Hadestown: The Musical Blu-ray Review
“Hadestown: The Musical” doesn’t live up to the hype.
Since its debut, “Hadestown” has been one of the most acclaimed musicals of the past decade winning countless awards (including Tony Awards). The musical is a spin on the Orpheus and Eurydice and Hades and Persephone Greek myths by Anaïs Mitchell (who is a triple threat here having done the music, lyrics, and book). Set in an ambiguous depression/post-apocalyptic southern town, the musical is narrated/told by the Greek god Hermes and features a chorus and the 3 Fates providing vocals as well. A jazzy live band also plays on stage. As you might have guessed, the story revolves around Orpheus (a poor son of a muse working on a song), Eurydice (a hungry drifter), Hades (the King of Hadestown), and Persephone (the wife of Hades). Orpheus falls in love with Eurydice at first glance, but their romance is interrupted when Eurydice makes a deal with Hades for food and a home in Hadestown where she would be working hard labor. When Orpheus learns that Eurydice is in Hadestown, he treks there to find her. Meanwhile, Hades and Persephone are feuding. Persephone grows weary of her deal to be in Hadestown half the time while being above ground half the time as she enjoys being out in the open. Can their love be rekindled? Will Orpheus rescue Eurydice?
After all of the awards and hype, I was curious to finally get a chance to watch “Hadestown” via this pro-shot 2025 recording from London which features the Original Broadway Cast. As someone who enjoys musical and musical theater, it seemed like it would be up my alley, but this new spin on an old tragedy is a bit lacking in the storytelling department.
As a filmed production, “Hadestown” is impressive to watch. The stage direction by Rachel Chavkin is exquisitely performed and director Brett Sullivan does a bang up job capturing the live event with a variety of angles that make the experience more up-close-and-personal. What the show lacks in production design, it makes up for with dazzling lighting, a platform, and a rotating section of the stage (all of which are effective in various scenes).
In terms of the 2 act musical, it’s all a bit underdeveloped and exhausting. “Hadestown” is an all sung affair meaning every word is sung. There’s no breathing room and it’s a bit of an exhaustive experience. Furthermore, the book seems more devoted to hitting certain plot points rather than developing scenes. Orpheus and Eurydice’s romance is undercooked as is the love story between Hades and Persephone. Given that the romance and longing is a huge part of the entire story, it feels like a big whiff in that respect.
The cast helps move things along even when the story and its inevitable moments linger on. Reeve Carney (Orpheus), André De Shields (Hermes), Amber Gray (Persephone), Eva Noblezada (Eurydice) and Patrick Page (Hades) are all clearly passionate about their parts. André De Shields is arguably the most noteworthy cast member here. His first scene in particular just shows how he lives every minute playing this character.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.78:1 1080p. How does it look? The lavish production shines in hi-def. well staged what it lacks in production design, set-up effective
Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? The 5.1 track packs a punch. There is an option to play subtitles too if you want to follow the book/lyrics word by word.
No extras.
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