POCATELLO — Edgar Allan Poe once said “All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.”

This Saturday, Liberty Hall Event Center will transform into a shrouded sanctuary dedicated to the master of the macabre as The Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy arrives with an evening of suspense, stylish spirits and gothic storytelling.

Guests are invited to step out of the ordinary and into the shadows for an immersive theater experience that brings four of Edgar Allan Poe’s most famous works to life while they sip on expertly crafted spirits or bespoke mocktails.

The Poe-focused performances will run at 2, 4, 6 and 8 p.m. Saturday at Liberty Hall, but only the 2 p.m. showing still has openings. General admission is $55 and tickets can be purchased at tinyurl.com/5fzbejkm. Each show will last between 75 and 90 minutes.

The immersive experience begins as soon as patrons walk through the door. Incense drifts lazily throughout the room. A sullen shrine to Poe invites visitors to pick up an ink-dabbed quill and write the long-deceased author a note on parchment. Actors stay in character, requesting attendees’ reservations rather than simply scanning a ticket. Seating is first come, first served.

A darkly clad narrator in period attire will guide guests on a gothic journey through the historical components of Poe’s life, contemplating where the author’s mind might have been when he crafted the curious and often eerie tales. Guests are then provided their first libation, which is connected to the story they are about to see unfold on stage.

“We always say ‘off the page and onto the stage’ because it’s not just spoken word regurgitated lines,” said Julia Tirinnanzi, creative director of Midnight Creative, the touring company behind the production. “It’s very much fully acted out to its fullest capacity.”

Guests receive four drinks over the course of the show, and each one sets up the story that follows.

A vodka-based cocktail known as The Pale Blue Eye opens the evening. The drink has blueberry and citrus notes and, according to Tirinnanzi, is very easy to drink. It’s paired with “The Tell-Tale Heart.”

A drink that was supposedly Poe’s favorite follows in the next chapter, with The Cats' Meow. Described by Tirinnanzi as a more seasonal holiday libation, the bourbon- and brandy-based drink includes notes of star anise, cinnamon, aged French vanilla and cream. It accompanies “The Black Cat.”

The iconic Nevermore is a vodka-based drink with peach as its main flavor and a touch of citrus, topped with a dehydrated orange. It fittingly pairs with “The Raven.”

The Cocktail of Red Death closes the program alongside “The Masque of the Red Death.” The pink, vodka-based drink has tropical notes and a rose infusion, and it is garnished with a dehydrated rosebud and rose petals.

Guests who don’t drink can still take part in the full experience. Although the company puts a heavy emphasis on its libations, immersive nonalcoholic mocktails are available.

Midnight Creative has operated for more than 10 years. It began with large-scale, walk-around immersive events, then shifted to seated, speakeasy-style theater. Tirinnanzi, a self-described gothic literature enthusiast, said the Poe show grew out of a desire to create something she and her friends would want to attend. A production for creatives, by creatives.

The company began test-piloting the show around 2022, expecting a niche audience.

“We were expecting it to just be more outliers and fringe members of society,” Tirinnanzi said. “All of a sudden we started having all these people come together over a love of literature.”

While the performance drew the typical goth or alternative crowd, it also pulled in literature professors, high school English teachers and other fans of gothic and horror culture. The team was surprised by how universal the positive response was. What started as three or four shows in a weekend grew into several teams performing simultaneously.

In each city, the company looks for a venue that suits the production, favoring historic properties, ideally Victorian-era buildings that share Poe’s time period or exemplify the macabre aesthetic.

The company now tours 52 weeks a year with a rotating crew of around 150 creatives. Poe is the company’s core offering, Tirinnanzi said, but it isn’t the only draw. Midnight Creative runs several other productions. Among them are true crime shows, which she said appeal to performers who want to tap into their darker creative side.

For a lighter tone, the company offers “Shipwreck Saloon,” a pirate-themed production staged aboard historic vessels. Around the holidays, seasonal shows such as “A Christmas Carol” and “Bad Santa” join the lineup before the schedule pivots back to Poe.

Each show is staffed by a cast that specializes in its style, whether comedic, dramatic or sinister.

Many guests return whenever the company comes to their city, Tirinnanzi said, because each cast’s interpretation makes the same stories feel new. Guests also help shape the company’s route. Midnight Creative will often take suggestions for alternate venues and new locations.

Gate City residents may not have to wait long for the next gothic gathering. Tirinnanzi said she expects Midnight Creative to return within a few months if turnout is strong, likely with follow-up productions the company calls chapters. Poe Two and Poe Three feature different stories from the first program. Tirinnanzi said Poe Three is a musical written by Danny Elfman, the composer known for “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Batman.”

Tirinnanzi, who has seen and performed in thousands of shows, said the continued draw for her is the creative fulfillment of keeping the productions evolving.

“As long as the guests want to keep seeing them, then we’re going to keep performing them, because a lot of us as actors, that’s just something that we feel compelled to do,” Tirinnanzi said. “It’s almost compulsory for us. I don’t know if we’re ever going to stop. It’s just something that we all really like to dedicate our lives to, and we’re very grateful that we are able to do that.”