This Thursday, The Poe Museum presents the latest edition of their Unhappy Hour, an informal ode to the macabre wit and mystery of Edgar Allan Poe. Held from 6 to 9 pm on the fourth Thursday between the months of April and October, each event has a theme based on a particular Poe story or poem, and this month focus is on “Annabel Lee,” the last poem Poe completed before his death.
This Thursday, The Poe Museum presents the latest edition of their Unhappy Hour, an informal ode to the macabre wit and mystery of Edgar Allan Poe. Held from 6 to 9 pm on the fourth Thursday between the months of April and October, each event has a theme based on a particular Poe story or poem, and this month focus is on “Annabel Lee,” the last poem Poe completed before his death. The evening will feature a reading of “Annabel Lee” by local actress Amber Boice, as well as live music by Washington DC’s Technicians. There will also be a book signing by Jeff Abugel, whose new book, Edgar Allan Poe’s Petersburg: The Untold Story Of The Raven In Cockade City, focuses on the little known facts behind Poe’s honeymoon in Petersburg.
The ambiguities surrounding the inspiration for “Annabel Lee” are still debated today; it is uncertain who the eponymous character, Annabel Lee, is intended to represent. Some biographers speculate that Poe’s recurring “death of a beautiful woman” theme stems from the repeated loss of women throughout his own life, including his mother Eliza Poe and foster mother Frances Allan. Others believe it was written for his late wife, Virginia.
The Unhappy Hour will focus on a reading of “Annabel Lee” by Amber Boice, which will take place in the museum’s enchanted garden. Boice sees the event as a way to shed more light on who Poe really was as a human. “I think there are a lot of things people don’t understand about Poe, and need to explore,” she said. The event is intended to dispel some of mystery of Poe by humanizing the legend.
To put people in the right mood, Boice wishes to bring out Poe’s very dark and interesting sense of humor, which helps illuminate the state of his psyche at the time of writing “Annabel Lee.” The poem’s gorgeous imagery helps Boice “bring people through that mental image; beautiful picture of a poem that it is.”
Having performed twice before at Unhappy Hour, Boice hopes people come out for not only the interesting crowd that flocks to the Poe Museum each month, but to educate themselves on some of Poe’s more obscure works. “There’s more to him then ‘The Raven’… and ‘Tell-Tale Heart’,” said Boice. “For educational reasons… about somebody who was really great from Richmond, [people] should come out.”
The Poe Museum always has a lot in store for literary-minded visitors, and this Unhappy Hour should throw a spotlight on what it has to offer. So start your weekend early, and witness the legend of “Annabel Lee” come to life this Thursday at 6 pm. The Poe Museum is located at 1914-16 E. Main St. The Unhappy Hour is family-friendly, free, and open to the public, although a kind donation of five dollars is encouraged. For more details, check out the facebook event invite here: https://www.facebook.com/events/441827422552587/
