Fringe Forever

Edgar Allan Poe at the Richard Hugo House
Seattle Playwrights Alliance
One hundred and fifty years after his death, a perfectly preserved Poe returns for a charming and alarming appearance in our "fine city." The father of Goth and spooky short stories continues his after-life promotional tour for a proposed literary magazine, expounding on the secrets of eternity and hacking away at his hated rival Longfellow. Paul Edward Smith recites Poe's poetry with eerie intimacy, creeping over the line while retelling "The Tell-tale Heart." A window into the morbidity of Poe's work is uncovered, and the depiction unveils a warm, intelligent portrait, complete with several witty touches, including a coffin-shaped flask.—R.C.

Hell On Earth
The Essayons Theatre Company
Chance, Hope, Grace, and "Tru," a band of not-so-virtuous angels serving as an escort service for humans' journey to the other side, get waylaid by a shrewd executed murderer. Playwright Art Hennessy, in the role of Chance, gives new meaning to "judgment day" with his cynical attitude toward humans, while Hope seems ambivalent, Grace foolish, and Tru unpredictably desperate. An ambitious concept filled with symbolism has the heavenly residents searching for meaning with their heads in the clouds. The characters' repartee expresses our own internal dialogue about death (with an inconclusive resolution naturally), leaving everyone a lost soul.—R.C.

Scott Nolte

Moreau needs to be more mortifying.

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All In the Timing
The Repertory Actors Theater
1998's "Best of the Fest," this encore presentation catapults a simple table and chairs into six comedy shorts focused on wordplay. In the new "Universal Language," Unamundo, a jargon of jibberish (combo of Spanish, Scandinavian, and Nintendo) is taught via a spellbinding performance by molto blizzardo Joseph Yang. While practicing conversation in "English Made Simple," the secret and superficial meanings of salutations are divulged with frighteningly funny accuracy. Caught in cosmic "Philadelphia," relentlessly replaying pick-up lines in "Sure Thing," and playing with innuendo in the fresh "Foreplay," T.J. Langley and ensemble shine with witty lines, inventive twists—and fine timing.—R.C.