Well, they sang at the beginning that it was a sad song, and so the show’s conclusion lives up to that expectation. That’s not a spoiler, by the way, given that the lead characters are called, as per the ancient Greek myth, Orpheus (Dónal Finn) and Eurydice (Grace Hodgett Young) – pronounced ‘you-ree-dee-see’, in case anyone was wondering. As this show’s narrator, Hermes (Melanie La Barrie, who, unlike the parcel service with whom her character shares a name with, always delivers) points out, it’s a song and a story that gets told and re-told anyway, despite its tragic ending. There’s something in the story about the possibilities of music to change hearts and minds, and here, even Hades (Zachary James) himself is sufficiently moved to express love for his wife Persephone (Gloria Onitiri) for the first time in – well, goodness knows how long, given they are eternal gods.
There may not be very much in the way of set changes throughout the evening, which doesn’t seem to matter, given the sheer amount of exposition. Somewhat ironically for a musical, it’s the spoken word that’s worth paying close attention to. The ‘new’ version of this musical (the ‘old’ one was first produced in 2006) premiered Off-Broadway in 2016, before Donald Trump’s tenure as US President, which rules out the Act One closing number ‘Why We Build The Wall’ from being influenced by political issues. Still, with lyrics like, “The wall keeps out the enemy / And we build the wall to keep us free” it’s difficult not to be reminded of various contemporary examples of obstacles and blockages, literal and/or metaphorical, being put in place, ultimately in the name of self-interest.
The Greek chorus, as it were, are in the form of ‘Fates’ (Bella Brown, Madeline Charlemagne and Allie Daniel), and there are a number of characters simply listed as ‘Worker’ (Lauren Azania, Tiago Dhondt Bamberger, Beth Hinton-Lever, Waylon Jacobs and Christopher Short) because in the underworld called Hadestown (that is to say, Hell), Hades keeps the eternal souls of the damned hard at work. In other words, there is no rest for the wicked. The show seems to suggest there is a parallel between Hell and controlling and domineering workplaces – toxic environments were what the ‘boss’ says goes without question or negotiation, with severe ramifications for non-compliance.
The lighting (Bradley King) is, in a word, immersive, in that the stage lights shine at least as high up as the dress circle – only occasionally, I hasten to add, while Kevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz’s sound design, bar the very forgivable odd micro-second glitch, ensures everything is heard clearly: you’d be surprised how many shows don’t seem to pay sufficient attention to getting the balance between cast vocals and band/orchestra right! Here, a seven-piece band (eight, if one counts Finn’s actor-musicianship), led by Tarek Merchant, are visible on stage, to an extent giving the show a gig atmosphere.
A story of young love, there isn’t the usual dating and hanging out that young lovers do, because there are more pressing matters to take care of – Eurydice’s food cupboards are completely bare, for instance. This makes this musical as well as its narrative stand out from the crowd, and judging by audience reactions from beginning to end, it’s a show that already has a cult following. Finn’s Orpheus has an impressive vocal range: I had one of those ‘how does he do that eight times a week?’ thoughts as his keynote song, melodic but lyrically unchallenging, hits the high notes over and over again.
Indeed, the whole cast does very well, and there are no weak links to report. With a good range of upbeat and slower numbers, there’s gospel, blues and jazz to enjoy. (Oh, and don’t be too quick to leave after the curtain call. It really is a bit like a gig – the final song isn’t really the final song.) It may well be a story that takes barely five minutes to read on Wikipedia stretches out to two-and-a-half hours. But this is a unique and unforgettable theatrical experience.
Review by Chris Omaweng
HADESTOWN, the acclaimed Broadway musical phenomenon by singer-songwriter Anais Mitchell and director Rachel Chavkin makes its long-awaited West End premiere in February 2024 at the Lyric Theatre. ‘An epic celebration of music, togetherness and hope’ (Forbes) HADESTOWN is the winner of 8 Tony Awards® including Best Musical and the Grammy Award® for Best Musical Theatre Album.
HADESTOWN takes you on an unforgettable journey to the underworld and back, intertwining two mythic love stories – that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone.
A deeply resonant and defiantly hopeful theatrical experience, HADESTOWN invites you to imagine how the world could be.
Hadestown
Lyric Theatre
