Edgar Allan Poe's "Tales of the Grotesque"

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—while I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, as of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. “’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—only this and nothing more.”

In this haunting adaptation of the works of Edgar Allan Poe, join the visitors of the melancholy House of Usher on a candlelit journey into the macabre. Despite their apprehensions, a stubborn doctor, a resentful medium, and a murderer attend the funeral of an eccentric recluse—only to question the circumstances surrounding her untimely death. As they begin to outstay their welcome, they uncover evidence of a connection between their disturbing pasts and the sinister presence stalking their every move. With their secrets exposed, they must be willing to summon their ghosts to survive the supernatural forces at work, and confront the meddlesome housekeeper who knows more than she claims. An immersive horror opera, Tales of the Grotesque invites visitors to explore Victorian Toronto through the eyes of literature’s most twisted author, and come tapping at the door to the unknown …

From the imaginative team behind Spadina Museum’s sold-out immersive operas, A Christmas Carol (2019) and The Medium (2018), comes this highly anticipated site-specific production. Harnessing verbatim text, movement, opera and live instrumentation, Tales of the Grotesque explores Poe’s most disturbed characters, including Roderick and Madeline Usher, Annabel Lee, Lenore, Morella, and the iconic raven. Set within the sprawling halls of Toronto’s oldest surviving building, the experience is sure to awaken the macabre in us all. Come be immersed in the grotesque world of Edgar Allan Poe, and partake in the experience audiences are calling “bewitching”, “innovative”, and “exquisite”.

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This is a Canadian Actors’ Equity Association production under the Artists’ Collective Policy.