Superstition, folklore come to life with Purdue Fort Wayne's dark production of 'The Love Talker'

Purdue University Fort Wayne’s theater department is kick-starting the Halloween season with its production of folk horror tale “The Love Talker.”

Opening Sept. 26, the eerie play follows a set of sisters living deep in the Appalachian forest cursed with the attention of the Love Talker, an evil creature dedicated to claiming the girls’ lives.

The production is based in Appalachian folklore. Throughout the play, superstitions from across the region make appearances, such as the idea that whippoorwill calls and screech owls are dark omens.

Director Jeff Casazza describes the play as “a cross between ‘Dracula,’ ‘The Shining’ and ‘The Omen’ ” with the monster itself as a mix between a siren, a vampire and a succubus. The Love Talker’s horror doesn’t come from claws or horns, he says. Inste