Awestruck
Posted on Sunday, July 19, 2009 by Melanie
Many moons ago, when the earth was young and Ann Coulter roamed the plains, I developed an unshakeable squeeing fangirldom for a young actor named Jeffrey Combs, who rose to fame in horror classics such as RE-ANIMATOR and THE FRIGHTENERS. Trek fans will know him from his numerous characters in three of the ST incarnations, and as well as his many, many movies he's also appeared in a variety of TV shows such as CSI and COLD CASE.
And tonight, after waiting for 22 years, I've finally gotten a chance to see him strut and fret his hour upon the stage in NEVERMORE, a one-man play that recreates one of Edgar Allen Poe's touring lectures and follows his descent into sorrow, loss and madness. To say that Jeff was magnificent is to do him a disservice -- I was floored, people.
Look, performing in a one-man play is never easy. Performing in a one-man play without an intermission, where you breathe life into an increasingly drunk and erratic Poe, cover the emotional range between out-and-out belly laughs and the blackest of sorrow, leap about like a crazed howler monkey while singing "The Bells," fall off stage while begging your disgusted fiancee not to leave, and leave every member of the audience stunned with your agonizingly powerful recital of "The Raven" -- that, my friends, is a masterful achievement of stagecraft.
If there was any way I could stay over and see it again tomorrow night, I would. Jesus God, but the man can act.
Someone who smokes pass Mel a cigarette.
Stacy, seriously, you would have enjoyed this, too. It was that powerful.
Wanna know the weird thing, though? A couple of times, I found myself thinking, "Patrick should be here -- he would really *get* this."