Gothic Authors Cocktail Club
West Church Street, Orlando, Florida • July 18, 2024
by Carl F. Gauze
My buddy Dave found this place, presumably while looking for a new watering hole. We’d been drinking in a classy Winter Park bar, but Dave unexpectedly sought to expand his territory. We made plans to visit this new establishment which lives in the shadow of the Orlando Kia Center. That’s where Orlando keeps their basketballers. Good news: no game tonight. Bad news: the locals have made selling parking VERY lucrative. Oh well, nothing ventured…
We collect in a sleazy structure that was some sort of factory in its glory days. A menacing bouncer keeps us in line, although the patrons on this line are primarily a more “experienced” drinking crew. Some are dressed in full steampunk drag, but most are in normal clubbing gear. I wear an inappropriate sports coat, Dave goes with a more classic ex-punker black. Our ages are verified, tickets collected, and we enter a large, acoustically crappy industrial space. A large inverted hull of canvas hangs over the floor, presumably to control the echoey steel and concrete structure. It’s the best that can be expected for the zip code.
We grab some chairs, and we’re lucky enough to be facing the main stage. The bouncer wanders the hall, seating people and pointing out the restrooms. Soon the show begins with a small band. Next poetry is read, and creepy stories told. The creep is very literary, and while we can hear the dialog, this requires some focus. Between the theater pieces, roaming bartenders bring us a series of mixed drinks. The alcohol is part of the ticket, so drink up. Far as I can tell, teetotalers are stuck with any bottled water they may have brought in. Works from Bram Stoker, Edgar Allan Poe, and a few other scare masters are acted out.
Acoustics are tolerable but not great, and it helps if you know your creepy stories. I like all the drinks, although I don’t exactly know know what the ingredients are, as I misplaced the drink list. The last one was rather sweet, mimicking a dessert at the end of a large dinner. After an hour or so, we have run through all the story, drank all the drinks, and wandered out in the sweltering Orlando downtown heat.
Would I return? I think so, now that I know the drill. Would I dress up? Probably, I would fit in better. Was I creeped out? Not exactly. These stories were well presented, and are the basis layer of American 21st century entertainment. A few more obscure writers might help. And what I would do is bring more friends for a bigger party. That way we can spread out the parking fees and have a designated driver.
This is an exciting and innovative theater experience. Perhaps it’s rough around the edges, but still an entertaining, show, if you sit in the right seats to hear the actor.
