Edgar Allan, a play created and performed by Katie Hartman and Nick Ryan, was at 18th and Union Performing Arts Space for two nights. This play follows Edgar Allan as he arrives at a new boarding school and all he wants is to be the best. He finds that he is thwarted by a boy who is also named Edgar Allan.
This play premiered in 2013 and has since gone on to win multiple awards, and they are deserving of their accolades. The script is a brilliant homage to Edgar Allan Poe. The show clocks in at an hour and while the ending is brilliant, it left me wanting to see more of the world that the actors had created. Their interactions with the audience made me feel like more than a person watching a play. I felt as though I was in their world, and I watching this friendship between the two Edgars slowly evolve and change.
Being true to Poe, this show was full of brilliantly dark humor. The newly arrived Edgar Allan (played by Katie Hartmann) portrays a manic and vibrant character with an almost childlike voice which is offset by the second Edgar Allan (played by Nick Ryan) who’s comedy comes in the form of being blunt and talking in a deep gravelly voice. Their dynamic is electric and captured the attention of the audience through their dichotomy. The two are different in energy and voice, but often mirrored actions in order to show just how similar they actually are.
This show isn’t performing in Seattle anymore, but it is still on tour and is worth seeing. Edgar Allan is performed by two actors that captured my attention and left me wanting more.
Edgar Allan, by Katie Hartmann and Nick Ryan. Produced by 18th and Union Arts Space. At 18th and Union, 1406 18th Avenue in the Central District. September 21 at 9:30 & 23 at 7:30. Info: https://www.thecoldharts.com/edgar-allan-eddie-poe