Welcome to Hadestown at Starlight Theatre, where a song can change your fate. Intertwining two mythic tales, Hadestown is a haunting and hopeful theatrical experience that grabs you and never lets go. The Starlight premier runs June 9-14, with tickets starting at less than $20 per person.
Hadestown weaves the tales of two pairs of lovers from Greek mythology – the hopeful Orpheus & Eurydice and the conflicting Hades & Persephone. Hermes, the messenger of the Gods, guides the story as audiences embark with Orpheus to the underworld to retrieve his love Eurydice from Hadestown.
What is Hadestown?
- An invitation to see how the world could be – the show pits doubt against faith, industry against nature, and fear against love
- An epic love story where the stakes are monumental
- The creation of two powerhouse female creatives: celebrated singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell (music, lyrics & book) and original director Rachel Chavkin (Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812)
Reasons to see Hadestown:
- Uplifting and aspirational, Hadestown instills a profound sense of hope for positive change in the world.
- Experience a celebration of humanity as a talented cast of actors, dancers, singers, and musicians bring this haunting and hopeful story to life.
- The show’s themes connect ancient myths to modern topics such as climate change, immigration, industrialization, and economic inequality.
The Music + Myths of Hadestown
Hadestown has been acclaimed for its genre-defying new score that blends modern American folk music with New Orleans-inspired jazz to reimagine a sweeping ancient tale. The sweeping and unforgettable music gives the show an appeal to a wide audience.
Hadestown is an inventive take on Ancient Greek myths that have been told for ages but there’s no need to know the stories before attending.
The main characters include:
In mythology, Orpheus is the son of the muse of epic poetry, and is engaged to marry Eurydice. With his golden voice and lyre, Orpheus charmed all living things, even rocks and stones. This modernized account features an Orpheus on a musical mission beyond his love for Eurydice.
The mythological Eurydice is a dryad, or tree nymph, and is engaged to marry Orpheus. On the day of their wedding, she was bitten by a poisonous snake, died, and descended into the Underworld. The Eurydice of this version is a runaway who has experienced much hardship in her young life, which makes it hard for her to trust others.
In the myths, Persephone is the Goddess of the seasons, flowers, fruit, and grain. By arrangement, she spent half the year with Hades in the Underworld, causing fall and winter above. The other half she returned to her mother, bringing spring and summer with her. In this modern version, she plays the good-time party girl to dull her disenchantment with said arrangement and other problems with her marriage.
For centuries, Hades has been the God of the dead, ruler of the Underworld, and sometimes called “the Wealthy One.” He fell in love with and married Persephone. Her mother, the goddess of the harvest, refused to bless the earth while Persephone was below. In this version of the story, he is a greedy and zealous industrialist.
Winner of eight 2019 Tony® Awards including Best Musical and the 2020 Grammy® Award for Best Musical Theater Album, this acclaimed show is a love story for today… and always.
