the creature—he called him the creature, not the monster,” she said. “He often said that children got it—that the creature was the victim, not the perpetrator. That’s how he felt about the part, and how he hoped audiences would understand it.”
Karloff believes that part of the enduring power of the film lies in her father’s personality. “He was a wonderful, intelligent, gentle soul, and I think that came through,” she said. “He had certainly paid his dues by the time this opportunity came around, and so had the creature. I think that came through in his portrayal.”
Although she hasn’t yet experienced the full live performance of Shapiro’s score, she’s looking forward to it. “I’ve heard the overture, but not the music with the film,” Karloff said. “I am just so excited and so delighted to be included. I am really looking forward to it.”
The Binghamton Philharmonic presents Boris Karloff’s Frankenstein with a live orchestral score by Michael Shapiro on Saturday, October 25 at 7:30 p.m. at The Forum, 236 Washington Street in downtown Binghamton. The event begins with a 7:00 p.m. organ prelude by Nancy Wildoner, and a 6:30 p.m. pre-concert talk with Sara Karloff in the Recital Hall.
For tickets and information, visit binghamtonphilharmonic.org
Hear the overture here