Meet The Characters of STRANGER THINGS: THE FIRST SHADOW

Whether you have binged every episode on Netflix or you are walking in fully blind to the Stranger Things universe, there is one thing for certain: you are bound to fall in love with this zany cast of characters. Stranger Things: The First Shadow is a prequel to the series and takes us back 30 years to the late 1950s where we meet this ragtag group and go on one thrilling adventure. I caught up with the cast during rehearsals to chat with them and dive into the world of Stranger Things. 

Louis McCartney as Henry Creel: Well he is just a kid, this beautiful nerd who just wants to make a couple friends after moving from Nevada. He’s trying to have a good life but it’s Stranger Things so nothing ever goes right. He has this horrible side to him, like Jekyll and Hyde and he can flip at a moment’s notice. IN the play we actually discover what sets him off, which I think is really interesting. 

Gabrielle Nevaeh as Patty Newby: So Patty is Bob’s adopted sister ,and in the play, she is the vessel for the audience to see Henry's humanity; and I think that's a beautiful thing. I think that a central idea that our play explores is can love defeat fear? And I think that Henry and Patty's storyline specifically is just so fun for me to play as an actor because it's dynamic, it's exciting, it's thrilling, but there's also a lot of heart.

Alex Breaux as Dr. Brenner: He is a hard-charging, tunnel-visioned, ambitious scientist who will stop at nothing to pursue his scientific method. Most of his scenes are opposite Henry, and I feel like those scenes have a different rhythm and flavor profile to them than the other scenes in the play, and will bring a lot of depth psychology and kind of hard-hitting drama to the play. 

Burke Swanson as James Hopper, Jr.: He’s your classic bad boy who really has a big heart. He’s trying to find his community and trying to feel love and goes about it in all the wrong way; like we all do in high school. 

Juan Carlos as Bob Newby: Sean Astin did such amazing work in the original series, big fan. I think fans have this special connection to Bob and wanted to know more about him - there's that whole Justice for Bob campaign and I hope to provide some justice and show how he developed to be the superhero that he is. 

Alison Jaye as Joyce Maldonado: This is a Joyce we have not seen before, of course made famous by the incredible Winona Ryder, but yeah this is senior year of high school in 1959 and we get to see a different side of her than we have seen. I can’t wait to show audiences what we have in store for them. 

Stranger Things: The First Shadow officially opens on Broadway tonight.