2025-11 Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents: Tales of Mystery, Horror & Imagination (Prime Stage Theatre)

Jenn appeared in Mr. Poe Presents with Prime Stage Theatre November 7-16, 2025

Jenn Rian appeared as Madame Dubourg, Usher Family Nurse, and Raven in
Prime Stage Theatre’s November 2025 world premiere of Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents.

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Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents: Tales of Mystery, Horror & Imagination

Written by Lawrence C. Connolly
Directed by Art DeConciliis

Master storyteller Edgar Allan Poe reimagines four classic tales that reveal as much about the nature of horror as they do about the dark genius that created them.

November 7 – 16, 2025

Performance Location: New Hazlett Center for Performing Arts
6 Allegheny Square E., Pittsburgh, PA 15212

Click below for tickets.

WHAT INSPIRED THE PLAY by Lawrence C. Connolly
What makes this play unique and something that you have not seen before?

Mustachioed, piercing eyes, dressed in black—Edgar Allan Poe stares at us from the silvered surface of a faded daguerreotype. It is the face of a tortured poet destined for early death, but although the portrait was taken during the height of his struggle with depression and ill health, I can’t help thinking that it also reflects the writer’s intention to create a persona befitting the dark nature of his tales.

Poe’s penchant for performance art was well known in his day. Indeed, even as his stories thrilled magazine readers, he was packing theatres and lecture halls, captivating audiences with readings of his works and pondering subjects as vast as the mysteries of the universe. And it is that side of Poe that Prime Stage and I are bringing to life in Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents: Tales of Mystery, Horror, and Imagination.

In our production, Poe takes centre stage, much as he did 175 years ago. Indeed, the words with which he opens our play come directly from one of his final lectures on the nature of human existence titled “Eureka” that is Edgar Allan Poe himself. The four tales featured in our performance become mirrors reflecting back on the poet, as he steps away from the podium, passes us through the looking glass, as we enter the world of his creations—all to see the man who lived, and loved, and lost, and as he endeavoured to comprehend the horrors and mysteries of life through the art of imagination

Sam Lander, Alex Blair, Justin Mohr, Jenn Rian, and Jess Uhler star in the world premiere of Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents with Prime Stage Theatre (November 2025)

ONLINE PLAYBILL 

Cast Bios

Alex Blair as Officer Gaultier, Roderick Usher, and The Murderer
Alex is very excited to perform with Prime Stage again after previously appearing as “Alexander Schmorell” in The White Rose and “Jonathan Brewster” in Arsenic & Old Lace. Other previous roles include “Black Stache” in Peter and the Starcatcher with Bobcat Players, “Jack Worthing” in The Importance of Being Earnest with Old Schoolhouse Players, and “Tom Buchanan” in The Great Gatsby with Stage Warp Productions. Alex wants to thank director Art DeConciliis, as well as the entire cast and crew for making this such a wonderful experience.

Sam Lander as Edgar Allen Poe
Sam is excited to be back at Prime Stage playing Edgar Allen Poe. He is a Pittsburgh based actor who could most recently be seen in South Park Theatre’s This Random World, as K in an independent production of Franz Kafka’s The Trial, and Twelve Angry Men, and Great Expectations also at Prime Stage. He is a 2022 alumni of the ACADEMY at Black Box Acting in Chicago and a 2021 graduate of Point Park University’s Theatre Arts program. He would like to thank his partner Shelby Fink for being his biggest supporter (and critic) as well as his cat Chloe for not making this about herself, and his dog Maki for making it about herself.

Justin Mohr as C. Auguste Dupin/Wilson
Justin is ecstatic to be working with Prime Stage again after playing Guy Montag in their production of Fahrenheit 451. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Theater Arts. Justin spent several years in NYC and Chicago performing with sketch comedy/improv groups, theater companies, and commercials. Justin has worked on several major films and TV shows. He was also in The Baristas, a Pittsburgh based web series that is on YouTube. Favorite past roles include: Jack Leading Ladies, Gary Lejune Noises Off, John Smith Run for Your Wife, Bernard Boeing, Boeing, and many others. Love and thanks to this cast and crew. Special thanks to his friends and family for their ongoing support

Jenn Rian as Douborg, Nurse and Raven
Jenn is honored to be making her Prime Stage Theatre debut. She has worked with community theaters and art organizations throughout Beaver County, including R-ACT Theatre Productions, Center Theatre Players, the Bobcat Players, The Genesis Collective’s Community Theater Project, and The Social Voice Project. Among her favorite roles are Marie Antoinette in The Revolutionists, Bella Manningham in Gaslight, and Lizzie Curry in The Rainmaker, all with R-ACT; Mary Pringle in Soldier, Come Home with Little Beaver Historical Society; and Sandra in The Play That Goes Wrong with Center Theatre Players. She appeared as Liz in the world premiere of So, There’s a Leprechaun Now? with R-ACT, which won Best Theater Production in City Paper’s 2024 Best in PGH Awards. Jenn has studied with Jaime Slavinsky of Ensemble Actors Studio. She has been a member of R-ACT Theatre Productions for nine years and has served on its executive board for the last three. Outside of theater, Jenn is a mother of two and a certified teacher of both yoga and the Enneagram.

