HE may not be as well known as Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster or The Mummy, but The Golem was one of the original horror stars of the silent cinema.

The clay monster – which is controlled by instructions fed to him by his master – starred in a trilogy of movies made by Paul Wegener between 1915 and 1920, only one of which survives today.

But it was reading Gustav Meyrink’s 1915 novel ten years ago which first inspired Suzanne Andrade of theatre company 1927 to pen a live show based around the character.

“I thought it would be great to make a show with a live actor and clay man,” she says.

“It’s quite a folkloric story – he’s well-known as a Jewish myth unlike the other horror characters.

“One of the interesting things about the Golem myth is he’s inherently neutral – it is who controls the Golem where the potential for humour or evil comes from.”

The idea of a giant weapon whose actions depends on the temperament of its user could also be extrapolated to modern weapons of mass destruction or the power of the internet.

“Who is controlling the choices we make?” says Andrade.

“If you and I Google the same thing we will get different pages come up depending on what we have searched before and the profile that has been built up for us.”

1927’s production mixes live action and a 90-minute score with animation and claymation .

The complexity of the piece is the reason why the company behind last year’s acclaimed The Animals And Children Took To The Streets has embarked on a series of preview weekends ahead of a Christmas residency at London’s Young Vic.

“It’s a show where precision is really important,” says Andrade. “If it goes wrong the mechanics are exposed.

“There is so much happening backstage as well as onstage, with some stupidly quick costume changes.

“Our technician has 500 cues based on the music or what is happening with the animation. You almost can’t rehearse enough!”

This Old Market weekend is one of the last preview sessions before the production goes to London, having already been staged in Salzburg, Harrogate and Stratford.

One element which is completely locked in now is the animation – including the company’s first experience working with clay.

“Paul [Barritt animator and designer] and Des [Andrade, animator] had a nightmare with the Golem – he was the biggest diva they had ever worked with,” laughs Andrade.

“When he was too warm he started to melt, and when he was too cold he became too stiff to work with.

“Now as a projection he’s perfect – he remembers his lines and gives the same performance every night!