January 27 – 29
In September of 1847, Edgar Allan Poe is reported to have boarded a steamer in Baltimore Harbor for an overnight voyage to New York City. He never arrived. Five days later, Poe was found delirious on a Baltimore street and died soon thereafter. What transpired over those five missing days has remained forever a mystery… until now. This imaginative play, utilizing the macabre stories and poems of one of America’s most celebrated writers, ponders what might have happened to him on the dreary nightmare voyage at the end of his life. Filled with masterful illusions and disappearances. Nevermore! keeps audiences on the edge of their seats from the first curtain to the final denouement.
Nevermore Director’s Notes
Too often we don’t recognize the darkness of which we, ourselves, are capable. Edgar Allan Poe’s works are like a bonfire on a pitch black night, not intended to cause darkness, but to recognize that we are in darkness. His characters can cause us to utter that age-old saying, “There but for the grace of God go I.” Either as victim or as antagonist, Poe wants us to know what we are capable of. When I told my family I was doing a show based upon the works of Edgar Allan Poe, they were kind of disgusted. “He’s really dark,” they said. “Do you want to highlight evil?”
This is exactly the kind of misunderstood criticism that Poe got in his own pre-Civil War era. During that time, the emphasis was on writing things that were uplifting only. Overall, the culture of both the north and the south preferred their literature to focus on what was considered “proper.” Poe burst this bubble with his macabre tales. People usually had two reactions to his works: revulsion or an unhealthy delight in the darkness. The first reaction would be from people who turned a blind eye to their own hypocrisy. In their Victorian ideals, they thought themselves above such thoughts and actions, though the mistreatment of entire people groups (slavery was still legal in America, for instance), defied this kind of pharisaical false sense of self-emportance. The other reaction, a reader who would take a kind of delight in the gruesome and the violent or downright enjoy the psychological horror for its own sake, has its own problems that should be obvious. To delight in evil is to harm the world.
Either reaction to these works leads to huge problems: to pretend that our darkness, such as, say, the mental health crisis in our world, doesn’t exist…or isn’t at least partially caused by what Shakespeare calls “the evil that men do” is as detrimental to society as it is to exalt this kind of sickness in the human soul. In other words, don’t pretend that we aren’t sick at heart sometimes, but don’t fall in love with it either. Like his story “The Masque of the Red Death,” (hits almost too close to home in a pandemic), the characters think themselves impervious to that sickness and end up…well, you’ll see how they end up when you watch this play!
In Nevermore: Edgar Allan Poe, The Final Mystery, we are trying to point the way to a different response to the works of Poe. Neither a hypocritical disgust with Poe’s darkness or a love of the demonic is intended by our production. Instead, how and why people make “a deal with the devil,” whether that deal is made by artists like Poe or regular folk like you and me, is both recognized and grappled with. We contend that great art often asks questions instead of providing clear answers, that sermonizing doesn’t fit in a play, but probing a play’s universal truths with inquiries does. This is why we often refer to our journey as actors and directors as an exploration.
After all these years, why do we still come back to the works of Poe? Because they contain the truth, which is like a light. And the truth is true in any age and doesn’t shift with time or perspective. We can either tap into that truth or not. We can see it, or we can stumble through the shadows for it. How do we do so? By exploration. By questioning. By lighting a candle in the darkness. Most people wouldn’t refer to the works of Edgar Allan Poe as “a candle in the darkness,” but I think that’s exactly what his works are doing. It is by the light that we know the darkness exists. Poe would encourage us to avoid convincing ourselves that the lights aren’t out. Have you convinced yourself that your intentions are only ever good? Maybe, in this pandemic, you are asking yourself if you can know when this nightmare will be over. Are you wondering when we will all stop hurting others or getting hurt by others?
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”
Cast
Cast
Luke is a freshman this year and can’t wait to perform in his first ever play. He would like to thank everyone who helped put this show together and made it become reality. He hopes you enjoy the show!
Cast
Julia is very excited to be a part of this wonderful production of 42nd Street! This is her third production at BHS, and her second production acting. She is very grateful for the wonderful cast, crew, directors, and parent volunteers and would like to congratulate everybody on a job well done!
Cast
Sophia is very excited to be a part of her 5th show at Batavia High School. It is her second show this year as a sophomore. She hopes you enjoy the mystery and humor of this play.
Cast
Gemma, a senior, was previously in shows such as I Remember Mama (Christine), Theory of Relativity (Julie), and Animal Farm (Napoleon) at the high school, as well as the play Columbinus (Rebel) at the Albright Theatre. She also studied at Actors Training Center in Wilmette and Piven Theatre Workshop in Evanston.
Cast
Jayden, a Sophomore, is excited to be in his 4th show at BHS(Animal Farm, Nevermore, Spongebob, and 42nd Street). Even if he’s just a guy who walks across the stage with a rope, he says, “It’s still a great experience, with lots of friends. Enjoy the show!”
