So I got to see Hadestown yesterday and I wanted to share some highlights.
It's obvious even when listening to the album that Orpheus is extremely innocent, but seeing his face and mannerisms makes it even more obvious and more tragic.
When Hades comes for Persephone he and Eurydice exchange looks and Orpheus jumps in front of her to block Hades view.
The woman who played Persephone faked a lisp to seem drunker for most of the play but whenever she said something serious she dropped the lisp which just added to the effect that her words had.
When Orpheus says "to the world we dream about and the one we live in now" everything goes dead quiet. No music, no movement just those words.
When Eurydice is looking for food the fates rip off her jacket and her coat.
The entrance to the train station is a bay door that opens to reveal a bright panel of lights and smoke.
When Orpheus takes the back entrance to Hadestown the set separates to let him through just like the rocks split in the original myth.
When Hades says "I conduct the electric city" the lights get so bright that it is blinding.
When Orpheus sings for Hades there are three spot lights; one for him, one for Eurydice and one for Persephone.
Hades and Persephone dancing. Also the way Orpheus holds Eurydice.
The works all wear caps that make them look almost identical. When Orpheus makes them remember their lives they take the hats off.
The stage is so dark and smoky when Orpheus is walking that even the audience does not know if Eurydice is there.
They light up a set of stairs and a doorway to represent the end of the journey back to the surface. When Orpheus turns around there are audible gasps from the audience and the bay doors slowly close on Eurydice.
At the very end, they reset the entire stage to make it look exactly like it did when they started emphasizing that they will never stop telling the story.
That got a bit long, but there is so much to say. I honestly barely covered half of it. It's an incredible show and if you ever get the chance to see it you should.
