Lord Byron’s MANIFRED Comes to Life

Theatre lovers and literary enthusiasts alike have reason to celebrate this unique collaboration, which breathes fresh life into a classic work that’s rarely seen performed—if at all. It’s a match made in cultural heaven: one of the city’s most venerable libraries providing the perfect atmospheric venue, and a Brooklyn-based theatre troupe specialising in unearthing forgotten gems. Together, they’re ensuring that Byron’s resonant themes of isolation and self-reflection will be anything but dusty.

The event, which is open to the public, invites attendees to step into the Library’s centuries-old reading room, where 19th-century editions of Byron’s MANIFRED will also be on display. That means you can literally walk in, admire the original text in a vintage 1839 publication, and then settle down for a performance. It’s precisely the kind of immersive, intellectually stimulating experience that the New York Society Library says is part of its DNA. After all, not every library can boast that it dates back to 1754, predating the Declaration of Independence and once serving as the city’s main library before the public system ever existed.

With NRT dedicated to making “overlooked, lesser-known, or forgotten works” accessible to modern audiences, Manfred feels like the perfect fit. The poem belongs to a category known as a ‘closet drama’, intended primarily for reading rather than performance. However, Eliza Palter, NRT’s Founder and Artistic Director, thrives on challenges like these, determined to imbue Byron’s script with an energy that’s alive, immediate, and thoroughly human. So if you’re looking for a unique, culture-laden outing that blends literature, theatre, and a glimpse into the past, you’ll want to keep reading.

A Library Steeped In 270 Years Of Tradition

Located at 53 East 79th Street, the New York Society Library has stood as a cornerstone of Manhattan’s literary scene since 1754. Originally established when New York City was but a fledgling metropolis, the Library has witnessed everything from the Revolutionary War to the city’s transformation into a global hub for arts and culture. That sense of history isn’t just a dusty footnote—it informs the Library’s every programme and partnership. Sayer Holliday, Director of Programming & Communications at the Library, says that teaming up with NRT feels like a natural extension of the institution’s mission.

Working with a company like New Relic, who seek out and revitalise buried gems from books of the past, is very much in line with our goals,” she explains. “It’s an opportunity to honour the vintage, intimate tone of our space while also bringing some of the city’s most exciting actors and creatives closer to our audience.

By hosting the reading in its historic reading room, the Library isn’t only offering aesthetic grandeur—it’s also bridging literary scholarship with the immediacy of live performance. Attendees can deepen their understanding of Byron by browsing the rare volumes on display, making the event part theatrical showcase, part mini cultural festival. For a city that thrives on fusions of old and new, it’s a match made in bibliophile heaven.

Introducing The Closet Drama Series

NRT’s performance of MANFRED is the latest instalment in the theatre company’s Closet Drama Series, which began in July 2024 with Margaret Cavendish’s  proto-feminist satire, The Convent of Pleasure. The concept behind this series is deceptively simple: take works that were originally written to be read aloud rather than fully staged, and find ways to stage them anyway. For NRT, it’s an opportunity to reinvent the boundaries of performance and invite audiences to engage with texts they might never have encountered outside of a dusty anthology. Eliza Palter points out that these interactive readings help the company “move these pieces off of the page and into a room.” She believes that, in doing so, they create a unique blend of intimacy and immediacy. “You’re seeing 200-year-old lines of poetry spoken aloud, accompanied by the raw energy of live actors,” Palter notes. “That spark of connection can offer a modern audience a direct line to the emotional heart of a historic text.”

Why Manifred?

Lord Byron remains one of the most iconic figures of the Romantic period—famed for his passionate poetry, scandalous personal life, and moody, introspective characters. MANIFRED, written in 1816–1817, is often classified as a closet drama because it was never strictly intended for stage performance. Yet the text brims with dramatic tension, exploring a protagonist tormented by guilt and existential ennui. Themes of isolation, forbidden knowledge, and the supernatural all swirl beneath the surface, making it ripe for theatrical exploration.What resonates today, according to Palter, is Byron’s unwavering focus on a character wrestling with himself, even as he’s set against a backdrop of cosmic powers.

“A text always changes when moving from the page to the stage, but presenting a closet drama comes with particular challenges and opportunities,” adds Sayer Holliday. “Byron’s thematic focus on isolation feels both timeless and modern, and the intimate setting of our reading room amplifies the emotional weight of the piece.”

For those who appreciate a touch of the dramatic, MANIFED’s stormy introspection makes it a perfect antidote to everyday routine. “Don’t we all want some intense melodramatics to cure the blahs of a New York City winter?” Holliday quips.

