Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim

Frankenstein
or The Vampire's Victim
Sheet music cover
Music	Meyer Lutz
Lyrics	Richard Butler Henry Chance Newton
Book	Richard Butler Henry Chance Newton
Productions	1887 West End

Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim (sometimes called Frankenstein, or The Model Man) is a musical burlesque written by Richard Henry (a pseudonym of Richard Butler and Henry Chance Newton). The music was composed by Meyer Lutz. The piece is a burlesque of the Mary Shelley novel Frankenstein and the Adelphi Theatre drama based on the novel.

Opening at the Gaiety Theatre, London on 24 December 1887, the production was a flop, closing after a week. It starred Nellie Farren as Dr. Frankenstein and Fred Leslie as a monster who is in touch with his feminine side. The Victorian audiences found the piece too feminist in tone. In addition, the public was annoyed at George Edwardes, who had reduced the size of the inexpensive "pit" in favour of more "stalls". The piece also featured Marion Hood as the doctor's love interest Tartina; E. J. Lonnen as the vampire Visconti; Emily Cross as Mary Ann; Sylvia Grey as Tamburina, goddess of the sun; Sybil Grey as Vanilla; the dancer John D'Auban as Demonico; and Frank Thornton as Schwank.

This type of work, the Victorian burlesque, was popular in Britain at the time. Other examples include The Bohemian G-yurl and the Unapproachable Pole (1877), Blue Beard (1882), Ariel (1883, by F. C. Burnand), Galatea, or Pygmalion Reversed (1883), Little Jack Sheppard (1885), Monte Cristo Jr (1886), Miss Esmeralda (1887), Mazeppa, Faust up to Date (1888), Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué (1888), Carmen up to Data (1890), and Don Juan (1892, with lyrics by Adrian Ross).