Frank J. Morlock

Fyodor Dostoevsky

Based on the 1864 novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Notes from the Underground features a highly charged encounter between the nameless narrator (the "Underground Man") and a prostitute named Lisa. A classic portrayal of the underbelly of Russian (and modern) society.

A Play in Two Acts

Notes from the Underground

John William Polidori

Charles Nodier

In the early 1800s, young British aristocrat Aubrey travels through Italy and Greece with the mercurial and fantastic Lord Ruthven. Later, when Ruthven returns from the dead to prey on his sister, Aubrey realizes that the enigmatic stranger is a vampire.

Lord Ruthven the Vampire

These four short French plays run the gamut from tragedy to satire, from highly artificial comedy to Naturalism, and present Eve, the Eternal Woman, in a variety of poses, none of them very flattering. Contents: Lady MacBeth, by Julius Le Sire; Zubiri, by Georges de Porto Riche, based on a tale by Victor Hugo; A False Conversation, by Theophile Gautier; and Widow!, by Henri Becque. None of these ladies are shrinking violets! Great drama in small packages."

Lady MacBeth and Other French Plays

Outrageous Women

Based on the 1875 novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, A Raw Youth is a drama of love, jealousy, death, and family relationships in a dissolute Russian society.

A Play in Five Acts

A Raw Youth

Stendhal

Based on the novel by Stendhal (Henri Beyle, 1783-1842), The Red and the Black tells the story of Julien Sorel, a talented and ambitious young peasant. Sorel manages to cynically and hypocritically manipulate those around him to gain a position as a secretary with a prominent Marquis--and to seduce his employer's beautiful daughter, Mathilde. But he doesn't love Mathilde--doesn't love anyone, really--and when he murders another woman with whom he's had an affair, the law inexorably grinds him in its gears. He refuses the assistance of his "wife," and proudly goes to his rendezvous with La Guillotine. His death, after all, is the only real protest he can make! First-rate drama by a master playwright.

A Play in Three Acts

The Red and the Black

Based on the Marquis de Sade's infamous novel of the same name, this new dramatic version of JUSTINE closely follows the original story, both in spirit and in action. De Sade, with his relentless logic, attempts to prove that "virtue" as practiced by most people actually contradicts nature. The innocent maiden Justine suffers one humiliation and setback after another in her futile quest to preserve her virtue and her virginity. No one--not the nobility, not the Church, not even her sister--will step forward to help her unceasing cries for help. Finally, even the Almighty Himself turns against her, fed up with her incessant whining.

Justine

Pierre De Wattyne

Yorril Walter

A mysterious criminal known as Fantomas terrorizes London. Only Sherlock Holmes believes in his existence, but Fantomas murders the great detective in circumstances that point suspicion at an innocent man.

Sherlock Holmes Vs. Fantomas

Alexandre Dumas

The implacable Lord Ruthven returns in a new, horror-filled story where the deadliest vampire of all comes face-to-face with an even more fearsome enemy-a female Ghoul of great necromantic powers. Both Ruthven and the Ghoul covet the same humans. The shadow-filled castles of Europe become the stage for the ultimate confrontation between Vampire and Ghoul-and those who dare defy them! The character of the Byronesque vampire Lord Ruthven was first created in 1816 by John William Polidori on the same night that Mary Shelley created Frankenstein. This volume includes an 1851 sequel presented here in its original form by the famous author of The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte-Cristo The book also includes an all-new story in which Dumas himself meets Ruthven in 1850s Paris, by renowned playwright and translator Frank J. Morlock.

The Return of Lord Ruthven

Based on the classic 1866 novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, this play focuses on Raskolnikov, the self-proclaimed "superior being," who commits a brutal murder to show his contempt for the rest of mankind.

Crime and Punishment

Victor Darlay

Henry de Gorsse

After the episode at Reichenbach Falls, Watson is closing the apartment at 221b. He is surprised by the appearance of Irene Adler, who reveals a dark side of Holmes that Watson never knew.

The Stage Play

Arsene Lupin Vs Sherlock Holmes

Victor Hugo

A rare 1826 French play by master fantasist Charles Nodier revisits the legend of Frankenstein, recasting the legendary scientist as a sorcerer and his Monster as a mute killer from Hell. The Hunchback of Notre-Dame was adapted and rewritten by Victor Hugo himself into a stage play that throws new light on the classic tragedy. These two never-before-translated masterpieces are supplemented by an all-new story by translator Frank J. Morlock (Lord Ruthven), in which the Frankenstein Monster travels back in time to save Quasimodo, but does not count on the intervention of - Dracula! Three tales featuring the two most tragic monsters in the history of Gothic literature.

