There was a man,
A most peculiar man
His tale
A most peculiar tale
Of mystery and horror
And of unrelenting woe
We met him on a steamer
From Richmond to New York
We'd have known him anywhere
Who wouldn't?
For there was no one more notorious than he
And although it was a stormy night
He stood on the deck looking up the James River,
Weary yet somehow full of,
What was it?
Yes, that was it,
He was full of desperate hope
And from his childhood,
From the dawn of a most stormy life was drawn
From every depth of good and e'il
A mystery
Which bound him still
Excuse me, I said
Pardon me, Mr. Poe?
It is you, isn't it?
Edgar Allan Poe?
I just wanted to say, you see,
that forty years ago in this very city, on this very day
I had the great honor of seeing your mother on stage
And afterwards
Meeting her
You met my mother?
Indeed
Won't you come in?
It's so dreadfully wet out there
It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Poe
We're very big fans of yours!
This man it seemed had never been
As others were, had never seen
As others saw
And could not bring
His passions from
A common spring
Allow us to introduce ourselves
We are the El Dorado Players
On route this faithful night to New
York to perform at the Park Theater
You're soaked to the skin, poor dear
So from one of our trunks full of costumes we gave him a shirt
Some trousers
A pair of shoes
And a waistcoat
Tell us, Mr. Poe, what takes you to New York?
I'm to meet in a week with a publisher
Oh, a new book?
No, it's about a position,
Chief editor of a new journal
That's wonderful!
It's just a short trip,
My fiancé awaits
Your fiancé?
Yes, we plan to be married upon my return
Well, congratulations!
From the same source he's never taken
His sorrow he could not awaken
His heart to joy at the same tone
And all he loved
All he loved
All he loved he loved
I wonder...
About my mother...
Do you think...
Could you tell me more?
It's just, the past,
It all seems like a dream to me now
Mr. Poe,
It would be our great pleasure to help you remember
Remember it all
Would you?
Are you ready?