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Stranger Things has officially returned to Netflix for its fifth and final season. While fans tune in this holiday season to find out what’s happening in Hawkins, anyone who has headed to the Marquis Theatre recently is already privy to some very exciting backstory. Stranger Things: The First Shadow is now in its ninth month on Broadway, and there has never been a better time to find out what went down before the events of Season 1.
Are monsters born… or made? In 1959 Hawkins, Indiana, the Creel family seeks a fresh start — especially their teenage son Henry, who is eager to escape his troubled past. Everything changes when he meets Patty, a fellow outsider, and their budding romance gives Henry hope for the first time. But when a wave of shocking crimes strikes the town, Henry is forced to confront a terrifying truth: is something inside him that connects him to the horrors unfolding around him?
“We are certainly a catalyst for Season 5 and for Stranger Things as a whole. We’re a spin-off, but we are our own standalone story and we’re a prequel,” explained Louis McCartney, who plays Henry Creel. “[The play] is a very important, very prevalent part of the Stranger Things universe with all these younger characters. With Brenner and Henry, it’s extremely important to see their dynamic, the reasons why Hawkins has to fall, the reasons that the pain is so important, the fear, the want to fit in, all of the above. It’s in The First Shadow.”
“That is the crux of our show- answering that question and elucidating light where there is shadow,” added Alex Breaux, who plays Dr. Brenner. “The complexity of who Vecna is grows by bounds because of the humanity that [Louis] brings to the stage show.”
Breaux has the distinction of being the only actor to appear in both the play and the series. He portrays Lieutenant Robert Akers in the final season, which is now streaming on Netflix.
Watch in this video as the pair chats more about the play’s easter eggs, their devoted fanbase, and more!
