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Edgar in the Red Room

 
Peter Swann Review by Peter Swann 3 Published: 13 Feb 2026 The Hope Theatre Show Dates: 3 Feb 2026-14 Feb 2026

Adapting Edgar Allan Poe for the stage, Edgar in the Red Room utilises a popular premise: Poe is dying. In his final, delirious hours, reality fractures into a fever-dream where memories, nightmares, and characters from his fiction bleed together. What follows is a theatrical “greatest hits” remix: a hallucinogenic reimagining of his most famous stories into what the company calls “the story Poe never wrote.”

A production with real heart, mystery and imagination

There is no denying the effort, ambition, and affection behind this macabre musical offering. From the poster image of two actors donning Poe’s famous moustache and wig in a knowingly cosplay-like fashion, we sense that this may not be the most solemn of evenings. For audiences familiar with Poe’s work, the show offers a literary treasure hunt. References interweave, and there is genuine pleasure in recognising how his stories are stitched together. The Raven inevitably, makes an appearance, though it feels more shoe-horned than essential, perhaps largely because it is Poe’s most famous work, though it doesn’t add a great deal to the unfolding narrative and never quite earns its place beyond audience expectation.

However, this density of reference may also be the production’s greatest barrier. For those less versed in Poe’s canon, the piece risks becoming confusing, even alienating by assuming a high level of prior knowledge.

Even for Poe fans, however, there are moments of narrative muddle. Historically, at the time of his death he was working on one called The Light-House, so why would his last creative act be populated entirely by characters, events, and locations from stories he had already written? And the moment where the two Poes realise they are dead and trapped for eternity, only returns back into the House of Usher narrative, as if the nightmare simply resumes unchanged.

There are, however, genuine saving graces. Musically, the production often soars. The ensemble realisation of Annabel Lee is particularly beautiful: gorgeously sung, sensitively harmonised, and a true testament both to Poe’s poem and to the creative team behind the show. Kilian Crowley’s Roderick Usher is a standout. Possessing a commanding stage presence, he pitches the role with just the right balance of sincerity and melodrama – the kind of heightened Gothic performance that Vincent Price himself would surely have admired.

The production design is inventive, with innovative shadow puppetry that compliment the various stories and songs. Projections are sometimes effective and atmospheric, but at other moments appear overly pixelated, undermining their impact. One notable misstep sees Poe’s wife Virginia mistakenly displayed instead of his mother, Eliza – a detail that jars in the short section that appears so invested in Poe’s biography.

As a theatrical study of Poe, the show’s focus is also somewhat limited. It is understandable, though regrettable, that the production confines itself almost entirely to the writer’s darker tales, and reinforces the familiar image: perpetually melancholy, tortured, friendless, and morbid, further entrenching a popular but partial myth.

A production with real heart, mystery and imagination, but one that doesn’t quite escape the maze it so lovingly constructs.

Amir Nisi

Peter Swann

Peter is an actor, director and theatre producer. He has created and toured various award-winning productions around the UK, to Edinburgh Fringe and internationally.

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The Blurb:

The death of Edgar Allan Poe remains one of literature’s great unsolved mysteries.  Through music, movement, projections, and shadow play, this theatrical experiment follows Poe through a haunting and hallucinogenic re-imagining of his final nightmare.  This exploration of the life, death and legacy of Poe combine themes and characters from several of his most infamous stories and poems into “the story Poe never wrote.”After sold-out houses, awards and rave reviews at theatre festivals in the USA and Canada, “Edgar” comes to London for a two-week run at the Hope Theatre.  Toronto Intermission Magazine: “magical…a fever dream,” Toronto Star: “a frenzied adventure into the writer’s mind.”  Forget the Box, Montreal: “flippin’ impressive……a testament to what’s possible on the small stage with dedication, dreams, and a dash of madness.” Forget the Box reviews. Winner- “Best English Production”, Montreal Fringe Festival. Finalist “Best Adaptation of Poe’s Works” Poe Fest International.LATECOMERS MAY NOT BE ADMITTED.UNDER 18s ARE NOT PERMITTED INTO THE THEATRE FOR THIS PERFORMANCE.No re-admittance once the performance has commenced.Refunds and exchanges are not available.
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