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Poe takes stage in drama based on 3 works
By BARBARA FREDRICKSEN Three works by Edgar Allan Poe will be brought to life on the stage at the Center for the Arts at River Ridge on Sunday by the Eckerd Theater Company. The highly theatrical staging of Poe's The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher and The Tell-Tale Heart will be done by five actors in costume. The play opens with Poe standing alone in the flickering darkness, trying desperately to convince himself that he is not mad. As he ruminates, the three tales seem to materialize from the darkness behind him. The Raven, a melancholy poem of a student's lost love, accentuated by the repetition of the word "nevermore" by a mysterious raven, made Poe famous when it was published in 1845. Its unusual rhyme pattern and cadence enhance the gloom of the story itself. The Fall of the House of Usher is one of Poe's most terrifying tales. The narrator tells of visiting his childhood friend Roderick Usher, who slowly makes clear that his twin sister, Madeline, has been placed in the family tomb even though she was not quite dead. As he speaks, she reappears in her blood-stained shroud, leading to a disastrous end for almost all. The Tell-Tale Heart is a short gothic tale of murder and terror, as told by a homicidal madman. The story is often described as a classic study in psychopathology. The narrator, who believes he has been driven mad by the beating of an old man's heart, kills the old man, but it doesn't stop the beating of that heart, which drives him to further madness. The production is scheduled to play 30 performances along the East Coast from New York to Melbourne. It is recommended for ages 11 and older. At a glanceWHAT: Nightfall with Edgar Allan Poe WHERE: Center for the Arts at River Ridge, 11646 Town Center Road, New Port Richey WHEN: 2 p.m. Sunday TICKETS: $15 premium seating, $12 outer sections. Call (727) 774-7381 between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. today
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