“Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.” (Edgar Allan Poe)
I’ve had a dark green, hardcover copy of The Complete Stories and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe on my bookshelf for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid, this particular volume (copyright 1966) lived on the small metal bookshelf in the hallway just off the living room, along with our complete set of encyclopedias and the various other books my parents had collected over the years. My mother had gotten this particular book from a book club she joined as a junior in high school in 1971 or 1972.
As a child, I remember sitting on the floor in the hallway across from the bookcase, my back against the wall, devouring the books. I loved nothing more than flipping through the various encyclopedia volumes to learn about topics that intrigued me and to discover new things about the world that I didn’t even know existed. I read whatever I could get my hands on, including this particular Edgar Allan Poe collection that my childhood mind couldn’t really make sense of at the time.
In college, as an English Literature major, I happily carted my parents’ collection of vintage Hemingway, Poe, and other books off to my little apartment. The classics seemed somewhat out of place on my bookshelf filled with Stephen King paperbacks, but nevertheless, I was thrilled to add them to my book collection and soon began adding other vintage books I picked up at garage sales and consignment shops.
As an English Lit major at a small liberal arts college, I took challenging classes on Chaucer, Milton, and Shakespeare, in addition to the required American and British Lit survey classes. However, I was also able to fill my schedule with very unique courses, including a course on baseball literature (yes, it was all about literature tied to baseball), literature related to the Holocaust, Native American literature, and, my favorite, Supernatural Literature. This last class gave me the opportunity to analyze and discuss such classics as The Turn of the Screw by Henry James and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The House of the Seven Gables. More importantly, it allowed me to fully explore the works of Edgar Allan Poe in depth for the first time.
My interest in Poe was sparked in this class, and I began devouring his writings. I quickly read the required texts for the course and then pulled out the worn, green book that had been waiting on my bookshelf and read it cover to cover.
A few years later, I became a middle school language arts teacher and revelled in the chance to introduce Poe to my students. We read and discussed classics like The Tell-Tale Heart, Annabel Lee, The Raven, and Murders in the Rue Morgue, and I was delighted to see them discover this great American writer for the first time. We explored his life and the mysterious circumstances of Poe’s death, and my students even researched and came up with their own theories about what happened to him in his final days.
A few months ago, I was scrolling on my phone when an advertisement for an Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy event popped up. I thought it sounded very cool, but it was happening a couple of hours from where we live on a date when we already had plans, so I didn’t think much of it. The ads kept popping up in my feed, though, and one day I saw that the event would be held in a town only 40 minutes away. I made the suggestion to my husband that we go, since it was scheduled to take place the weekend after my birthday.
Now, my husband is definitely not the Poe fan that I am, but he agreed to indulge me on this, especially when I told him there were specialty cocktails involved. 😉
We arrived to find a line already stretched far out the venue doors, but we were quickly ushered in, greeted by our hosts, and given our first cocktail of the night, The Pale Blue Eye. We took our seats and settled in as the show began.
The actors, who were all incredibly talented and dressed in period costumes, shared dramatic retellings of classic Poe works, each with a themed cocktail to match. The service was quick and seamless, and hearing Poe’s words spoken aloud with a dramatic flair was highly entertaining.
After a brief introduction, the first story shared was The Tell-Tale Heart (with the Pale Blue Eye cocktail – get it?).
In between each actor’s dramatization, our hosts shared little tidbits about Poe’s life. I loved this element, as it really helped the audience understand how his life experiences impacted his work, which was something my students and I had discussed in my classes many times.
The second tale shared was The Black Cat. My husband had never heard this one, and apparently neither had many audience members. Several people gasped audibly during the more gruesome parts of the retelling, which made me giggle.
The signature drink for this tale was called “The Cat’s Meow,” and it was a brandy milk punch concoction that was supposedly based off of Poe’s favorite drink. Who knows if that’s really true, but it was definitely my favorite cocktail of the night! (Incidentally, you can find out more details about the cocktails and what’s in them by clicking here).
Next up was The Raven, with a dark purple, almost black signature cocktail called The Nevermore. This was a highlight for many people in the audience, as it is surely Poe’s most famous work.
Finally, we were treated to a retelling of The Masque of the Red Death, accompanied by the aptly named Red Death cocktail. This fruity, bright red drink was also delicious, and it was a fitting end to the show.
Overall, this was a highly entertaining evening, and my husband and I were both impressed with the quality of the performances and the delicious cocktails. I would 100% recommend this experience, even for those who aren’t diehard Poe fans, although hearing his macabre work in a dramatic retelling is, of course, not meant for the faint of heart. It would be an excellent outing for a book club or a group who is just looking for a different type of experience. Tour dates and locations can be found on their website.
Amy Bellamy, Author 