American horror master Edgar Allan Poe’s first published short story, “MS. Found in a Bottle,” with MS. standing for “manuscript,” is at first glance a tale of the sea. However, mystery, the imagination, and ghosts soon take center stage. The 1833 work has recently received a fitting audio drama treatment by Markiewitz Audioworks. The twenty-five minute production features atmospheric sounds of seagulls, waves, and sea-storms, as well as splendid narration, bringing to life this lesser-known Poe story for audiences of today.
Jason Markiewitz, namesake and director of Markiewitz Audioworks, is featured as the narrator, a seafarer who finds himself working on a cargo ship pulled ever onwards in storms towards Antarctica. There he is catapulted to the mast of a tall ship, possibly the legendary Flying Dutchman, if we take into account a reference to “an old weather-beaten Dutch navigator” and the strange men aboard the ship who “[bear] about them the marks of a hoary old age” and appear not to notice the narrator. Here the protagonist begins writing a manuscript about his strange adventures, to be tossed in a bottle into the sea if circumstances indicate he may not survive the ordeal.
This audio work is a tour-de-force one-man performance by Mr. Markiewitz, who variously plays the roles of narrator, the old Swede (briefly companion to the narrator), ship captain, and ghost crew voices. The production is further enhanced with a thrilling music score by Hayden Folker, in addition to the afore-mentioned sound effects. All this renders this new adaptation of “Manuscript Found in a Bottle” a film for the ears in a theatre of the mind.
Taking on a Poe tale comes naturally for Mr. Markiewitz. He recently wore a period costume for the Nevermore High School Prom Nite 1849, the theme for last year’s Black Cat Ball at the International Edgar Allan Poe Festival. “I have been an Edgar Allan Poe fan since I first read ‘The Cask of Amontillado’ in fifth or sixth grade. I grew up a fan of Vincent Price as well, and he acted in quite a few movie adaptations of Poe’s works.” Not surprisingly, the producer and star of the new “Manuscript Found in a Bottle” has also offered an audio production of Poe’s “Cask of Amontillado” as well as “The Tell-tale Heart” and Poe’s poem “The Raven.” Each of these works is appropriate for the approaching Halloween season!
Mr. Markiewitz also produces other audio productions (some Christmas-themed) and stars in “Wavefront: Split Second,” an audio drama of Jack Ward’s Mutual Audio Network in Nova Scotia. Mr. Markiewitz explains that the production “follows two artificial intelligence entities’ as they debate the future of humanity. While one wants to end humanity, the other presents factors for him to reconsider.” Reminiscent of Poe, that story also ends with an unexpected twist!
Beyond audio production acting and producing, Mr. Markiewitz also leads an interesting life in other ways. He started his audio drama company during the Covid shutdown when he was starring in a stage production in Sacramento, California, of “The Dinner Party.” He is a 25-year U.S. Air Force officer who has acted on stage and in film for several decades, dating back to his first stage production while he was stationed in Italy. He was a long-time resident of Virginia, having been stationed at Langley Air Force Base.
Mr. Markiewitz’s many travels and experiences appear to have heightened the fervor of his acting and production talents, witnessed in “Manuscript Found in a Bottle.” Indeed, the narrator in the original Poe story journeys ever onwards and at one point on the ghost ship sees “spread out […] the word DISCOVERY.” Listeners can discover this delightful new audio production of “Manuscript” for themselves by visiting MarkiewitzAudioworks.