Jess Uhler as Mrs. Smith, Madeline and Lenore
Jess is ecstatic to be performing with Prime Stage Theatre for the first time. In 2025, she was seen on stage in Jeremy Seghers production of The Trial by Franz Kafka, The Bay Of Fundy by David Adam Gill for the Pittsburgh New Works Festival and The Missing by John Mabey for The Becoming Arts Collective’s “Bridges and Stages” Festival. Jess is also a local actor in the independent film scene, working on features such as Godless Children, Massacre Academy, and The Boonies. She would like to thank her family, her partner Brent, and her friends for their endless encouragement, the Prime Stage team for this opportunity, and to the audience for attending and supporting theatre.

The cast of Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents, Jenn Rian, Justin Mohr, Sam Lander, Jess Uhler, and Alex Blair (Prime Stage Theatre 2025)

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Jess Uhler as Lenore, Sam Lander as Poe, and Jenn Rian as Raven in The Raven from Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents with Prime Stage Theatre at New Hazlett Theater (November 2025).

 

Jenn Rian as Madame Dubourg and Justin Mohr as Auguste C. Dupin in Murder in the Rue Morgue from Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents with Prime Stage Theatre at New Hazlett Theater (November 2025).

Officer Gautier (Alex Blair), Madame Dubourg (Jenn Rian), and Mrs. Smith (Jess Uhler) in Murders in the Rue Morgue (Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents, Prime Stage Theatre 2025)

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Meet the cast of Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents: Tales of Mystery, Horror & Imagination! We asked Jenn Rian some questions about the show:

Tell us a little bit about your characters.

In The Murders in the Rue Morgue, I play Madame Dubourg, the laundress and building gossip. She’s a mildly comedic figure and she provides Dupin with important information that helps him solve the case.

In The Fall of the House of Usher, I play the family nurse. She’s very different from Dubourg: stern and serious. She convinces Roderick to bury his sister, which sets in motion everything that follows.

I also play the Raven in The Raven. Not exactly a bird, not exactly a person, the Raven serves as a haunting symbol of grief and despair.

What are some of the unique challenges that you’ve encountered during rehearsals?

The biggest challenge has been building the character of the Nurse in The Fall of the House of Usher. She only has a few lines and most of the action happens after she leaves. It can be easy to overlook roles like that, but I don’t find it fair to the character or the story. It’s important to me that she has presence and perspective. However briefly she’s onstage, she sets crucial events in motion.

Edgar Allan Poe’s chilling tales of the macabre continue to endure long after they were originally written. Which of his eerie stories keeps you up at night?

One of the things I love most about Poe’s writing is his ability to put you into the emotional and mental experience of the narrator, and The Pit and the Pendulum does that so well. For most of the story, the reader is as disoriented as the narrator, not quite sure what’s happening or where it’s leading. Yet I find the narrative so captivating that I’m drinking in every word long before the pendulum is introduced. It’s about the emotional landscape, not the plot. The narrative is the dessert and the horror is the cherry on top. When the truth unfolds and you realize the gruesome fate that awaits the narrator, it’s deliciously creepy and horrifying.

What’s something an audience member should know before they see this play?

These aren’t strict retellings of Poe’s tales, but creative reimaginings. While this play takes a few creative liberties, Poe’s melancholy, sense of the uncanny, and beautifully haunting tone remain. Audiences will love it.

Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents: Tales of Mystery, Horror & Imagination runs November 7th-16th at the New Hazlett Theater. Get your tickets at primestage.com! #PSTPoe #PrimeStageTheatre #PghTheatre #BringingLiteratureToLife #EdgarAllanPoe

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From Ensemble Actors Studio Facebook and Instagram pages: “Happy Opening Night to ensemble actor Jenn Rian! She is starring in Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents: Tales of Mystery, Horror, and Imagination at Prime Stage Theatre!
Jenn is a remarkably versatile actor who brings imagination and professionalism to every role she plays.
💛 Break a leg from all your friends at ensemble!”