Comments | wordsofastory: Hadestown

wordsofastory

Hadestown

Jul 15, 2016 16:24

Last weekend, I went to see the off-Broadway production of "Hadestown", a 1920s-esque folk opera retelling of Orpheus and Eurydice. That's a lot of elements for one show, but yes, really. And it works. It's based on a 2010 album by Anaïs Mitchell, which you can listen to here, but which is fairly different from the show as it exists now ( Read more... )

music, other fandoms

Comments 7

just_ann_now July 15 2016, 21:31:09 UTC

I've been seeing it all over Tumblr. This year's Hamilton?

wordsofastory July 15 2016, 21:41:49 UTC

I can only hope! :D

Though oddly, I don't particularly crave fanfic for Hadestown. It feels so perfectly complete and circular and of itself that I'm not sure where you'd fit in another story. Though I'm sure someone can write the fic to prove me wrong!

sovay July 23 2016, 04:29:35 UTC

It feels so perfectly complete and circular and of itself that I'm not sure where you'd fit in another story.

I think I would have difficulty distinguishing Hadestown fic from the general body of Greek underworld retellings, but I am one hundred percent down for fan art. That said, there is probably infinite opportunity for stories of Depression-era Hermes.

rachelmanija July 18 2016, 18:12:54 UTC

This sounds great. I wish I was in New York!

Is there a CD? Honestly most musicals I hear on CD way before I ever see a production, IF I ever see a production. Though this sounds like a good one to see live. I love your description of Hermes stamping.

wordsofastory July 19 2016, 00:22:42 UTC

The concept CD is pretty similar, but the show does have a great deal of new material, especially in regards to Persephone. Apparently they have done a cast recording, but it hasn't been released yet. Unfortunately! Because I definitely want a copy of my own to listen to endlessly.

sovay July 23 2016, 04:27:45 UTC

Orpheus is the great musician, still - but he's also a penniless romantic that is not particularly concerned with figuring out how to support himself and his new wife, which is a problem in the Depression-esque "Hard Times" of this story.

I really liked the strengthening of that element in the show-it's present in the original recording in lines like Hades' some kind of poet and he's penniless in "Hey, Little Songbird" or Eurydike's dreams are sweet until they're not in "Flowers," but the show makes it impossible to ignore with the way Nabiyah Be's Eurydike almost screams shelter us-harbor us at the end of "Chant," the end of a fruitless autumn of trying to get Orpheus to get his head out of his songwriting and into the realities of food and firewood and winter coming on. Hades, in the meantime, has passive-aggressively busied himself inventing the industrial revolution in the absence of his wife, which does not impress Persephone at all. Two wrong kinds of love; what men create that has nothing to do with what women want or need. ( ... )

wordsofastory July 25 2016, 20:32:36 UTC

Hades, in the meantime, has passive-aggressively busied himself inventing the industrial revolution in the absence of his wife, which does not impress Persephone at all. Two wrong kinds of love; what men create that has nothing to do with what women want or need. Hades builds too many walls. Orpheus can't be bothered to keep his wife out of the wind.

Yes! That's such an excellent way of phrasing the parallel between them. Two extremes, and neither one is right the women in between.

I would be incredibly entertained if Hadestown became the next big theater fandom. I've never been in on the ground floor of one of those.

I think it's pretty unlikely, particularly since there's not even a cast recording available yet, but it would be such fun!