Will you help us fund a concert for our new musical?

The House of Edgar is a thrilling original musical about love, loss, legacy and Edgar Allan Poe. Inspired by the master of gothic horror’s darkest stories, the show weaves some of his most famous works into a mysterious new tale where all is not what it seems.

We debuted Edgar as a student production at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2016 and had a great response from audiences and critics alike. Since then, we’ve been working hard to develop the show further, honing the story and music through a series of workshops.

Now, we’re ready to share that new show with an exclusive concert performance at the Seven Dials Playhouse in London’s West End on Mon 23 September (tickets available at EdgarMusical.uk).

But we need your help to get there!

About the show

How far would you go to protect your legacy?

Edgar Allan Poe is dead.

As his rival, Rufus Griswold, seizes control of his estate, echoes of past love and loss emerge. With Edgar's reputation ruined and legacy crumbling, his work is all that remains. Inside these walls, are his stories simply marks on a page, or something else entirely?

The House of Edgar is a thrilling original musical inspired by some of Poe’s darkest stories, weaving them into a mysterious new tale. From Annabel Lee and The Raven, to The Tell-Tale Heart and The Fall of the House of Usher a new story is uncovered.

Find out more about the show at EdgarMusical.uk.

How you can help

We’re producing our concert at Seven Dials Playhouse in London’s West End, but this is a small venue with less than 90 seats. As a result, we won’t be able to cover our production costs and pay our cast fairly on ticket sales alone. It’s also important to us that we keep ticket prices at an accessible £20 for all the musical theatre lovers who want to join us.

Any support you can give to this campaign will help us bring The House of Edgar to life. 

The £2,000 target we are seeking will close the gap between ticket sales and the costs to plan, rehearse and deliver a great concert for you all. But it will also help us look to the future. Every pound we raise will demonstrate to funders that we have an engaged audience keen to see the show grow into a full professional production. Any money not spent on the concert itself will go towards this development.

But it’s not all about giving money. Just sharing this video with your network makes a huge difference to spread the word about our project!

A little bit about us

Thomas F. Arnold, Beth Clarence & Jack Dryden

Thomas F. Arnold

Writer, Composer & Musical Director

Tom is a Songwriter, Musical Director & Orchestrator. He wrote the book, music and lyrics for The House of Edgar and was MD for both Fringe productions. He also developed the song cycle Writer's Block with the University of Winchester and a musical adaptation of Around the World In 80 Days for Big Little Theatre School.

Tom's MD credits include Sleeping Beauty (Imagine Theatre, 2021) and Legend Trippers (Assistant, NYMT, 2019). His Orchestrator credits include West End Musical Christmas and Musical Celebration (West End Brunch, 2021) and Cheer Up Charlie (Actor's Church, 2021).
 

Beth Clarence

Director

Beth is a performer and director trained at the University of Exeter (BA Drama, 1st Class Honours) and the Royal Academy of Music (MA Musical Theatre). Beth directed the original production of The House of Edgar at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2016.

Her Director credits also include The Wild Party (Shotgun Theatre, Exeter 2014), NSDF Company (National Student Drama Festival, 2015) and Trending (Young Artists Festival, The Other Room 2015).

Jack Dryden

Producer

Jack is a fringe theatre producer and a Stage One alumni. He produced both productions of The House of Edgar in 2016 and 2018. His other credits include Godspell (Shotgun Theatre, Fringe 2017), Animal Farm (EUTCO, Exeter Northcott 2017) and Avenue Q (Shotgun Theatre, Exeter Phoenix 2016).

Outside producing, Jack works as a Management Accountant at the Department for Culture, Media & Sport. Previously, he led campaigns as a Marketing Executive at New Wimbledon Theatre and Fairfield Halls.

Artwork Credit: Edgar Allan Poe graphic based on an original linocut by Finn Weaver.