The Challenge Of Performing A ‘Closet Drama’

Closet dramas like MANFRED can be trickier to produce than your average play. They often lack the same structure as stage plays, featuring extensive monologues, fewer scene changes, and a more poetic style. That’s where NRT’s creativity shines. The production, directed by  Eliza Palter and produced by Chris Phillips, focuses on fostering an active conversation between text and performance. Instead of full sets and elaborate staging, the reading aims to harness the power of suggestion, giving the audience space to envision the story in their own imaginations.NRT’s staging choices might include subtle costumes by Anna Rudegair, shifts in lighting, or atmospheric sound effects to evoke the grand, foreboding tone of Byron’s Swiss Alps setting. The cast includes Samori Etienne, Kelsey Malanowski, Nicole Albanese, Freddy Vaccaro, and Elijah Levi-Dabby, with Ellery Cordes as stage manager. In the absence of typical theatrical infrastructure, these performers become the vehicle through which Byron’s words emerge, bridging centuries in a single breath.

“We love finding these overlooked, lesser-known, or forgotten works and giving them new life,” Palter reiterates. “Our goal is to make them accessible—even for people who might never have read Byron before. Ultimately, if someone who’s new to Romantic poetry walks away feeling personally moved by Manfred’s struggles, we’ve done our job.”

Embracing 19th-Century Literature In The 21st Century

Bringing a piece like MANFRED into a bustling modern city resonates on multiple levels. On the surface, it’s a cultural spectacle: an evening that marries a stately library, a historic text, and a performance style seldom seen today. But on a deeper note, it’s an exercise in empathy across the ages. Byron wrote *Manfred* at a time when Europe was reeling from wars and political upheaval—yet he channelled those anxieties into the internal turmoil of one man, a struggle that feels remarkably relatable in an era where mental health and personal introspection dominate contemporary discourse. This connection isn’t lost on NRT or the Library. By holding the event in a working library space, participants have immediate access to context and historical richness. Rare editions of Byron’s works, like the 1839 volume on display, ground the performance in a tangible sense of literary heritage. “It’s an opportunity not only to experience the play but also to dive deeper into Byron’s world,” Holliday says, noting that the resources are there for anyone who wants to explore further after the show.

Meanwhile, the Library’s robust history as a centre for intellectual pursuit underscores the importance of safeguarding stories that might otherwise vanish in the relentless churn of new media. As the city’s oldest cultural institution, the New York Society Library has made it a point to engage readers of all ages. From children’s story hours to events featuring contemporary authors, the Library thrives on fostering curiosity. Inviting a younger theatre company to resurrect a Byron closet drama is just the latest example of how it evolves while staying true to its mission.

Bridging Past And Present

So why should someone choose to spend an evening with Byron’s tortured hero? For starters, it’s a chance to see how the concerns of early 19th-century Europe—guilt, existential questioning, the allure of hidden knowledge—still surface in our modern psyches. But beyond that, it’s a fusion of theatre, history, and community that’s rare to find in a city as expansive as New York. “We want these stories to feel immediate, human, and relevant,” Palter emphasises. “It’s an extraordinary opportunity for connection—with our past and present alike—to hear people from hundreds of years ago grappling in their own voice with so many of the same emotions we grapple with today.”With performers ready to channel Byron’s poetic anguish and a library eager to share its treasures, MANFRED’s reading stands poised to deliver a memorable night for theatre enthusiasts and literature buffs alike. After all, how often do you get to peer into a centuries-old edition of Byron’s work while also seeing it spring to life under the same roof?

A Romantic Legacy Reawakened

In a city famed for its eclectic arts scene, it can be easy to overlook the quieter corners where literary history waits to be rediscovered. That’s precisely what makes this collaboration between NEW RELIC THEATRE and the New York Society Library so special. By stepping off the busy Manhattan streets into the hush of a centuries-old reading room, you immerse yourself not only in Byron’s haunting words but also in an ongoing narrative about how we preserve and reinterpret culture across generations.If your idea of an engaging evening includes a dash of Romantic-era melodrama, a glimpse at vintage editions of classic texts, and a front-row seat to innovative theatre, then you’d be hard-pressed to find a better opportunity. MANFRED is ready to walk out of the pages of history and into the light of the present—and thanks to NRT and the Library, you can be there to witness it, discovering for yourself just how alive 19th-century literature can feel when it’s freed from the confines of silent reading. Whether you come out of curiosity, love of Lord Byron, or a craving for something different, you’ll leave with a renewed sense of how the echoes of the past can speak volumes to the present.