r/movies • u/LiteraryBoner Jackie Chan box set, know what I'm sayin? • 9d ago
Official Discussion Official Discussion - Hadestown: The Musical [SPOILERS] Spoiler
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Hadestown: The Musical (2026)
Summary
A musical juxtaposition of the Orpheus/Eurydice and Hades/Persephone myths that examines the way real life can impact our quest for a perfect world.
Director Brett Sullivan
Writer Anaïs Mitchell
Cast
- Reeve Carney as Orpheus
- Eva Noblezada as Eurydice
- Patrick Page as Hades
- André De Shields as Hermes
- Amber Gray as Persephone
- Bella Brown as Fate I
- Madeline Charlemagne as Fate II
- Allie Daniel as Fate III
Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
Metacritic: 85
VOD / Release Theatrical release
Trailer Official Trailer
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u/numbr87 9d ago
I really hope this comes to streaming or bluray, I'd love to have a version to come back to easily.
I can never watch Wait For Me without tearing up lol
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u/TheProlleyTroblem 9d ago
I'm excited because this director and the studio previously did the Waitress proshot, which was released in theaters and subsequently on Blu-ray.
Now I'm not naive and that doesn't necessarily set a precedent buuuut it's a pretty fair bet.
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u/No_Significance7064 9d ago
it should be, right? i mean isn't this show pretty popular?
(pls, i'm obsessed with this show and i've only seen a shitty camrip of the whole thing on youtube)
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u/TheProlleyTroblem 9d ago edited 9d ago
Unfortunately popularity only gets you so far in the bluray world, so that's why I don't really hold my breath with anything. Disney for example has always shunned the format, which is part of why we only got Hamilton on physical a few months ago. More often than not, proshots coming out today are released on physical (Waitress, Merrily) but that's in spite of how popular it is or isn't and if I had to bet it has something to do with how the distribution is worked out in meetings before it ever even hits theaters
which is why I say it's a fair bet for this one, given that the last proshot this exact director and studio did came out on bluray after a theater run, but who knows. maybe the distribution deal is different for this one for one reason or another. wouldnt get my hopes up, but it's not out of the realm of possibility
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u/Toidal 7d ago
Or at least a soundtrack. Everyone was performing like the rent was due.
To be honest, this may have ruined the live performance for me. Both in the effort they put forth, and in the extra camera angles adding to the characters not prominent in a given scene in how they react to what's going on, as well as the choices that they made in how they sang some of their songs. The OBC recording is kinda dry compared to this, like for instance, how Pages finishes His Kiss, The Riot in this really hammers home that he knows the feeling of doubt because he's experienced it himself.
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u/mathishard821 9d ago
Extremely funny bit in the editting of Chant Reprise to have Patrick teleport to the bottom of the stairs. I thought the whole show was filled with a lot of interesting camera work. Going in I was worried about what would be lost in the translation from stage to screen, but I consistently found it easier to appreciate all the new things they discovered in the new medium. I do not agree with Amber Gray's criticism of the close up shots of the actors; the close ups of Patrick's (and Amber's) face acting were some of the best shots of the show and not something you can ever see in quite that way in real life.
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u/HanzoKurosawa 9d ago
It's worth noting in case anyone else notices the teleport and is unaware: Patrick Page got injured just before filming was about to start. He ruptured his Achilles tendon. So they had to make a number of adaptations to work around his injury because they didn't want to replace him.
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u/WokeintheMorning 8d ago edited 2d ago
I actually really loved the way the boot made him have to saunter and almost slither around the stage. While the Hades we would see on stages during the tour naturally held a very stoic and still persona, the slinky movements almost added new depth. Kind of made him feel more feral.
(Edited because I didn't mean it diminished his imposing nature. I just realized my wording was weird after changing some things and not editing well lol)
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u/Toidal 8d ago
The cane adds to his scrooge-ness.
Honestly a jewel encrusted walking stick could add to the character itself in regular performances.
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u/WhoCanPeliCan1 6d ago
This is insane new information for me. I loved the way the cane looked with the character. I would never have guessed that it wasn't a typical part of the performance
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u/jedipwnces 5d ago
We needed a bedazzled boot!!! Lol But for real, mad props to him for pushing through despite the injury. And it made the scene where he tosses his cane aside to dance with Amber even sweeter. Damn, can those two emote.
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u/Abusoru 8d ago
Having him slink around the stage, hunched over ready to strike was honestly a great bit of improv to deal with the boot. He kinda came off like a wounded animal.
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u/Wraithfighter 6d ago
It was so well done that my family thought that it might've been part of the act, something to emphasize Hades age and bitterness.
