NEVERMORE
Preview Calgary, FFWD Weekly With Beth Graham

Vertigo Theatre and the High Performance Rodeo are bringing the production from our northern urban neighbour to Calgary as part of this year’s High Performance Rodeo.In 2009, Nevermore won seven Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards — Edmonton’s equivalent to Calgary’s Betty Mitchell Awards, celebrating artistic achievement in the professional theatre community. Before hitting our fair city, Nevermore has also been seen by audiences in Ottawa, Vancouver, New York and London.

As the title reveals, Nevermore explores the life and death of Poe, whom literary historians consider to be the father of detective fiction. His name is known for such famous works asThe Raven and The Fall of the House of Usher.

Born in 1809, Poe died at the age of 40 after being found, delirious and alone, on the streets of Baltimore. His death has generated a lot of interest amongst the general populace, as scholars have never conclusively determined what he died of, and how he came to be in a state of distress on Baltimore’s streets. Some attribute Poe’s death to alcoholism, some say it was illness ranging from rabies to tuberculosis, while others say he was the victim of “cooping” — a corrupt election practice during which citizens were plied with alcohol and drugs, then forced to vote repeatedly for a candidate by the candidate’s henchmen. Rumours also exist that, in Poe’s final hours, he cried out someone’s name, but his (or her) identity has never been established. So much mystery surrounding Poe’s death leaves room for speculation and interpretation, often by novelists and dramatists.

“Some of it’s based on fact, some of it’s completely made up,” explains Catalyst ensemble member Beth Graham of Nevermore . Graham plays a variety of women in Poe’s life in the production, including his adoptive mother, his sister and the cousin he eventually marries.

“There’s a lot of mystery around his death, and Christenson leaves his death a bit open-ended,” she adds.

As with other Catalyst Theatre works — one of which, Frankenstein, came to the Rodeo in 2009 — Nevermore uses a heightened style of performance, complete with stylized choreography.

“There’s always a strong visual element to their (Catalyst’s) shows, and a lot of the language is really heightened. It’s far from naturalistic,” Graham says.

Similarly, Graham says, the costumes are anything but natural. “They’re these architectural designs made of sticks, paper and masking tape that help make the characters and the style larger-than-life. You have these huge costumes against the black-lace backdrop, and they really pop,” she says.

“I remember getting my costume and saying, ‘Whoa, I have to fill this?’” she adds with laughter.

In keeping with its subject matter, the production has a dark, gothic, macabre feel to it, although Graham says there are some lighter elements interspersed throughout. “There’s definitely some fun, quirky stuff. What’s fun about it is the roller-coaster ride of the highs and lows of Poe’s life — going up to the heights of joy and then having it pulled out from under you,” she explains.

Nevermore alternates between real-time and flashback scenes. A chorus often acts as the play’s narrator, recounting key events in Poe’s life, and chorus members transition into portraying characters in his life.

Nightmare sequences are interwoven throughout the story, reflecting both Poe’s writings and the demons he wrestled with throughout his life. “The story can be quite dark at times. There are a lot of nightmarish images. To have these unrealistic apparatuses attached to our bodies helps with the nightmarish quality of the show,” says Graham.

There is much fodder for nightmares in Poe’s life. To begin with, he was orphaned as a small child. As a young man, he married his 13-year-old cousin, who died of tuberculosis while in her early 20s. “He was such a tortured artist really. He was haunted by all these people in his life that he loved and lost,” Graham explains.

Nevermore includes many references to — and excerpts from — Poe’s poetry and short stories, including The Tell-Tale Heart, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Fall of the House of Usher.

Christenson also wrote a complete musical score for the show, which Graham describes as “operatic” and “haunting.”

Graham speculates that people remain interested in Poe more than 150 years after his death partly because he deals with the timeless subject of death. “Death is so much at the surface of his work. The whole idea of being buried alive scares the crap out of me. I think his stories still have the ability to terrify us,” she says.

“I think this play succeeds in scaring people. It’s unsettling in the best possible way.”

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