The Gruesome, Gory, Grotesque Stories of Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe, his wife, Virginia and his editor, Griswold are frozen in time, endlessly repeating the moment of Virginia's death. Annie and Owen, two contemporary teenagers, enter the condemned building haunted by the trio and get locked in the room where they are unable to see the specters. Annie, with the help of Edgar and Virginia, starts looking for a lost letter Griswold hid from Poe, which keeps Edgar and Virginia apart. Frightened at first, Owen soon joins the search, motivated by the money the letter might bring. Meanwhile, Griswold watches the proceedings, comfortable in the knowledge that the letter he has hidden will never be found. As the day breaks and the wreckers come to destroy the building, Annie and Owen are released from the room. As they leave, Annie takes an oval portrait of Virginia, from which falls the lost letter, uniting the spirits of Poe and Virginia and condemning Griswold to a fiery eternity. The play skillfully interweaves three of Poe's best known stories. "The Black Cat," "The Tell-tale Heart" and "The Purloined Letter" with comedy, fantasy and mystery. The play received its world premiere production at The Serendipity Theatre Company in Los Angeles. About 75 minutes.