My husband and I had the privilege of being able to see Hadestown with a vast majority of the original cast last autumn when we were in New York, and I immediately went from knowing next to nothing about this show to falling head over heels in love with it. The story was (for me) familiar but spun in such a new, unique way; the staging, lighting, and choreography were incredible; and the music was just next level. Since then, I've been recommending it to anyone and everyone who might have the opportunity to see it because this is a show that deserves to be seen and appreciated.
Hadestown is a musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Anaïs Mitchell. Based on the Greek myth of Orpheus & Eurydice as imagined in a concept album recorded by Mitchell & friends in 2010, the show opened in 2019 at the Walter Kerr Theatre (located on W 48th Street), where it remains in residence to this day as the Kerr's longest-running show. The original Broadway run was nominated for fourteen Tony Awards in 2019, winning eight of them: Best Musical, Best Original Score, Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical (André De Shields), Best Scenic Design in a Musical, Best Lighting Design in a Musical, Best Sound Design of a Musical, Best Direction of a Musical, and Best Orchestrations. The original cast recording also won Best Musical Theater Album at the 2020 Grammy Awards. Apart from Broadway, the show has enjoyed success in London's West End in 2018 and will be coming back in 2024 as well as in Canada since 2017.
For this post, I will again focus on one song for each main cast member. I will be discussing the original live cast recording and (where applicable) will be comparing it to Anaïs Mitchell's original concept album from 2010. There will be honorable mentions again because I don't think there's a single bad song in this entire show, so let's get started! Warning: potential spoilers ahead.
Orpheus (Tenor)
Spotlight Song: Wedding Song
Honorable Mentions: Livin' It Up on Top; Epic I; Epic II; Chant; Wait For Me; Epic III; Wait For Me (Reprise); Doubt Comes In
Concept Album (2010): Justin Vernon
Original Broadway Cast (2019): Reeve Carney
Orpheus is technically our main character throughout the show, but I admittedly think he's the least interesting out of the entire cast. I will also say that I was personally not the biggest fan of the way Reeve Carney plays Orpheus; he is supposed to be a social awkward musical genius, yes, but Carney tended to play him so awkward on stage it was distracting. He also doesn't have quite the voice I'd pin for a musical theater actor, though as an alt or indie musician he would definitely fit the bill. That being said, Act I's Wedding Song duet with Eurydice works with his voice very well, and the back and forth between the two characters is very sweet. This song is included on the concept album as well, with the part of Orpheus sung by indie rock artist Justin Vernon of Bon Iver.
Lover, tell me if you can/Who's gonna buy the wedding bands/Times being what they are/Hard and getting harder all the time/Lover, when I sing my song/All the rivers sing along/And they're gonna break their banks for me/To lay their gold around my feet/All a-flashing in the pan, all to fashion for your hand/The rivers gonna give us the wedding bands
Eurydice (Mezzo-Soprano/Alto)
Spotlight Song: Flowers
Honorable Mentions: Any Way the Wind Blows; Wedding Song; Way Down Hadestown; Chant; Hey Little Songbird; When the Chips are Down; Wait For Me (Reprise); Doubt Comes In
Concept Album (2010): Anaïs Mitchell
Original Broadway Cast (2019): Eva Noblezada
Really and truly, Eurydice is the star of this show, and I am so grateful that I got to see Eva Noblezada perform it, especially since her final show was a little over a week ago. Act II's show stopping ballad Flowers is NOT an easy song to sing (as both myself and a few of my students have discovered), but Noblezada plays it off like it's as simple as breathing. You really, truly feel for this young woman throughout the show and end up connecting with her very deeply. Flowers is included on the concept album, with the part of Eurydice sung by the show's very creator, indie folk singer/songwriter Anaïs Mitchell.
What I wanted was to fall asleep/Close my eyes and disappear/Like a petal on a stream, a feather on the air/Lily white and poppy red/I trembled when he laid me out/"You won't feel a thing," he said, "when you go down/Nothin' gonna wake you now"/Dreams are sweet until they're not/Men are kind until they aren’t/Flowers bloom until they rot and fall apart
Hermes (Tenor/Baritone)
Spotlight Song: Road to Hell
Honorable Mentions: Livin' It Up on Top; Way Down Hadestown; Wait For Me; Chant (Reprise); Wait For Me (Reprise); Road to Hell (Reprise)
Concept Album: Ben Knox Miller
Original Broadway Cast (2019): André De Shields
We were not lucky enough to make it to Hadestown to see André De Shields, but we did get to see T. Oliver Reed who was an absolute delight in this role. Hermes essentially serves as the narrator of the show, and a sort of reluctant father figure to Orpheus, and without him the show would not be the same. Act 1's Road to Hell is now one of my favorite opening numbers ever, largely because of the energy Hermes brings vocally and largely because the band in this show is unreal in how talented they are. Unfortunately Road to Hell was not included on the concept album, but the role of Hermes was sung on other tracks by indie folk artist Ben Knox Miller of the band The Low Anthem.
