The Suspense Is Killing Them

This weekend, I got the chance to combine two recent good theater experiences into a new third one. The Stories on Stage series I caught before Christmas offered up a new installment. And this one was done by the cast of the Buntport Theater, whose hilarious Titus Andronicus! The Musical! recently had me rolling.

There was actually a third great ingredient in the mix this time around, the evening's subject matter: "Tales of Mystery and Suspense." The stories this time were "8" by Jack Ritchie, "If We Had Been Dancing" by Denver local author Manuel Ramos, "The Landlady" by Roald Dahl, "The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe, and "We Can Get Them For You Wholesale" by Neil Gaiman.

The team at the Buntport opted to "stage" their stories a little more than the previous batch I saw had been. Where my previous Stories on Stage experience was simply single actors standing at a lecturn and reading (though to good effect), these stories were read primarily by one of the five company members, with other members taking up dialogue of some of the characters in the story. They also incorporated a small but effective number of props in their presentations.

With only one exception, the stories were really phenomenal. Sadly, the weak link was the one by the Denver local author. It wasn't "bad," but it did feel out of place in the evening's presentation. It didn't really offer any mystery or suspense. It actually felt more like the pre-credits sequence of an episode of CSI or something. It put pieces into motion, got to what might be considered an interesting plot twist at the end, but without anything on the way to make you feel like you'd heard a complete story.

But everything else was great. Jack Ritchie's "8" is a very short story I highly recommend. It's not too difficult to ferret out the plot ahead of time, but the quality of the writing (particularly the characterizations) make it well worth the journey anyway.

"The Landlady" reiterates what a sick puppy Roald Dahl really was, though the mean streak in stories like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory probably already have made that clear. I must say I didn't think this short story had quite the right ending -- it probably ended either a little bit too late, or a little bit too early -- but it's still a great deal of fun.

Poe's "The Black Cat" is... well... vintage Poe. Makes you wonder and worry how much of his writing might have been informed by urges he might really have had. This story is particularly good if you love a very heightened and calculated use of language.

Finally, Neil Gaiman's "We Can Get Them For You Wholesale" is just awesome. Very witty and very funny, as I'm sure any fans of his would expect. This story is great for its dark touches, and for having the perfect amount of very evocative details peppered throughout.

Of course, much of the joy I took from these stories was in how wonderfully these actors presented them in their readings. Nonetheless, I'm sure that lovers of suspense would enjoy reading them for themselves.