Musical theater, I’ve discovered, is the remedy to showing up as yourself around unfamiliar faces. This epiphany came to me while watching the performers of the National Tour of Hadestown at the Wang Theatre on April 25th, 2024.
Looking back, not only was the singing, dancing, and acting utterly moving, the reality of the characters and their connections with the actors’ identities displayed in the show are what created a truly life-changing experience.
Hadestown originally opened on Broadway on April 17th, 2019, starring American actor Reeve Carney and Tony-nominee Eva Noblezada as the leads Orpheus and Eurydice, respectively. The show is based on the Greek tragedy surrounding the love of these two characters, a love that takes them to hell and back (literally). Their tale is intertwined with the myth of Hades and Persophone, and the love they once shared that’s been lost to time.
Written by singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and directed by Tony-nominee Rachel Chavkin, puts a new, modern twist on the original story. The show is set primarily in a New Orleans-style speakeasy, with lively people and music, heavily contrasting the gloomy factory setting of the underworld known as Hadestown. The factory, bearing haunting similarities to the oil factories of the real world, is sustained by the efforts of the dead, portrayed as fatigued workers. The score itself combines jazz and folk-style music, mixed with the alternating dull-to-vibrant lighting and expertly worn-down costumes to build the atmosphere of Hadestown.
The magic of the show, though, comes from its characters. Orpheus is a bright, dreamy guy who sees the way the world could be rather than the way it is. Eurydice, on the other hand, is a survivor, who has learned to fend for herself in the dark and cold world they live in, seeing only the way things are. Their conflicting personalities is what creates their electric chemistry throughout the story, where they connect with overwhelming passion. To have the most realistic romance, it’s necessary that their actors share the same qualities. Or is it?
Actor J. Antonio Rodriguez speaks on this topic, in an interview with LA Excites, on performing as Orpheus on the National Tour of Hadestown. He notes that although he loves to put himself in the shoes of Orpheus each night, he identifies more with Eurydice in real life. Orpheus serves as a way for him to immerse himself in how he was when he was younger but, being a dreamer, he’s learned to see the world through a more realistic lens. According to him,
“Hadestown is written in such a way where anyone can put their perspective on it, and the story changes with individual perspectives pulling from the actors’ experiences.”
Seeing him onstage the night of the show, I saw no indication of someone more like Eurydice; not only was he completely immersed in the role of Orpheus, his performance was whole, honest, and most importantly, original. Hadestown discusses huge social topics, such as poverty and rebellion, and using experiences from the actors’ identities to fuel their acting is what makes a startling, unique performance.
Now, this is not to say that sharing similar traits as the character is harmful to the individuality of the actor’s performance, in fact, it seems to be quite the opposite. Take Amaya Braganza, a Filipino-American actress who currently plays Eurydice.
According to Braganza, the qualities of Filipino culture are embodied in the role of Eurydice, and it makes sense to her that the original actress Eva Noblezada was Filipino-American as well. She adds that having a female director has allowed both actresses to leave their own mark on the character, and focus on different aspects of Eurydice. Braganza takes on more of the survivor aspect of the character, a large part of what makes Eurydice who she is. During the performance, her desperation and survivalist nature emanated from the stage, only amplified by her difficult decision to leave her lover behind in search of another way to survive. By using her similarities with Eurydice, Braganza masterfully yet subtly commands the audiences’ attention, putting her own twist on who the young, hungry girl is.
This is where my epiphany comes back into play. The National Tour of Hadestown showed me that musical theater encourages actors to wholly be themselves, by acting as someone else! Ironic as it is, identifying with characters yet putting a personal twist on them can serve as a method of teaching youths about their own sense of self, and the importance of individuality in their daily lives.
