UPPER NEWS NOTES

An evening with Edgar Allan Poe
It was a cold, dark, windy, rainy night – the perfect setting for a performance of some of the terrifying tales of that Master of Madness, Edgar Allan Poe.
Recently, the Ocean City Repertory Theater presented “An Evening with Edgar Allan Poe” to a large crowd who had gathered for the event. The evening was hosted and staged by Flossi Micciolo, the Producing Artistic Director, who founded the group in 2001.
“The Ocean City Repertory Theater creates extraordinary productions and programs that excite, entertain, engage our community, and nourish a lifelong passion for theater,” said Micciolo.
The event took place in a candlelit room at the Plymouth Inn, a charming bed and breakfast, located at 710 Atlantic Ave. in Ocean City. “The Inn was built in 1898 by Dr. Darby and is on the historic register,” said Marie Sullivan, manager.
The readers for the evening included Bud Knight, the former mayor of Ocean City, who read the psychological thriller, “The Tell Tale Heart.” Knight’s wife, Marie, gave a brief background of Poe’s life and recited two of his poems, “To My Mother” and “Lenore.” Cecilia Dugan-Mutchler read “The Black Cat,” and Dave Hayes interpreted “Annabel Lee,” “Alone,” and “The Raven.” It was Hayes’s first performance as a member of the Repertory Theater.
Kristine Crowe of Ocean City, who enjoys poetry, “saw the flyer in the library,” and was excited to be part of the audience as this was her “first event as a new tenant here.” Crowe’s mother, Faith, of Egg Harbor Township, liked the ambiance created by the candlelight.
Tim Cunningham, a sixth grade student at Sea Isle City Public School, enjoyed “The Tell Tale Heart.” Cunningham, who was accompanied by his mom, “thought the story was interesting.”
A scrumptious dessert buffet donated by local restaurants and the chance to chat with the performers, provided a first-rate finale to a first-class evening of entertainment.
On Friday, Dec. 19, at 7:30 p.m., at the Plymouth Inn, the Repertory Theater will present “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. Tickets are $10 and will include a dessert buffet. For more information about the group or future events, visit the website at www.ocrep.org. The Ocean City Repertory Theater is a not-for-profit organization.
DID YOU KNOW that the name “Ravens” was selected as the name of the Baltimore football team from a poll taken by the Baltimore Sun as a tribute to Edgar Allan Poe? His most-famous poem, “The Raven,” is believed to have been written in Baltimore, where he lived during the 1830’s. And, the official mascot of the Baltimore Ravens is, you guessed it, “Poe.”