Once upon a time there was a railroad line/Don't ask where, brother, don't ask when/It was the road to hell, it was hard times/It was a world of gods and men/It's an old song/It's an old tale from way back when/It's an old song/And we're gonna sing it again
Hades (Bass)
Spotlight Song: Chant (Reprise)
Honorable Mentions: Way Down Hadestown; Chant; Hey, Little Songbird; Why We Build the Wall; Epic III; Wait For Me (Reprise)
Concept Album (2010): Greg Brown
Original Broadway Cast (2019): Patrick Page
Okay, Hades ended up being one of my favorite characters in this show, largely due to getting to see Patrick Page and hear his absurdly low bass range. Hades may be the closest thing to an antagonist this show has, but he's not really a bad guy - just a guy who has let his doubt turn into fear and manifests it as control. Page's Broadway run ended a few months ago, and like with Eva Noblezada I'm so glad I got to see him in this role. He has a lot of great moments, but my favorite is Act II's Chant (Reprise) as he really starts to spiral in his fear of losing Persephone. Chant (Reprise) is sadly not on the original concept album, but Hades was performed on other tracks by folk singer/songwriter Greg Brown.
Young man, gotta hand it to you/Guess you don’t scare easy, do you/Are you brave or stupid, son/Doesn’t matter which one/‘Cause it seems your song made quite a strong impression on my wife/But it takes more than singing songs to keep a woman in your arms/Take it from a man no longer young/If you want to hold a woman, son/Hang a chain around her throat/Made of many carat gold/Shackle her from wrist to wrist/With sterling silver bracelets/Fill her pockets full of stones/Precious ones, diamonds/Bind her with a golden band/Take it from an old man
Persephone (Mezzo-Soprano/Alto)
Spotlight Song: Our Lady of the Underground
Honorable Mentions: Livin' It Up on Top; Way Down Hadestown; Chant; Wait For Me (Reprise); I Raise My Cup
Concept Album (2010): Ani DiFranco
Original Broadway Cast (2019): Amber Gray
Amber Gray is the other main cat member I missed out on, but I did get to see the super talented Jewelle Blackman (more on her in a minute) and she was absolutely incredible. Gray's voice on the recording fits this style of music absolutely perfectly, especially in Act II's opener Our Lady of the Underground. Persephone is another favorite character of mine, and probably the role in this show I'd want to play above any other, and you get to see so many different layers of this woman that by the end you can't help but love her. Her energy's a little more chaotic than Hermes's, but it still makes this show what it is. Our Lady of the Underground is included on the concept album, with the part of Persephone sung by folk rock singer/songwriter Ani DiFranco.
I don't know about you, boys/But if you're like me, then hanging around/This old manhole is bringing you down/Six-feet-under getting under your skin/Cabin fever is a-setting in/You're stir crazy, you're stuck in a rut/Or you could use a little pick-me-up/I can give you what it is you crave/A little something from the good old days/I got the wind right here in a jar/I got the rain on tap at the bar/I got the sunshine up on the shelf/Allow me to introduce myself/Brother, what's my name, my name is/Our Lady of the Underground/Brother, what's my name/Our Lady of Ways, Our Lady of Means/Brother, what's my name, my name is/Our Lady of the Upside Down/Wanna know my name, I’ll tell you my name/Persephone
The Fates (1 Soprano, 1 Mezzo-Soprano, 1 Alto)
Spotlight Song: Any Way the Wind Blows
Honorable Mentions: Way Down Hadestown; When the Chips are Down; Wait For Me; Nothing Changes; Wait For Me (Reprise); Doubt Comes In
Concept Album (2010): The Haden Triplets
Original Broadway Cast (2019): Jewelle Blackman, Kay Trinidad & Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer
If Hades is the narrator of the show in general, The Fates are the narrators specifically for Eurydice, acting as her conscience but not necessarily in her best interest. I technically only got to see Kay Trinidad in her original role; Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer had already left the show and Jewelle Blackman took over as Persephone after Amber Gray. Hearing those original three harmonize on the recording is truly something to behold, especially in Act I's Any Way the Wind Blows which they sing with Eurydice. Their spooky, doomsday vibe is ever present throughout the show, most often accompanied by them playing instruments of their own which is totally awesome. Any Way the Wind Blows is not included on the original concept album, but The Fates were performed on other tracks by alternative country group The Haden Triplets (Petra, Tanya, & Rachel).
People turn on you just like the wind/Everybody is a fair-weather friend/In the end, you're better off alone/Any way the wind blows/When your body aches to lay it down/When you're hungry and there ain't enough to go 'round/Ain't no length to which a girl won't go/Any way the wind blows/And sometimes you think you would do anything/Just to fill your belly full of food, find a bed that you could fall into/Where the weather wouldn't follow you wherever you go/Any way the wind blows
I highly encourage you to take the opportunity to see this incredible show if it ever comes around to you. Happy listening, and see ya'll next week!
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