Hadestown at Ohio Theatre

Dare you to come on a perilous journey, a long and difficult climb down into the very bowels of the earth, and into the underworld, to find the last bastion of humanity, at the town of Hadestown. This is the story of two Greek tragedies, the fateful love Orpheus and Eurydice, intertwined with that of the rulers of the underworld, King Hades and his wife Persephone. Anaïs Mitchell’s beguiling melodies and Rachel Chavkin’s poetic imagination pit industry against nature, doubt against faith, and fear against love. Welcome to Hadestown!

“Hadestown feels like something more intuitive, elemental, and finely woven than a traditional musical.” – The Guardian

“Good luck trying to get these melodies out of your head.” – The Star-Ledger

Near the end of all things, the world is dying, and the great storyteller of the ages appears with wings upon his feet, Hermes, the messenger of the gods and our guide as we follow this tragic tale of love. Our young hero, Orpheus, a passionate and talented young musician, and his lover, Eurydice, an independent and resilient young woman. The two live on the surface of ravaged world, the end of everything has come and resources are scarce. Then one day, Eurydice accepts an invitation from King Hades, to go and work in his factory in the underworld, the last surviving enclave of humanity left, but unknown to her, the contract is not without a price.

And now, our young hero, Orpheus is faced with abandoning his love or journeying to Hadestown himself, to save his love from an eternity of torment. Orpheus, armed with nothing but his music and his love, must now venture, literally to hell and back, to bring Eurydice home once more. Once he arrives at the factory, he must petition King Hades and Queen Persephone, the gods of the underworld, to allow him to bring her back to earth. Sing to them a song so magnificent, that they will have to grant his boon… And that dear watcher, is merely the beginning of the show. Orpheus and Eurydice must still embark on the most harrowing part of the journey, to literally climb out of hell…

Strange that King Hades and the jealous Queen Persephone would let two such souls go that easily.

“Eurydice is not an agency-less victim in this version of the story, but a practical girl who chooses the security of Hadestown over her unpredictable life above ground,” says creator, Anaïs Mitchell. “To me, these myths and these mythological characters feel very modern, but also ancient, they keep resonating in surprising ways.”

“SUMPTUOUS. GORGEOUS. AS GOOD AS IT GETS. You wish you could live in the glowy moment forever.” – The New York Times

“UTTERLY FABULOUS. RACHEL CHAVKIN is fearlessly innovative. Her wildly inventive production arrives on Broadway with A FURNACE-LIKE BLAST OF CREATIVITY.” -The Hollywood Reporter

This Tony and Grammy Award winning new musical was written by celebrated singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell, and innovative director Rachel Chavkin, creator of Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812. The Musical was originally premiered in 2006 in the town of Barre, Vermont, and went on tour to Massachusetts in 2007, but ultimately this early version of Hadestown failed to draw a crowd. In 2012 Anaïs Mitchell again teamed up with Rachel Chavkin to rework the production, adding in new scenes and music. This new version premiered Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop in May 2016, making its way to Edmonton, Canada, and at the National Theatre in London, before finally onto Broadway by March 2019.

The Broadway production opened to positive critical acclaim and received numerous awards and nominations, and at the 73rd Tony Awards in 2019, Hadestown received a total of 14 nominations, winning eight of them, including Best Musical and Best Original Score. The New York Times called it, “gorgeous and hypnotic”, especially noting its improvement from the New York Theater Workshop version, and The Hollywood Reporter called it, “utterly fabulous!” Hadestown took home four Drama Desk Awards, one Drama League Award, and six Outer Critics Circle Awards in 2019 and the album of music from the show won the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

“This is a show for people who really love music, and folks who are open to, or better yet, hungry for unconventional theatrical experiences. The myths will always be relevant, that’s part of their mysterious power.” – Anaïs Mitchell.

“Unforgettable. Simply one of the most exquisite works of musical storytelling I’ve seen in my more than 25 years as a theater critic. In its supple convergence of story and song, Hadestown represents a step forward for the art form.” – Los Angeles Times