By Shari Barrett
With Edgar Allan Poe’s creation of the character of C. Auguste Dupin, the master of the macabre forever changed crime fiction. Dupin became the first modern detective, inspiring future literary sleuths Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot in solving seemingly unsolvable crimes with logic and astonishing deductions.
And just in time for this year’s Halloween season, the world premiere engagement of The Case-Book of C. Auguste Dupin adapted and directed by John Strysik opens tonight at Theatre 40 in Beverly Hills, bringing together Poe’s three spellbinding Dupin Mysteries: The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Mystery of Marie Roget and The Purloined Letter for an engrossing evening of murder, mayhem and meerschaum pipes.
Asked why he decided to create a play around Poe’s character. John Strysik shares, “Dupin is a very dynamic and eccentric character who gets a kind of erotic thrill at solving puzzles, much like Poe who had the ability to solve any puzzles or codes readers sent him in his work as a journalist and reviewer. And Dupin (portrayed by Michael Mullen who also designed our fabulous costumes) is constantly questioning or berating his roommate Edgar (portrayed by Patrick Grant with more than a passing resemblance to the Great One) and the Police Commissaire (portrayed by Todd Andrew Ball with energy and humor) about their observations, or lack of them, making what I hope is some dynamic stage action.”
“Rounding out the cast are Randall Craig playing various roles like the Sailor in Rue Morgue and the Minister of the Interior in Purloined Letter, and Isabella DiBernardino who really saved us when things looked darkest and plays an array of characters including a Laundress, a Ghost, the Queen of France and something in the chimney.”
Asked about his creative vision for the play, Strysik shares, “This is definitely a unique looking show for Theatre 40. We’ve gone totally Expressionistic with the set, designed by Jeff G. Rack. with lighting design by Derrick McDaniel and sound design by Nick Foran. And if you look hard enough, you might see Dr. Caligari lurking in the shadows. But I think the German expressionism we’re tapping helps to amplify the strangeness and theatricality of these stories. Think of the killer in Rue Morgue or how the letter is found and not found in The Purloined Letter. Poe had a very theatrical bent since both his parents were actors and he wrote poems that were meant to be acted, which he did with great dramatic flair.”
“And I hope after seeing The Case-Book of C. Auguste Dupin, people will see the genius of Edgar Allan Poe in a different light. Yes, he is most definitely the Master of the Macabre, but his horror tales represent maybe about a third of his fictional output. Besides inventing the modern detective story, he wrote big sea adventures, satires and comedies, even science fiction. I also hope the audience will experience the same horror, poetry, and sometimes downright Marx Brothers comedy that I saw in the Dupin stories.”
I’m intrigued – are you? Then now’s the time to make plans for the world premiere engagement of The Case-Book of C. Auguste Dupin, produced by David Hunt Stafford for Theatre 40 in the Mary Levin Cutler Theatre, 241 S. Moreno Dr., Beverly Hills 90212. This is on the campus of Beverly Hills High School, with ample free underground parking adjacent to the theatre entrance via a driveway at the intersection of Durant and Moreno Drives.
Performances run September 17–October 18, 2026, on Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $35. Reservations are available by calling (310) 364-0535 or online at http://theatre40.org. Subject to availability, tickets will also be sold at the box office before each performance. But don’t wait – order yours now!
