Livin’ It Up On Broadway: A Hadestown Review

BY ASHTYN HANSARD

Digital Media Director

Warning: there will be spoilers of “Hadestown” in this review. If you already know the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, then the musical is no different.

When I got the word that I’d be traveling to New York with Mackenzie Johnson, Lindsey Hughes and Haeley Carpenter, I knew that we had to see a Broadway musical or play no matter what happened. 

While we initially wanted “Wicked” tickets, we ended up going with tickets for “Hadestown.” 

None of us had any real clue as to what the play was about other than it was a love story, and I had only heard a portion of one song, “Wait For Me,” due to its popularity on TikTok. We had no idea what we were walking into.

Haeley, our Editor-in-Chief, was ready for anything.

“We all went into it blind other than knowing it was the story of Orpheus,” Haeley said. “I’m not the biggest fan of musicals, but Broadway is so iconic that we knew we were going to go, we just didn’t know which show. Picking ‘Hadestown’ was the right choice.”

Thank goodness we did.

I’m not trying to be biased when I say that “Hadestown” is one of the best musicals I’ve ever seen, and this is coming from someone who loves any and all kinds of musicals. Disney, Broadway, movie adaptations; you name it, I love it.

To try and sum up “Hadestown” in a sentence or two is an almost impossible task, but I’ll try my best.

In “Hadestown,” narrated by Hermes, Orpheus and Eurydice are two strangers that meet and fall in love. When Hades, God of the Underworld, forces his wife Persephone, Goddess of Spring and Vegetation, to return to hell early, Eurydice ends up giving her soul to Hades to stop from going hungry. Orpheus must travel to hell and save Eurydice or else she’ll be truly gone forever.

While we didn’t have the original cast of “Hadestown” at our show, the actors and actresses were phenomenal. 

Carlos Valdez, most known for his role as Cisco in CW’s “The Flash,” plays Orpheus, the main character who must travel to hell to save his lover.

Merle Dandridge, commonly known for her roles as Marlene in “The Last Of Us” TV show and video game and as Natasha Ross in “Station 19,” played the wonderful Persephone, who is trying to mend her relationship with Hades when he forces her back to hell before she’s ready.

The actress that typically plays Eurydice, Hailey Kilgore, was not present during the day we saw the musical. Eurydice was instead played by Jessie Shelton, who was one of the show’s original Fates—one of the supporting characters—when it was off-broadway.

Haeley managed to get us some great seats in the front of the mezzanine, which made for an easy and comfortable viewing experience (thank you, Haeley). From our seats, we were able to see and hear just as good as everyone else.

When I say the vocals from the actors and actresses were top-notch, I’m not kidding. 

Valdez was amazing as Orpheus. His voice was incredibly moving and strong, especially in his song “Wait For Me,” drawing the audience in with a single note, much like his character. 

Shelton’s voice was completely her own, marking her own style while also portraying Eurydice’s independence.

Dandridge had an outstanding vocal performance, with mind-blowing riffs during “Our Lady of the Underground.” Her voice paired with Tom Hewitt, who played Hades, was something of another world (pun intended). His deep, gravelly voice compared to her strong yet serene tone was almost enchanting.

It would be unfair of me to not give my flowers to the rest of the crew as well. 

Daniel Breaker made a fantastic Hermes, playing the narrator role perfectly with his exaggeration and larger-than-life voice. The Fates were haunting with their harmonizing voices and did an amazing job keeping the audience guessing who’s side they were on.

And of course, the ensemble was amazing. Their voices were moving, providing beautiful backup harmonies to the lead characters’ voices. Their choreography was perfect and really helped bring the show to life.

Again, I’d like to repeat that there are spoilers in this review. 

In the most important and tense moment of the show, Hades tells Orpheus and Eurydice that they can leave hell on one condition: Orpheus has to walk in front of Eurydice and cannot look back at her under any circumstance. If he does, she’ll be sent back to hell.

“Doubt Comes In” is the song Orpheus, Eurydice and the Fates sing while they travel back to their life above ground. Orpheus, so glad to have finally made it, turns around and looks at Eurydice, who is still behind him but has not made it all the way like he thought. As Hades said, Eurydice gets sent back to hell, moments away from her exit and the love of her life.

This moment was so heartbreakingly beautiful, I couldn’t help but gasp loudly in an all-silent theater. Valdez and Shelton played the moment so tenderly that one couldn’t help but feel the loss with the characters.

Orpheus sits, mourning Eurydice when Hermes, who has watched Orpheus since he was a young boy, starts to sing “Road to Hell (Reprise),” a more acoustic version of the opening song. The lyrics of this song finally sank in as I watched, realizing we were told exactly what was going to happen the whole time. 

“The song was written long ago, and that is how it goes. It’s a sad song, it’s a sad tale. It’s a tragedy, it’s a sad song,” Breaker sings, mirroring the lyrics from the original song. 

It was heartbreaking to realize that there was never going to be a happy ending for Orpheus and Eurydice, yet we hoped for one anyways. Breaker sings another lyric in this song, adding another level of mourning.

“It’s an old tale from way back when, and we’re gonna sing it again and again,” Breaker sings. 

Hermes is telling the audience that the story of Orpheus and Eurydice has happened time and time again, and it will continue to happen. There is no version of the story that ends happily, and Orpheus will lose Eurydice every single time.

If that doesn’t break your heart, I’m not sure what will.

That being said, I still recommend this show for anyone wanting to see a good Broadway play. 

The actors were magnificent, really pulling your attention. If you think my opinion is invalid because I love all musicals, take Johnson and Hughes' opinions as well.

Mackenzie, our Managing Editor, was thoroughly impressed by the production.

“I am not someone who would be referred to as a ‘theater person.’ I think I’ve only ever been to one Broadway play based in Nashville, and although I remember liking it, getting to see ‘Hadestown’ in NYC was on a completely elevated level,” Mackenzie said. “The cast was fantastic, the set was insane, and although I knew none of the music going into it, I can say with certainty I do now. ‘Theater person’ or not, Hadestown will make you one for the duration of their play.”

Lindsey, our Art Director, was also blown away by the show.

“As someone who has never been a fan of musicals, this one was a ten out of ten,” Lindsey said. “It kept my attention the whole time, the music and the vocals were incredible, and it was genuinely just an incredible experience overall. I would go again in a heartbeat.”

If you’re looking for a good Broadway show to catch on your trip to New York, or even looking for a bootleg to watch (though you didn’t hear that from me), I very highly recommend “Hadestown.” I doubt you’ll be disappointed. 

The “Hadestown” album recording with the original cast is also available on many music streaming apps. If you want to test out the waters, I also recommend listening to the album.