Playing The Undead (Poetry)

I.m.Nelsan Ellis who played Lafayette in HBO’s series ‘Trueblood’

Everyone he ever kissed
must feel some sadness watching this
and flinch to hear the hollow joke
the crimson blood that warms the throat
runs cold to learn the cruel fact
he’s gone — no spell can bring him back

Real life and fiction share the screen
the line is often thin between
each drama as the plot unfolds
word-blind to what the future holds
He learned his art ’til he became
his character in heart and name

The irony of early death
if there’s a scrap of humour left
is sifting through each episode
aware how bright his talent glowed
as though performance held the key
to his own immortality

All just an act and yet his soul
embodied fable — flesh made whole
the spirit conjured off the page
to strut about the world’s wide stage
and though his earthly race is run
the myth of Lafayette lives on ...