In its first public theatrical release, Broadway sensation “Hadestown” opened to $10.2 million in revenue, an all-time record breaking figure for a professionally shot production (hereafter pro-shot) of a Broadway musical. The film’s opening numbers pushed past the $10.1 million record set by “Hamilton” last year, vastly outperforming expectations for the release. Originally slated for a limited showing of only five nights, popular demand for the pro-shot has led to an indefinite extension, with additional screenings added continually. The film’s incredible success sparks hope in the hearts of not just “Hadestown” fans, but fans of Broadway as a whole.
Immediately, audience members are immersed into its atmosphere—a somber, post-apocalyptic world marred by its people’s near-constant struggle to thrive amidst the harshness of both its weather and the attitudes of its inhabitants. The show’s strong musical identity blends folk, jazz, and blues, a unique take that draws listeners into its grounded world and painfully human cast. With its aesthetics, the story cements itself in a time much like the Depression-Era, whilst the staging evokes the feeling of a run down New Orleans bar. This tragic, cyclical tale follows both the characters and its audience for the rest of their days, all with the shared hope that the tale will one day be something different from the ‘sad song’ they’ve come to know.
The musical’s story follows Orpheus and Eurydice along their tragic journey of love. Orpheus, the son of a muse, is a somewhat awkward yet impossibly optimistic boy determined to bring the world into tune with the power of his voice. Touched by gods themselves, Orpheus holds magic capability within his voice—a capability he hopes will remind Hades and Persephone of their love and put an end to the common people’s suffering from the disarray. Meanwhile Eurydice—whom Orpheus is immediately drawn to—is a despondent, hunger stricken young girl who has lived life with the constant threat of the mysterious Fates at her back, forced into a struggle to survive. Disillusioned and hardened by the harshness of her life, Eurydice is acutely aware of the reality of the world: an unfortunate awareness that leads her to her greatest act of desperation.
From the moment audiences step into “Hadestown”, they are struck by the despairing circumstances of both our main characters and the unnamed cast alongside them. With its rich set design, atmospheric music, and emotional narration, their world is viscerally cold, and worse, lonely. The blooming love between Orpheus and Eurydice provides a sliver of hope, but that hope can scarcely remain when the sadness of the tale is always right behind.
The titular setting of “Hadestown” is the underworld, a place where souls go to die, the bright eyes of each prospective worker quickly hollowing until they are reduced to mere cogs in Hades’ unnatural machinery. The unified singing of the workers draw viewers into their quiet lives, a harrowing vision into the crushing monotony of industrial life, and a mirror into America’s own working culture under capitalism. The enemy of poverty drives these victims in search of a better life, but their deals cannot be undone, and thus their lives end. Immersive and emotional, audiences will find themselves unable to be torn from the repeated chants of the workers, falling further and further into the hopelessness of ‘life’ down below.
“Hadestown” is a story of love. It is a story of finding light in darkness, of putting trust in another, and of the power of hope amidst struggle. Most of all, it is about refusing to simply let go, their tragic tale echoing again and again. Evocative, tragic, and overwhelmingly tender, Hadestown is a must-watch for all.
