Stephen Smith brings two new Edgar Allan Poe stories to the Edinburgh Fringe 2026. Although I can guarantee that this will not be there, only outings on the stage will be tweaked along the way. Smith is a professional perfectionist.
The new double bill of performances are The Business Man and The Case of M. Valdemar. Smith is an Edgar Allan Poe specialist. Performing the play by Poe for a few years now.
Smith embodiment of each of the characters he performs can be chilling at times. Taking the gothic horror short stories to darker places. The Business Man is one of the more flamboyant characters at first until he begins his demise into selling himself to the insurance payouts. A brilliant business mind that stoops to unimaginable depths.
With a quick set and costume change taking place in front of the audience, even this is a performance as you watch everything change smoothly and with exact precision. A finely tuned machine.
Then, with fresh makeup, we enter the darker tale about The Case of M. Valdemar. A mesmerist who puts a man under his control at the point of the man’s death. If you are not familiar with this short story, is it worth reading up on.
With every performance I have watched with Stephen Smith, it is clear that he completely understands the work by Edgar Allan Poe and brings these somewhat dark and twisted short stories to life without holding back. These are not necessarily comfortable to watch in places, yet Smiths performances are always smooth and sublime. Pushing your senses to the edge at times, following the style in which Poe wrote them.
Smith runs Three Dumb Theatre, who you can find on social media platforms. It is worth following then for regular updates about where the performances are going next.
For more information about One Man Poe and other productions across Edinburgh Fringe, please use the link below.
Five Stars.
https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/one-man-poe-the-business-man-and-the-case-of-m-valdemar
Theatre, Art and Film Reviews 
Leave a comment