Reclaiming the Monster: A.B.L.E.’s ‘Frankenstein’ Redefines Disability and Humanity

In Artists Breaking Limits and Expectations (A.B.L.E.) Ensemble’s punk-rock retelling of “Frankenstein,” the so-called monster is no villain. He’s tender, misunderstood, longing and defiantly alive. 

A.B.L.E. is made up of actors with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities. The ensemble spent 15 years rewriting not just classic stories, but the assumptions keeping disabled artists on the margins, according to Honors program assistant Nicholas Hamel who has done extensive research on people with intellectual disabilities in theater. 

Upon entering Theater Wit during the show’s Oct. 24-26 run, attendees were first greeted by masks, fidget toys, sensory advisory guides, ear plugs, sunglasses and a screen displaying captions. 

Executive Artistic Director Katie Yohe, along with actors Colleen Altman, Matthew Lachapelle and Rachel Buchanan, welcomed the audience and explained what to expect. 

“We know that every member of our community, including you, has different ways of expressing themselves,” Yohe said. “Please feel free to react, make sounds and move around as needed to keep your body and your brain comfortable during the show.”

In order to make the arts more accessible for all, A.B.L.E. included specific facilitators who could drop in lines to mitigate actor memorization.

“Actors can then repeat those lines and bring their own flair and personality to it,” Yohe said. 

To better understand the impact of A.B.L.E.’s work, Hamel hosted a “Disability Culture Crash Course” presentation Oct. 23. 

The event, held in Simpson’s Multipurpose Room, was open to Loyola Honors students interested in attending the “Frankenstein” performance later that week. 

His crash course went over the roots of the disability justice movement, the creation of coalitions like A.B.L.E. and their belonging to a long lineage of activists and artists who fought for disability justice. 

Specifically, Hamel explained how Mary Shelley’s classic 1818 novel resonated with disability justice and activism, quoting a Martha Stoddard Holmes article. 

“Whether we look at the literalness of his scavenged and suture pieces or the emotional landscape of his enculturation with a spoiled identity, the Creature’s story resonates with disability experiences,” Holmes wrote in the article.

Hamel dissected three disability themes in “Frankenstein” — monsterization, dehumanization and eugenics.

“Often Frankenstein parallels the experience of disabled people,” Hamel said. “The idea that they are less than or the sense that their lives don’t matter as much.”

While Hamel said his ideas were based in theory, A.B.L.E. worked to bring them to life on stage — transforming the Creature from a symbol of fear into one of human flaws and emotions. 

This rendition of “Frankenstein” was loud, colorful and charged with energy. 

The production wasn’t a traditional showing, but a punk-rock stage retelling, part concert and part play. Between scenes, songs like “Dancing with Myself” by Generation X, “Blitzkrieg Bop” by the Ramones and “I Against I” by Bad Brains blasted through the theater as neon lights pulsed with the beat, creating the feeling of a live musical.

At the end of the play, the cast danced and sang along to Radiohead’s “Creep,” whose lyrics took on new meanings as they reflected the rejection of the Creature by his creator, Victor Frankenstein. 

As the story reached its climax, Zachary Wandel’s Creature forced Marissa Bloodgood’s Victor Frankenstein to face the weight of her own cruelty — the human cost of creation and rejection.

“Whatever I am, you made me,” the Creature said. “Just as I have made you.”

This scene underscored the core of A.B.L.E.’s “Frankenstein” — a performance built on the collaboration of actors, facilitators and the audience.

Each moment on stage reflected A.B.L.E.’s distinctive process. The audience, in turn, embraced this creative spontaneity. Moments of chaos were met with loud laughter and applause.

Facilitators stood beside actors, offering lines and gentle direction as actors echoed them with their own spin and personality. 

Together, they built a version of “Frankenstein” that was equally as structured as it was fluid — marked by accessibility, collaboration and shared creativity.