Frankenstein Meets the Hunchback of Notre-Dame

Dmitry Merezhkovsky

Based on the novel by Russian writer Dmitry Merezhkovsky (1867-1941), Morlock's dramatic adaptation tells the tragic story of Russian Tsar Peter the Great's conflict with his only surviving son and heir, Tsarevitch Alexis. Peter, an autocrat who was determined to modernize Russia at all costs, dealt brutally with any opposition--but found his most stubborn and potent resistance in his own home in the person of Alexis. This was a battle of wills that could end in only one way, given the nature of the Tsar's personality and the enormous power that he wielded. The ultimate tragedy is that Peter loved his son, and Alexis his father--but neither could find a way in which to reconcile their political differences. Shades of the twenty-first century! A riveting psychodrama.

A Play in Four Acts Based on the Novel by Dmitry Merezhkovsky

Peter and Alexis

The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the great adventure novels of all time. But the author, Alexandre Dumas, also adapted his novel into four riveting plays. Part Three: The Rise of Monte Cristo is set two decades after Edmond Dantès has been unjustly imprisoned in the Château d'If. Edmond has made himself into the Count of Monte Cristo, and he now sets out to gain his revenge upon the three men who shangaied him into 14 years of prison. First on the list is Fernand Mondego, whose treacheries have brought him a fortune, a title (the Count of Morcerf), and a wife: Edmond's fiancée, Mercédès, who's long believed him dead. Monte Cristo uses his great wealth to draw a net around Fernand, gradually exposing his lies to the world. Finally, the two men must confront each other--knowing that only one of them will leave the room alive! Great action drama!

The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Three

The Count of Monte Cristo, one of the greatest adventure novels of all time, has been converted by the author into a series of four plays. In PART TWO, Edmond Dantes has escaped from the dreaded prison island of d'If after 14 years of captivity. He seeks out the fabulous treasure of Monte Cristo described to him by the Abbe Faria, and assumes the identity of the priest Busoni. Then he begins his odyssey of revenge, tracking down Caderousse and his wife, La Carconte, and finding the trail of Villefort, another of his betrayers. He also secretly helps his former employer, Mr. Morel. But he has yet to assume the identity of the avenging Count of Monte Cristo! First-rate action drama!

The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Two: The Resurrection of Edmond Dantes

Prince Myshkin, a sort of holy fool, stumbles into a sordid love triangle when he returns from exile to Russia. Myskhin means well, but he's simply too good for this world, and his well-meaning intentions bring disaster on himself and those he loves. Based on the classic novel, The Idiot, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.

The Idiot

Marquis de Sade

A Play in Four Acts Based on the Novel by The Marquis de Sade

Ivan Goncharov

Based on a novel by the Russian writer Ivan Goncharov, this dramatic comedy features his eponymous hero, Oblomov. A young man of considerable decency and kindness (with a "soul as clear as crystal"), Oblomov has fallen into such a state of lethargy that he resists even getting out of bed, finding every excuse possible to do absolutely nothing. All the efforts of his male and female friends to energize him ultimately fail in various hilarious ways. Goncharov's character became so identifiable, so emblematic of a particular subset of the upper classes, that it became a byword (olbomovism) for self-imposed laziness and indolence.

Oblomov

This dramatization of the classic novel is the first of four parts. In 1815 Napoleon has fled to Elba, and the Bourbons have been restored to the French throne. Young Edmond Dantes is First Mate and Acting Capt. of the merchant ship Pharoah. Everything seems bright for his future, until he's arrested for delivering a letter to Elba--a dying request of his former captain. Then three men conspire to send the innocent youth to the notorious island prison, the Chateau d'If. There Dantes meets the Abbe Faria, who gives him an education, and tells him of a fabulous treasure he's discovered. But Faria suddenly dies, and Edmond must take advantage of the sudden opportunity, or risk being imprisoned for life. He sews himself into the Abbe's burial shroud. Can he survive the plunge into the sea? An absolutely riveting drama.

Frank J. Morlock

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