Issue date: 10/29/07 Section: Montage

A is for Amy who fell down the stairs.

B is for Basil assaulted by bears.

C is for Clara who wasted away.

D is for Desmond thrown out of a sleigh.

E is for Ernest who choked on a peach.

F is for Fanny sucked dry by a leech.

- "The Gashlycrumb Tinies" by Edward Gorey



While learning the alphabet as children, most of us were probably subjected to simple comparisons, such as "'A' is for apple" and "'B' is for ball," as well as silly songs and brightly colored balloon letters. More than likely, none of us learned the alphabet by learning about pale children, known as "The Gashlycrumb Tinies," who died by falling down stairs or being sucked dry by leeches. Despite the catchy rhymes, the dark humor didn't quite fit in with kindergarten's agenda. Yet the macabre characters have become part of pop culture, first as an illustrated book and most recently as a local play.

Dying children, lunatic asylums and perverted parlor games are common themes in the illustrated books of Edward Gorey. Both a writer and artist, Gorey found success by combining his strange and sinister stories with his unique illustrations. Although some of his drawings include the use of color, he is most often recognized for his black and white illustrations of bleak landscapes, gloomy interiors and Edwardian imagery. His line drawings are full of shadows and hatching, adding to the ominous atmosphere created by the secret thoughts and hidden desires of the characters.

In response to the Halloween season, which serves as an opportunity to delight in the morbid and morose, Jobsite Theater at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center is currently producing Gorey Stories, a play based on Gorey's short stories, poems and limericks. Accompanied by live music, nine actors play the numerous characters of Gorey's selected works. Wearing Edwardian costumes in shades of white, black and gray, the actors look as if they were peeled from the pages of Gorey's illustrations. The set design was completed with the same shades including the hatching that characterizes Gorey's images. The stories chosen for the play include characters that represent the full spectrum of Gorey's creations, from the kinky adults in "The Curious Sofa" to the dead children in "The Gashlycrumb Tinies."

David Valdez, a USF finance and marketing major, is one of the nine actors in the production. Although he was not familiar with Gorey's illustrations and stories before the play, Valdez brought Little Henry, a God-fearing child concerned with the

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