MUSICAL REVIEW: Hadestown ★★★★

Hadestown’s return to London has been a few years in the making; since it’s last venture at The National Theatre in 2018, the show went on to open in Broadway in 2019, expand on a US National Tour, and just under 6 years later, this sung-through musical that depicts a version of the greek tale centering around Eurydice and Orpheus is back in London, with audiences filled to the rafters inside The Lyric Theatre, where the run has already been extended due to sheer demand in the show’s return, due to the popularity of Anais Mitchell’s Music and Lyrics, which have recently become viral songs for the younger generations.

Chipping away at the changes the show underwent as it hit the Broadway stage, and refining those moments when bringing the show back, this production feels cemented in a way in which we hope the creatives first envisaged the production to have when starting out; when the walls break away from aboveground to introduce the underworld in the climaxing moments of Act One, Rachel Hauck’s design rumbles with sheer anticipation in discovering what can be possible with scenic features. Bradley King’s keen eye for timing within Lighting excels when the use of ensemble swinging large lanterns on stage is caught with the rig’s moving fixtures in Act One’s ‘Wait For Me’, complimenting David Neumann’s choreography.

Taking on the two Greek beings in the centre of the story are Dónal Finn (Orpheus) and Grace Hodgett Young (Eurydice). Whilst the harmonies between the two makes up for otherwise questionable chemistry, you can’t help but notice just how different the musical arrangement differs between the two; whilst Eurydice is giving the chance to be introduced as a sole entity, Orpheus’ first verse in ‘Come Home With Me I’ is overshadowed by the ensemble’s backing vocals, taking us away for a moment from this idea that we are watching our lead male take to the stage.

Elsewhere in the cast, Melanie La Barrie is exquisite casting in the role of Hermes, a part in all productions thus far portrayed by a male, with Zachary James and Gloria Onitiri well suited to their roles as Hades and Persephone; in the entr'acte of Act Two, ‘Our Lady of the Underground’ gives us a rare glimpse of the joyful chemistry between Onitiri and La Barrie that’s received with gratitude from the audience, and a soft way in giving the band on stage our appreciation for their work. Bella Brown, Madeline Charlemagne, and Allie Daniel complete the main bulk of the cast as The Fates, mere beings that watch over proceedings with a gleeful approach, and provide as a trio some of the smoothest vocals in the show. 

Whether Hadestown on the West End is received well by critics or not, it feels as though it would make little difference to who attends the evening’s viewing; as the whole premise for the production exudes, theatre’s core values is simply to tell the same story over and over, just as long as the relationship between those on stage, and us in the audience, keep a simple promise, in that we will keep coming back, and I have a sneaking suspicion that we will be doing exactly that with Hadestown.