The road to hell is paved with great songs in ‘Hadestown: The Musical’
For those who didn’t get to see the original Broadway run, a filmed version of “Hadestown: The Musical” comes to the big screen for a five-day run. This version was shot at the Lyric Theater in London’s West End.The principal cast returns in the roles that garnered them praise, including André De Shields as our narrator, the Greek god, Hermes, a role for which he won the Tony. Yes, it’s more Greek mythology on the big screen, but this time, there’s singing, dancing, and waves of emotion.
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I prefer a filmed performance to an outright movie musical remake because there’s nothing like a live audience underscoring the action. The performers feed off the energy and emotions rising up from the crowd, and the camera captures intimacies that you can’t see from the theater seat. Film can never catch the lightning in a bottle that the theater experience creates, but it can show the flash and emulate the rumbling of thunder.
Director Brett Sullivan shoots the entire stage, but he also inserts shots of his performers’ hands and faces. You can see the tears in their eyes, the sweat on their brows, and the intricate details of their costumes. An occasional split diopter or overhead shot keeps the proceedings cinematic.
From the audience’s reaction, it’s clear that the Lyric is filled with people who know this show. The musical has been running on Broadway since 2019, and on the West End since 2024. It was nominated for 14 Tonys and won eight, including best musical, best direction, and best original score. The chance to see the principal cast reunite in 2025 must have been too good an opportunity to pass up. I’ve seen the original Broadway production, so I can vouch for that.
In his entrance, 80-year-old Broadway legend De Shields commands an unbridled outpouring of joy from the crowd just by popping open Hermes’s suit jacket and posing. That’s before he jumps into composer Anaïs Mitchell’s “Road to Hell,” the boisterous opening number that sets the stage for this retelling of the love story of Orpheus (Reeve Carney) and Eurydice (Eva Noblezada). Their sad tale is combined with that of Hades (Patrick Page) and Persephone (Amber Gray). (Gray, Page, and Noblezada were all nominated for Tonys.)
Mitchell’s lyrics float seamlessly over a New Orleans-style jazz arrangement played by the onstage orchestra. De Shields’s singing is flawless and confident. In addition to introducing the main characters, Hermes brings on the Fates and the Greek chorus of regular people. The audience claps along enthusiastically, and the synchronicity is enough to make your theater seat vibrate. “Road to Hell” is an opening number on par with the greatest curtain raisers like “Some People” and “Good Morning Baltimore.”
“Hadestown: The Musical” maintains this level of excitement throughout. The actors breathe new life into stories that are thousands of years old. Page’s rich, deep voice sounds as if it’s being summoned from the lowest depths, which is perfect for Hades. He may be king of the underworld, but he’s not completely heartless.
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Gray makes Persephone the hard drinking life of the party — you’d drink too if you had to spend six months in hell, even if you were with the man you love. She slays the second act opener, “Our Lady of the Underground,” calling out the onstage musicians by name while walking a tightrope between drunk and sober. But she also shows a haunting vulnerability that complicates her character.
Noblezada is the show’s emotional center, sassy one moment and uncertain the next, allowing us to understand Eurydice’s decision to go to hell. Eurydice’s romance with Orpheus is a whirlwind one, but he’s preoccupied with his own obsession with completing the melody that runs through his head (and through the show).
If there’s a weak link in “Hadestown: The Musical,” and I hesitate to call it that, it’s Orpheus. He’s a bit of a drip, despite Carney singing his heart out. This is the guy we’re rooting for as he descends into the underworld for love. We know how that turns out, and while the result is appropriately sad, you realize that Hades is a hell of a lot more charismatic than his rival. That minor fault lies in Mitchell’s book, though it’s an easily ignored flaw.
“It’s an old song,” Hermes tells us in the opening number, “but we’re gonna sing it again.” The ending of “Hadestown: The Musical” highlights that cyclical nature. The message is that telling these stories over and over constitutes a learning experience for the listener. I don’t know if that’s true, but I wanted to watch this movie again as soon as it ended.
★★★½
HADESTOWN: THE MUSICAL
Directed by Brett Sullivan. Written by Anaïs Mitchell. Based on the Broadway musical “Hadestown.” Starring André De Shields, Reeve Carney, Eva Noblezada, Patrick Page, Amber Gray. At AMC Boston Common, Landmark Kendall Square, Alamo Drafthouse Seaport, AMC Causeway, suburbs. 141 minutes. Unrated (the gods would rate this PG)
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