Netflix has teamed up with Sonia Friedman Productions to produce the stage play Stranger Things: The First Shadow, which is “rooted in the mythology” of the hit streaming series Stranger Things and opened at the Phoenix Theatre in London’s West End in December of 2023. The show has been breaking box office records and won several awards, and this year, it will be making the jump to Broadway. Stranger Things: The First Shadow is set to begin previews at the Marquis Theatre today, Friday, March 28, and officially open on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Now, Variety has learned that a behind-the-scenes documentary called Behind the Curtain: Stranger Things: The First Shadow is set to start streaming on Netflix on April 15th.
Directed by Jon Halperin, this documentary is said to be “an electrifying look backstage at the making of the play before it launched in London’s West End in December 2023.” It follows the cast and crew of the first Stranger Things: The First Shadow production as they race against time to prepare for its debut at the Phoenix Theater amid mounting anticipation. Alongside sell out performances and critical acclaim, the West End show would land two Olivier Awards in 2024, for best entertainment of comedy play and for set design.
A while back, Deadline heard that Stranger Things: The First Shadow “will be the first instalment in a trilogy exploring the dark underbelly of Hawkins, Indiana. Breaking Baz can reveal parts two and three are set to follow the inaugural play in two or three year intervals, according to insiders associated with the production.”
Written by Stranger Things writer and co-executive producer Kate Trefry from an original story she crafted with the Duffer Brothers and Jack Thorne, Stranger Things: The First Shadow has the following synopsis: Hawkins, 1959: a regular town with regular worries. Young Jim Hopper’s car won’t start, Bob Newby’s sister won’t take his radio show seriously and Joyce Maldonado just wants to graduate and get the hell out of town. When new student Henry Creel arrives, his family finds that a fresh start isn’t so easy… and the shadows of the past have a very long reach. Brought to life by a multi-award-winning creative team, who take theatrical storytelling and stagecraft to a whole new dimension, this gripping new adventure will take you right back to the beginning of the Stranger Things story – and may hold the key to the end.
Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers are creative producers on the play, and the show’s producers at 21 Laps get an associate producer credit. The play is being directed by Stephen Daldry, with Justin Martin co-directing. Behind the Curtain: Stranger Things: The First Shadow has been produced by Angus Wall, Kent Kubena, and Terry Leonard, with Matt Bell serving as executive producer.
Are you interested in seeing Stranger Things: The First Shadow on Broadway, and will you be watching Behind the Curtain: Stranger Things: The First Shadow on Netflix? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
