Director's Note

Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated with the horror genre. As a small child, I grew up watching all the classic Universal Horror films of the 1920s – 1940s. These films were one of the main reasons why I found actors so fascinating, as I was amazed how one actor could play a multitude of monsters. My parents always nurtured my interest in gothic literature and horror movies. Because of them, Halloween was way better than Christmas. We would transform the house together and each year there'd be more monster make-up, masks, costumes, and props. With all of these storytelling devices, I would make horror films with a video camera that my Dad lent me, with a purpose to create the scariest stories to creep out my family. An incredible amount of my childhood was utterly devoted to horror, regardless of whether it was Halloween or not, or whether it was sunny outside. As I grew older, my love for horror was not as prominent. I tried to fit in a bit more with the status quo, as talking about actors like Lon Chaney, Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, seemed to only alienate me at school…

However, fast-forwarding twenty years later, during this pandemic, I returned to my love of classic horror stories. Using my skills as a trained actor and experienced theatre producer, I created digital theatre shows, livestreaming them firstly from home, then from empty theatres – all of them horror stories.

Now, to mark our first show back on stage and in front of an in-person audience, I’ve set my sights on this next huge challenge: to perform not one, not two, but four gothic tales from the mind of Edgar Allan Poe. I have a long-standing love for Poe’s original works and have often found filmic and theatrical adaptations of his work interesting… but never as good as the real deal. Therefore, I’ve decided to use his original publications from the 1840s, rather than adapting it, and honour the text like actors would when performing Shakespeare. One Man Poe will not simply be a live reading of his original work. I will memorise and whole-heartedly embody all four of Poe’s characters, reimagining their words for the medium of live performance. And, as a nod to the horror actors that I adored as a child, I intend to compliment each character with a completely new look, using quick costume and make-up changes between each tale.

With all of this combined, I hope to reward our audiences with a truly thrilling, varied and full night at the theatre, after spending such a long time away from them.