When the musical Hadestown begins, entrance applause is encouraged and given. We are joining a party of sorts. There will be a “toast to the world we dream about and the one we’re living in now.” Persephone leads the way as she is “Livin’ It Up On Top.” As Hermes, the patented suave stylishness of André De Shields (The Wiz, The Full Monty) will guide us through “an old tale from way back when.”
Originally written as a concept album in 2010, Anaïs Mitchell’s brilliantly conceived folk opera was staged off-Broadway in 2016 at the New York Theater Workshop. The core of this show and two of its stars have traveled uptown (via London last fall) in a production rejoicing in originality, soulfulness and luminescence.
The show is now set firmly in America. With a New Orleans vibe, Ms. Mitchell’s multi-genre score resonates as a sumptuously rich patchwork of jazz, ballads and folk rock. Uncannily for our times, she wrote the song “Why We Build the Wall” many years ago. There’s no pussyfooting around this direct commentary on today’s America. We build the wall to “keep out the enemy… Poverty is the enemy.”
The greed of capitalism is a major theme flowing through this show. Hades runs a tight ship in hell. The faceless factory workers toil away in servitude. Orpheus offers a counterpoint to life’s purpose singing “a song that brings the world back into tune.” The beauty of a flower and the promise of spring is juxtaposed against the clang of heavy metal machinery in the cold dead of winter.
While the story is faithful to Greek mythology, placing it as a mirror to our world today allows Hadestown to be not only a great musical but one that is exactly of the moment. Interestingly, the staging is somewhat concert-like with old school microphones often employed. This sad tale still exists because it will be repeated again and again no matter what the time period. “If no one takes too much, there will always be enough” is the never realized mantra of human society.
Each of the five principal performers are superb in their widely diverse musical performances and embodiment of character. Orpheus is a naïve innocent and a dreamer. As portrayed by Reeve Carney (Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark) he is a balladeer, equally modern and timeless. His high tenor reaching into falsetto is in direct counterpoint to Hades’ lower than low baritone. As the tale goes, Orpheus falls in love with Eurydice played by Eva Noblezada (Miss Saigon) whose beautiful voice is haunting as she makes bad choices in “Gone, I’m Gone.”
Patrick Page’s Hades is married to Amber Gray’s Persephone. They are hereby anointed couple of the year. His deep voice is eerily evil. When he sings “Hey, Little Songbird” to Eurydice, the line “I could use a canary” sends recognizable shivers of misogynistic privilege. Persephone gets to live it up half the year above ground before having to fulfill her matrimonial promises in the underworld the rest of the year. Ms. Gray excels in projecting these divergent states of happiness (and sobriety). You want her at every party.
Three Fates swirl around the story through song commenting on and questioning the destiny ahead for these mortals. The entire ensemble and David Neumann’s choreography are astonishingly memorable. Especially impactful is the very tall physical presence of Timothy Hughes (Frozen, The Greatest Showman). A member of the “workers chorus,” Mr. Hughes is the three dimensional embodiment of the imagery from an industrial art deco painting. The last time I recall the casting of a specific chorus member this remarkably unforgettable was Jim Bortelsman in the original company of the still running Chicago revival.
If all of these performances weren’t enough to recommend Hadestown, the seven musicians on stage render these various melodies with great style. Brian Drye’s trombone playing garners deserved applause.
All of the creative elements are in harmony including the costumes (Michael Krass) and unique sound design (Nevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz). Rachel Hauck’s set and Bradley King’s lighting design evoke a saloon type atmosphere before plunging us into the underworld. The effects used to create that magic are refreshingly simple, spectacularly realized and magically transporting. It’s everything you could ever want for this show.
With Rachel Chavkin’s brilliant direction, the visual wonders are enthralling. Hadestown lands on Broadway dreaming of a better world. I cannot imagine there will be a better Broadway musical this season. Run.
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