Cast
Ashlyn is a senior at BHS and is so excited to be apart of Murder on the Rerun! She has been part of all the shows at BHS so far and can’t wait for you all to be drawn into this mystery! She also had an amazing time assistant directing and is so proud of her fellow cast mates! She is so thankful for everyone who came to watch and hopes you enjoy the show!
Cast
Kayla, a senior, is so excited to share this underwater spectacular with you as the cast dives deep into the meanings of friendship and perseverance. This is Kayla’s 7th and final show at Batavia High School and she couldn’t be happier to end it off with a bang. She hopes you enjoy the show as much as she does!
Crew
Ronni is a Senior here at BHS and is so excited to be apart 42nd street. This is Ronni’s second year doing crew but has been in many other performances on the stage as well. Enjoy the show!
Cast
Sarah Katz is a sophomore at Batavia High School. She has been in a few shows there, including Animal Farm, Nevermore, and was in tech for SpongeBob. She is very happy to be in 42nd Street, and she hopes you enjoy the hard work everyone has put into the show.
Cast
Mackenzie is a sophomore. She has done four shows with BHS. She is very excited to be in this show and hopes you enjoy it.
This is Desert’s 12th and final show here at the BFAC. It’s been one crazy journey these past 4 years but he’s glad to be ending it off playing his personal idol Squidward. He hopes that you will be blown away by this spectacle of a show.
Cast
Mitch is in his sophomore year at Batavia High School and has done several plays and a musical. This is Mitch’s 2nd musical. Mitch is super excited for being able to participate in the theater program and having the opportunity to get more experience with acting. He really hopes that you enjoy the show!
Chloe Nelson
Cast
Clara is a senior at BHS with 10 productions under her belt. She has thoroughly enjoyed the process of creating this show, and hopes that the hard work of the cast and crew will shine through during the performance!
Drew Page
Cast
T.J. is a senior at BHS, and this is his 8th production in the drama program here. He is so excited for you to experience this wonderful show, and would like to thank everyone involved.
Cast
This is Kate’s fourth show and second musical at BHS. She is so excited for everyone to see 42nd street and would like to thank everyone who worked so hard for it to be possible. Enjoy the show!
Cast
Cast
Ravyn is so thrilled to be a part of this show! She loves the script and her character very much. Ravyn feels very privileged to be able to be in a show with a small cast where she can explore new ideas with her acting and create closer friendships to her fellow cast members. She hopes you enjoy the shows!
Stage Manager
Gabrielle is a senior at Batavia High School and this is her 8th show overall and her second one as Stage Manager. She wants to thank everyone involved in the production and hopes the audience enjoys Nevermore!
Stage Manager
Hello! Ben is a junior at Batavia High School and this is their first time stage managing a show at Batavia. They’ve assistant stage managed two previous shows and been in crew prior. They hope you enjoy the show!
Cast
Ryan is a junior and this is his 3rd acting performance at the BFAC. He loves doing theatre in both respective parts cast and crew. He thanks all the people responsible for making this show so great. Ryan hopes you enjoy Murder on the Rerun!
Crew
Tim is a senior at BHS and this is his final show. Having an extensive background in theater, he is over thrilled to be on the crew for BHS for the first time. Hesitant about SpongeBob at first, he is so glad he did this technical marvel of a show and is ecstatic about how amazing it has turned out.
Cast
This is Matthew Harmon’s 8th theatrical performance and his 2nd at BHS. He has performed past roles such as Lord Farquaad in Shrek the Musical, John Northbrook in Mary Poppins, and Young Scrooge in a Christmas Carol. He is super excited for Spongebob and hopes that you enjoy the show!
Cast
Charlie Liska is a freshmen at BHS. They recently moved here from Montgomery, Illinois. Charlie loves to write, read, and act. They were in the play, Nevermore. This is their second production at BHS.
Artistic Team
This is Zoe’s 12th and final show at BHS. She is so excited that the audiences gets to experience this one of a kind performance in person. With things finally feeling as close to normal as they can, she hopes that everyone has as much fun watching the show as she did during this process.
Joshua Casburn is honored to be the director of such an amazing cast. Joshua attended Wheaton College and earned a BA in Communications: Theater, and a BA in English. At Wheaton, he was proud to be part of the“Workout” theatre troupe, as it had a profound influence on him artistically. After college, he and other “Workout” alums developed their own theater, Spendrift Theater Company, based out of Glen Ellyn, IL. Mr. Casburn has directed many plays at BHS. Some of his recent directing credits at BHS include productions of Animal Farm, I Remember Mama and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. Mr. Casburn also has experience producing films. He won “Best Picture” and “Best Screenplay” at the Wheaton College Class Film Festival. He spent some time in Hollywood at the Act One Screenwriting program and has also studied screenwriting in Chicago. He also has a Masters of Arts in Teaching from National Louis University, and teaches Creative Writing, Theater Arts, and Film as Literature at BHS. His teaching and artistic endeavors are extensions of his most important, most fulfilling job: being a husband to his AMAZING wife Heidi, and a father to four wonderful kids: Hailey, Logan, Elise, and Brendan. “I’m so proud and blessed to have worked with all of these talented young students.”
Joseph Andersen
Sponsors
