HADESTOWN

13 October 2026

On a visit back to Melbourne last year, Susan and I, Sebastian and a friend, went to see Opera Australia’s production of Hadestown, based on the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. There were some directorial choices which I might have questioned but overall, the quality of the performances was impressive. We listened to the Broadway soundtrack when we got home and  I swear the Australian singers were better. Less “black” sounding but greater range and tone. Hades was particularly sinister singing songs such as ‘Why do we build the wall”? And the Fates sounded stronger too.


The wall song could have been written about Trump but wasn’t because it was created in 2006. Why do we build the wall? For freedom. From what? From poverty? Because poverty wants what we’ve got.

https://www.allmusicals.com/lyrics/hadestown/whywebuildthewall.htm

There were times in the show where I was almost bought to tears. Always a good sign.

But back to the purpose of THIS blog. Last night, Susan and I went to see the film that recorded the original Broadway cast on a West End stage. While we agreed that the Australian Orpheus was better, the US Hermes was played by an amazing HIV gay 80-year-old (his words), Andre De Shields. Extraodinary performance. And Hades, nearly as good as the Australian Adam Tamburini, successfully performed in a glamourous black shiny moon boot. It was wonderful to have the chance to this unique musical again.

When the National Theatre first started broadcasting cinema versions of live productions, the audience usually clapped even though there was no artist there to appreciate the acknowledgement of their work. Although listening to the post-show toilet chat demonstrated that people at the movie last night were blown away by it, the silence at the end of the film felt odd.

If you get a chance to see the show, live or filmed, do – and if that’s not possible, then check out any of the sound recordings. It’s poetic and moving.

 

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