There is no better setting for psychological chills and thrills than UNDER St. Marks place. The theater, which looks and feels like one of the last great NYC bohemian enclaves, has been nurturing experimental works for several years. It is currently home to Frigid New York, a curated festival with a range of themes and performers.
Currently, Frigid is presenting Radiotheatre's 15th Annual Edgar Allen Poe Festival with exceptional skill and intellect. Using only two microphones and dim lighting, actors Frank Zilinyi and R. Patrick Alberty recreate five short stories by the master of macabre, Poe.
The Tell Tale Heart, The Masque of the Red Death, Berenice, The Case of M. Valdemar, and The Cask of Amontillado comprise the 90 minute event that will leave audiences sleeping with the lights on. David Neilsen serves as host, calmly but assuredly inviting listeners into the dark world of each story.
While so much entertainment dumbs down its storytelling and shows everything in graphic detail, writer and director Dan Bianchi instead trusts patrons enough to allow them to imagine the most gruesome details. Excellent sound effects and moody orchestral music, provided by Wes Shippee further enhance the evening.
Featured prominently between Zilinyi and Alberty is a sketch of the late writer himself, standing stoically with a deadpan glare as if his presence serves to bless the affair. Were he alive today, it's a safe bet that he would be pleased that his work is in such careful, capable hands.
Radiotheatre has been around for 22 years, but with such good artistry as this, they will certainly attract new audiences who want smart tales, served with a dollop of delicious death.
RadioTheatre’s 15th Annual Edgar Allan Poe Festival presented by FRIGID New York at UNDER St. Marks (94 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10009) runs through December 28th. For tickets and information, click here: tickets.frigid.nyc, 6897:1294.
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