A full moon and crisp fall air added to the atmosphere as Scott Cox performed Edgar Allan Poe’s stories for an audience at Riverwood Winery on Sunday, Oct. 25. The Halloween live reading has been a fall tradition for 12 years and sold 75 tickets this year.
For first-time attendee Sadie Elliott, the evening brought together the setting and the performance. “It was a beautiful fall night, good wine, full moon and then a really great speaker and actor,” she said.
The event has focused primarily on Poe, though Cox alternated between Poe and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” during its first couple of years, said Andrew Naatz, Riverwood’s co-owner and operator. The reading is in its third year at the winery.
Cox performed selections including “The Black Cat,” “The Raven” and “The Cask of Amontillado.” His voice work and sound effects brought the stories’ narrators to life, drawing praise from audience members.
“The performance is always spot on,” said Weston resident Rae Marquart. “I love how we can sit outside … and there’s a full moon.”
Emma Halbgewachs, who attended with her mother, Lyndsey Markley, said “The Raven” was one of her favorite stories. She also praised Cox’s sound effects, including his cat sounds in “The Black Cat.” Markley said it was her second year attending and that she planned to return.
Elliott said she appreciates the range of activities in Weston and wants to take advantage of more of them. “I think we live in one of the best small towns in the country,” she said. “And I love that we have so much going on.”
Cox has performed the Poe reading for about a decade. He began acting professionally at 13 and now teaches theater at Johnson County Community College. He said many of Poe’s stories lend themselves to performance because they are told in the first person.
“I try to really make them feel modern and accessible,” Cox said, “and like you’re in the room with the people.”
Riverwood plans to host the reading again next year. “We will allow Scott to continue this as long as he wants to,” Naatz said.
