There was the creepy Grey House a few seasons ago, and you might when King Kong lumbered around a stage a while back, but Stranger Things: The First Shadow easily outdoes them for jump scares and genuine thrills.

This Broadway production delivers lots of spectacle as it winds back to the teenage years of Henry Creel, an antagonist from the Netflix series.

The First Shadow,” a stage prequel to the popular Netflix series, comes the question: Will this stand-alone tale appeal — and then satisfy — audiences beyond its fan base? The answer will depend on whether one’s love of spectacular effects — of which there are many — trumps other essential elements for great theatrical storytelling.

The First Shadow,” the stage spinoff of the popular Netflix series, feels uncannily like viewing a few episodes of the TV show. This seems intentional. The blood-red letters that flash the title across a scrim as the show opens replicate the font seen in the series’ title sequences.