Raven Ravin': “Murder by Poe,” at the Playcrafters Barn Theatre through August 16

Edgar Allan Poe may look like Bill Murray on a bender, but his real life was even worse than that. Dad left; mom died when he was two. Foster dad abused, then disowned him. He could only afford a year of university. Ever thwarted in love, he married his 13-year-old cousin (her mother told people she was 21). He died at 40; his manner of death both horrifying and mysterious. As if all that weren’t enough, a rival published a malicious, libelous obituary.

However, Poe was the among the first American working-class freelance writers – he had no fortune for a safety net like most of his contemporaries. He crowdfunded publication of his third poetry collection while at West Point, was a respected literary critic, and “The Raven” made him a celebrity – just not a rich one. His horror and mystery tales influenced countless writers and filmmakers, plus playwright Jeffrey Hatcher, who wrote Murder by Poe, the current offering at the Playcrafters Barn Theatre. Director Pam Cantrell, her cast, and her crew served this entertaining concoction (yes, there are funny bits) with seven of Poe’s stories as ingredients.

The forbidding atmosphere is chiseled into our souls when we enter the theatre. The stage holds a large black platform with a red coverlet, a writing desk, decanters of absinthe, and candles; the music is loud, filling the house like a physical beast, thanks to sound designer Gabe Thompson. There’s a projection screen at stage left. And what’s this structure at upstage right? A house! A very attractive, little gray stone house it is, too – or once was; it’s crumbling now – with fish-scale shingles and a stained-glass gable lit from within over a stone archway. The door holds three faux stained-glass panels bearing a raven, a black cat, and three red roses (possibly a nod to whomever left that same floral birthday tribute on Poe’s original gravesite for decades). A raven statuette stands by the door, beak open, and I can guess what he’s saying.

In fact – I actually hear that word! As the show begins, people converge on the stage from the audience side, murmuring, “Nevermore,” “Annabelle Lee,” “Lenore,” populating the atmosphere with the ghosts who live in Poe’s stories. The Woman, played by Julia Sears, enters. Lost in the woods, desperate, and sick – she comes upon the little house which seems to offer shelter and sustenance. Roderick Usher (Gabriel Thompson) and a detective who appears in three of Poe’s stories, C. Auguste Dupin (Drew DeKeyrel), emerge to tell The Woman that she can’t stay. The house is only for murderers, who have earned one room with each death they’ve caused. Then the murderers and their victims enter and reenact their stories for her. An Inspector (Jazmin Roberts) shows up to go over the cases with Dupin.

Murder by Poe is scripted to be staged in “Grand Guinol style” – that is, the famous Paris theatre which, in the early 20th century, machinated jump scares for patrons long before we saw them in horror flicks. I was expecting lots of gore in this play, for that was also part of the technique. However, the only blood I saw was decorous illustrated splatters on the projection screen, which politely vanished when it was no longer needed. That screen’s default image is a brick wall (I bet there’s some excellent wine behind it), and throughout, it obligingly illustrates the tales with a tree, a cat, and so on. Jacque Cohoon, who also served as Murder by Poe's producer, designed the projections. I did jump at least twice, so the show didn’t need red goop.

I wasn’t very familiar with some of the stories presented, so the suspense really worked on me. “The Black Cat” I knew, and wasn’t eager to see it acted out. Kyle Taylor, Jonna Hicks-Bird, and Tabitha Oles as the kitty gave compelling performances. It was as upsetting as I’d anticipated, so “Bravo!,” “Brava!,” and “Rowrr!” Elle Winchester as “William Wilson” performed that story as a monologue, and rose to the challenge of holding attention as the only person on stage – or were there two? She, Oles, Alicia Leonard, and Chloe Hansen made up the rest of the ensemble, taking on various roles. Paul Hansen recounted his crime of “The Tell-Tale Heart” with much anguish, and The Woman got to explain to him why he murdered that poor Old Man (Esteban Lopez) for nothing, which was amusing. Lopez was convincingly dead while being maneuvered around, and in another of the stories he performed an impeccable French accent, so “Chapeau!” (Yes, they really shout “Hat,” as in “My hat is off to you!”)

Cohoon, Cantrell, and Juniper Eberhardt came up with the visually striking costumes, which were black with red, lime green, and white accessories. And about Murder by Poe's wonderful set – no designer is credited in the program, but the builders were Rich Kobre, Chris Sambdman, and “cast and crew members.” It’s an entertaining way to spend an hour-and-a-half.

Murder by Poe runs at the Playcrafters Barn Theatre (4950 35th Avenue, Moline IL) through August 16, and more information and tickets are available by calling (309)762-0330 and visiting Playcrafters.com.