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There are two kinds of people; one of them enjoys podcasts, the other is missing out on a fifth dimension of sight and sound and mind called Welcome to Night Vale.
Since 2012, word of mouth has helped put this independent creative production into the ears of tens of thousands of enthusiasts. Like an NPR story piped in from The Twilight Zone, Night Vale is a strange, dark place. But it is one that you will want to visit and return to. It is smoothly narrated and populated by characters you won't find in other podcasts, and it is coming to Portland this week.
"You can listen to one episode, or all 90, and still get an idea of what the world of Night Vale is," says show narrator Cecil Baldwin.
Baldwin's smooth voice is instantly recognizable as that of the radio announcer and host Cecil Palmer, a mild-mannered hero who broadcasts about the strange doings in Night Vale in a pleasantly distant, deadpan manner.
Angels, glowing clouds, and shadowy figures lurking in the dog park are all reported about the way a radio personality in Molalla might turn ducks stopping traffic into a special interest story.
Good-natured fans of conspiracies and Art Bell's Ghost to Ghost will find everything to love about Night Vale's winking send-up of the way people interact with strange phenomena.
"I think it's more about the idea of conspiracies," Baldwin says. "The idea of these sort of communal lies that that we all have agreed upon." But that's just the bait. Night Vale has, over its four-year course, introduced a pantheon of characters for Cecil to interview, discuss, befriend and fear.
One particular character that has become an inspiration to many is Carlos, the scientist. Voiced by Dylan Marron, Carlos was introduced in an early episode in which Cecil started taking notice of his "perfect hair." This soon developed into a romantic relationship between the two men—something not often handled so sweetly or nonchalantly in other media.
"It is a reflection of the artists who are making this show, and it's a fun idea. Why not?" Baldwin says.
"Gay people exist…they can be the center of these stories, and their sexuality has nothing to do with it," Baldwin says. "And yet, at the same time, their sexuality also informs who they are as a character. The same with race, the same with gender, the same with people who have different abilities. Getting a chance to make these characters part of the story is inspirational to a lot of people who don't see themselves represented all the time in mainstream media."
That Night Vale has become such a phenomenon is inspirational. It is now a full-time job for Baldwin and writers Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor, but there is no corporate overlord keeping tabs. A significant source of their income is generated by live shows, when the crew brings a special script to live audiences across the nation for four months out of the year. Baldwin describes it like the life of a touring musician.
"We tour like a band," he says. "We are in Portland one night and then on to Seattle the next. It's not like doing a play where you rehearse for a month and then you're in a theater for a month or two months."
The current live script is called Ghost Stories, and unlike the podcast—which is meant to be enjoyed alone, with ear buds or in the car, at your own pace, like reading a novel—fans will be immersed.
"There's no imaginary fourth wall. We're all going on this journey together," Baldwin says. "The live show is much more about community and about getting together with a whole bunch of people who love the same thing that you love, which at its best is what theater does."
See it: Welcome to Night Vale: Ghost Stories is at Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway, on Thursday, July 21. 8 pm $27.50-$32.50. All ages.
Willamette Week