Julia Tirinnanzi, creator of the Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy, which combines classic Poe stories with specialty themed cocktails. The immersive experience stops by Piqua on June 27 and 28.
Courtesy photo | Julia Tirinnanzi
Courtesy photo | Julia Tirinnanzi
By Eamon Baird
PIQUA — The Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy, a chilling story and cocktail experience, will make its way to Piqua on June 27 and 28.
This 90-minute immersive experience features Poe historians re-imagining four classic stories. The age 21-and-over event will take place at Fort Piqua Plaza Banquet Center, located at 308 N. Main St., Piqua
Tickets are sold out for the 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. performances on Thursday and Friday, but currently, there are tickets available for the 10 p.m. shows on each night. Tickets are $45 per person, which will include four cocktails.
Julia Tirinnanzi, who is one of the show’s creators, said this unique speakeasy experience has been touring the United States for the last 18 months.
“The show itself was kind of a passion project between our interests of Edgar Allan Poe, and a macabre kind of cocktail,” she said. “So, when it comes to literature and libations, we just thought it’d be a really cool way to pair together these two for a fun, interactive evening.”
The four Poe stories are: “The Tell-Tale Heart,” “The Raven,” “The Masque of Red Death,” and “The Black Cat.” Each story is complemented by a cocktail embodying its theme.
The speakeasy tours 52 weeks of the year stopping in cities large and small along the way. Tirinnanzi said currently there are five different teams who simultaneously cross the country.
“Not only do we get to go to cool and exciting places like Chicago, Brooklyn or Los Angeles, but we also like to get those places in between stops that folks might not otherwise get to see. Since we’re already making our way around the country, we might as well bring that joy to some smaller towns as well,” she said.
Tirinnanzi said the team decorates the spaces to give the audience an 1800s aesthetic.
“You’re going to notice the stage design. It looks like they’re stepping into Edgar Allan Poe’s personal home space,” she said.
Guests are encouraged to arrive in cocktail attire for this event, and Tirinnanzi said some arrive in full Victorian-era costumes.
“On some shows, you know, the guests are very reserved, and they’re kind of just taken aback by the performance. Other folks are drilling us with questions, they want to test our Poe knowledge,” she said.
While the tour currently only features four different Poe stories, Tirinnanzi hopes in the future they can expand to tell more Poe stories with new creative cocktails.
“There’s so much love for Poe out there and literature is such an underappreciated thing,” she said. “We’re definitely talking about keeping that enthusiasm going and doing a subsequent tour.”
For more information on the Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy, including tickets, cocktail descriptions, and future tour dates visit www.edgarallanpoebar.com.
