Nocturne Cipher

It is late on a summer night in a large country house. A family sits together in one room with the terrace door open, waiting for a doctor who was expected at nine. Through the door on the left, the mother is recovering from a difficult birth. Through the door on the right, the newborn has never once cried.

The grandfather is blind, and he is the only one who notices. The nightingales have stopped. Something came up the stairs. Someone has sat down at the table.

Death has entered the house to make a claim. The family spends the whole evening explaining away the one man who can tell.

The Intruder was written by Maurice Maeterlinck in 1890, in the translation by Richard Hovey. Adapted and produced by Eric VanRensselaer

Jordan T. Bates — The Grandfather

Van Knight — The Father

Jae Shinn — The Uncle

Charlotte Mariko — Ursula

Bonnie Melbourne — Genevieve

Monique Nicole — The Maid

"Listening with headphones is recommended"

Nocturne Cipher is an independent audio drama, created by one person and brought to life by a talented cast. Each episode explores new worlds and experiences, but they're all built on the same principle: The Art of the Atmosphere.

To keep these stories coming and to fairly compensate everyone behind the mic, we rely on listener support. If this episode entertained you—if it took you somewhere unexpected—you can chip in directly at nocturnecipher.com/tip

Tips of $25 or more are credited by name on the following episode. Use any name you like, or no name at all—just let us know when you tip. :)

Every amount, big or small, fuels the next chapter. We're grateful you're here. Help us reach more people and share the show!

Thank you for spending this time with us.

A thief with excellent taste breaks into a house on a wealthy street and finds nothing worth stealing. Then the owners come home early.

What follows is a negotiation. The Sheffield tray is plated. The Wedgwood is wrong. The paintings are copies. And the only house on the block that doesn't get robbed tonight is going to have some explaining to do to the neighbors.

Adapted from Sham: A Social Satire by Frank G. Tompkins (1920).

Featuring:

Sasha Leslie as Clara

Nathan Ashcroft as Charles

Chaya Alynna as The Reporter

Eric VanRensselaer as The Thief

"Listening with headphones is recommended"

Nocturne Cipher is an independent audio drama, created by one person and brought to life by a talented cast. Each episode explores new worlds and experiences, but they're all built on the same principle: The Art of the Atmosphere.

To keep these stories coming and to fairly compensate everyone behind the mic, we rely on listener support. If this episode entertained you—if it took you somewhere unexpected—you can chip in directly at nocturnecipher.com/tip

Tips of $25 or more are credited by name on the following episode. Use any name you like, or no name at all—just let us know when you tip. :)

Every amount, big or small, fuels the next chapter. We're grateful you're here. Help us reach more people and share the show!

Thank you for spending this time with us.

Yesterday

A chance encounter at a party turns into an evening neither expected.

He's all bluster and old-fashioned charm, she's cool and unimpressed, but as the night wears on, something more honest starts to show through. Beneath the laughs lies a proposal made decades ago, an answer misunderstood, and a lifetime spent apart because of it.

When the band strikes up a waltz from another era, it becomes an unexpected metaphor for the life they never got to share.

Based on the touching 1923 one-act play by Colin Campbell Clement

Featuring

Max Barrus as Lady Ann

Eric VanRensselaer as Richard

For the best experience, headphones are recommended

Nocturne Cipher is an independent audio drama, created by one person and brought to life by a talented cast. Each episode explores new worlds and experiences, but they're all built on the same principle: The Art of the Atmosphere.

To keep these stories coming and to fairly compensate everyone behind the mic, we rely on listener support. If this episode entertained you—if it took you somewhere unexpected—you can chip in directly at nocturnecipher.com/tip

Tips of $25 or more are credited by name on the following episode. Use any name you like, or no name at all—just let us know when you tip. :)

Every amount, big or small, fuels the next chapter. We're grateful you're here. Help us reach more people and share the show!

Thank you for spending this time with us.

The Reckoning

When a stranger sits down in a barber's chair, everything seems ordinary.

But as the conversation unfolds a creeping sense of dread takes hold. Does this man know something? Is he here by coincidence — or by design?

Based on Percival Wilde's gripping 1922 one-act play, The Reckoning is a tense two-character drama about guilt, secrets, and the moment a man realizes the past never truly stays buried.

Featuring:

Jae "gamejae" Shinn as the Customer

Eric VanRensselaer as the Barber

Music by Melody Ayers-Griffiths

For the best experience, headphones are recommended

Nocturne Cipher is an independent audio drama, created by one person and brought to life by a talented cast. Each episode explores new worlds and experiences, but they're all built on the same principle: The Art of the Atmosphere.

To keep these stories coming and to fairly compensate everyone behind the mic, we rely on listener support. If this episode entertained you—if it took you somewhere unexpected—you can chip in directly at nocturnecipher.com/tip

Tips of $25 or more are credited by name on the following episode. Use any name you like, or no name at all—just let us know when you tip. :)

Every amount, big or small, fuels the next chapter. We're grateful you're here. Help us reach more people and share the show!

Thank you for spending this time with us.