by Amanda Nevada DeMel, curator of HOWLS Book Club nominees for January 2024’s “Dramatic Dread” category
It’s no secret that I love theatre. Give me the backstage drama, the final product, the history of the form, the ART. I love it all. While my soft spot is musicals, I love a good play too. There may not be a wealth of horrific theatre scripts (I mean substantial theatre, not Grand Guignol) (not looking down on Grand Guignol, though), but there are still some examples we can look at. Join me for a week (or two?) of theatrical creepiness!
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Godfrey Bond
Set in Victorian London, a barber returns after years of wrongful exile, only to discover that his wife poisoned herself and his daughter was taken by the judge who sentenced him. Murder, cannibalism, and madness ensue.
~
I tried reading the original penny dreadful The String of Pearls twice, but it’s just not good. I picked up the Bond play last year to do a long paper on the theatrical history of Sweeney Todd and I loved it. It’s fun, short, dark as heck, heavily inspired by Middleton’s The Revenger’s Tragedy (another favorite), and the source material for Stephen Sondheim’s glorious musical Sweeney Todd. And I named one of my sons Sweeney Todd, so I might be fond of the whole thing.
StoryGraph | Goodreads | Amazon
Manfred by Lord Byron
The character of Manfred is a nobleman living in the Alps, tormented by some unknown guilt involving his dead beloved, Astarte. He uses his supernatural powers to summon seven spirits and commands them to make him forget his unnamed sin. (englishhistory.net)
~
This one is a closet play, meaning it is not meant to be staged. I love that concept. There are definitely too many otherworldly happenings to work on a stage. I first read Manfred in undergrad with a less-than encouraging professor, but I still enjoyed it. I’ve been thinking about revisiting the play for a while. Also, Tchaikovsky composed a beautiful symphony based on the play.
Bookshop* | StoryGraph | Goodreads | Amazon
The Dybbuk by S. Ansky
The Dybbuk, regarded as the classic drama of the Yiddish stage, has long frightened yet fascinated audiences throughout the world. Based on Jewish folklore, its dark implications of mysterious, other-worldly forces at work in a quaint and simple village make for gripping, suspenseful theater. To the Chassidic Jews of eastern Europe, a dybbuk was not a legend or a myth; rather it remained a constant and portentous possibility. During that age of pervasive mysticism, when rabbis became miracle workers and the sinister arts of the Kabbala were fearsomely invoked, it was never doubted that a discontented spirit from the dead could cross the barrier between the “real” and the “other” worlds to enter a living human body. The Dybbuk is a masterful play, full of deep-rooted obsessions and dramatic suspense, fascinating for the glimpse it provides of the rich, poetic, and often tragic culture of the Chassidim. In this classic translation by Henry Alsberg and Winifred Katzin, the authentic cadences of the original Yiddish are deftly preserved. (StoryGraph)
~
I think this one was on my previous two lists as well. It’s Jewish and sad, so it immediately checks two of my boxes. It’s not usually seen as horror, but I think it qualifies. I mean, we’re dealing with death and ghosts and possession and gender and power dynamics. It’s also the only work in translation on this list. I’ve read two translations (one of which is on the Internet Archive) and I find the Neugroschel one to be simply amazing.
Bookshop* | StoryGraph | Goodreads | Amazon
Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Macbeth and Banquo, who are generals serving King Duncan of Scotland, meet the Weird Sisters, three witches who prophesy that Macbeth will become thane of Cawdor, then king, and that Banquo will beget kings. Soon thereafter Macbeth discovers that he has indeed been made thane of Cawdor, which leads him to believe the rest of the prophecy. (Encyclopedia Britannica)
~
I’m always shakin’ it for Shakespeare. I’ve long wanted to write a lengthy article on how modern horror spawned from tropes laid down in Macbeth, and rereading the play might give me the kick to do so. I have a short story inspired by the Weird Sisters (also known as the Witches) that I’d like to reassess as well. I recommend the Folger edition, as it has useful footnotes and background information.
Bookshop* | StoryGraph | Goodreads | Amazon
The SkRiker by Caryl Churchill
Premiered at the Royal National Theatre, this extraordinary play by one of Britain’s leading playwrights combines English folk tales with modern urban life. In terms of its language alone, it is as exciting and challenging on the page as on the stage.
The play follows the Skriker, “a shapeshifter and death portent, ancient and damaged”, in its search for love and revenge as it pursues two young women to London, changing its shape at every new encounter. Along with the Skriker come Rawheadandbloodybones, the Kelpie, the Green Lady, Black Dog and more, till the whole country is swarming with enticing and angry creatures that have burst from the underworld. (StoryGraph)
~
This is the only one I haven’t read, but it looks interesting. It’s also the only one on this list written by a woman.
Bookshop* | StoryGraph | Goodreads | Amazon
And The Winner Is…
Out of these five books, HOWLers voted to read The Dybbuk by S. Ansky. Discussion starts on January 15, and you can join in by joining the Discord!
*The HOWLS Bookshop.org affiliate storefront pays a 10% commission to HOWL Society and gives a matching 10% to independent bookstores