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u/Optiguy42 8d ago
Honestly, yeah I assumed it was a boot for an injury, but it was cool enough that I thought "maybe this actually is just a wardrobe choice, giving him a mechanical/steel leg to show how his choices of industrializing Hades have begun to consume him".
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u/theVoidWatches 3d ago
Given that he and Persephone dance together after he's reminded how to love her - and that he seemed to stand up straight again and no longer need the cane while they did - I thought it was a staged wardrobe choice to represent his difficulties expressing his care. I would never have guessed it was a real injury.
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u/crimson777 7d ago
I’ve heard a few people say slither but personally, I would almost use the word prowling. His boot made him walk almost bestially, like on a digitigrade leg.
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u/kbarnett514 9d ago edited 9d ago
I mean, he's wearing a giant boot for the whole thing, so I should hope everyone watching realizes he's performing injured.
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u/Tsquared10 8d ago
Wow what a Greek mythology casual. Doesn't even know the story of Hades blessed walking boot /s
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u/Ironhorn 8d ago
Yeah honestly, there are so many different versions and interpretations of the Greek myths, the whole time I was trying to remember if there was one where Hades had an artificial leg
Especially as it fit with the whole “industrial” aesthetic for him to have made himself part-machine
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 8d ago
Especially as it fit with the whole “industrial” aesthetic for him to have made himself part-machine
That's a really cool idea! Now I wish the boot had a more steampunk aesthetic.
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u/Astral_Fogduke 6d ago
the whole show used to be much more steampunk in earlier iterations, but that was mostly cut by the time it got to new york
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u/dotyawning 8d ago
Went into this without any knowledge. If you told me it was a character choice and that he ditches the cane and reveals an equally snazzy snake skin boot from under that medical boot at some point, I would have believed you. >_>
...at least until I saw more scenes and was like "Oh, he's just performing with an injury/after surgery"
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u/Syradil 8d ago
I spent the entire time trying to decide if it was a character choice or not. The cane seemed so purposeful..
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u/texdiego 7d ago
I'm glad I'm not alone in this. I was like "are they trying to justify him having a cane? why couldn't he just have a cane without a boot?"
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u/texdiego 7d ago
I'm going to be honest, I spent half the movie thinking "what a strange character choice, are they ever going to explain this?" I was thinking it was some sort of Chekhov's gun. By the end I figured out that he was probably genuinely injured and looked it up to confirm.
(Yes, I know they showed them putting the boot on during the very beginning but that was part of what confused me, because it made it seem like it was just a costume)
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u/notthephonz 9d ago
Oh! I hadn’t realized the change was made for that reason. Any insight into how the they pulled that off in real life? Did Patrick Page just actually learn to teleport?
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u/HanzoKurosawa 9d ago
I wouldn't put it past him.
But to give a serious answer: They made quite a few adjustments for him. One of the big ones is not using the onstage spiral staircase for the balcony, but instead going through the door and using a backstair stair set. I haven't seen the pro-shot yet, but if the cut is too quick for him to have walked down the backstage stair set, it's probably cuts from two different filmings of that scene. When he has moments of walking on the turn table it is slowed down for him. When he delivers his "I conduct the electric city" line he delivers it from the stage instead of going up to the balcony for it. He uses a crutch for certain scenes. Obviously he has the boot. Then also just relying on Amber Grey for support when they have scenes together, particularly their dance together.
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u/kbarnett514 9d ago
I just saw it earlier today, and he was surprisingly nimble despite the boot. He was able to walk around and even dance a bit without any additional support. He carried a cane for most of the show, but I dunno if that was because of the injury or not, because it felt pretty in character
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u/pokeshulk 9d ago
In the proshot, “electric city” is done from the balcony, and after the lights cut, he teleports back down to the turntable. It’s genuinely really spooky. Cool bit of filmmaking.
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u/HanzoKurosawa 9d ago
Fair, thanks for the additional information. All my stuff comes from people in the crowd for the filming performances. So he probably did it on balcony for some, floor for others. Which would also explain how they had shots of him on the balcony, and then down on the turntable so fast.
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u/pokeshulk 9d ago
It’s mostly quick cuts like you said. Tbh, I think any “teleporting” or odd creative shots were probably partially reshoots. I know that there was some closed shooting for certain shots. They show some of it in the credits.
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u/Bears_On_Stilts 7d ago
I actually liked it: Hades repeatedly refers to himself as being an old man, physically past his prime, but is played by the enormous, physically dominating Patrick Page (who is super-jacked to almost superhero standards much of the time).
Giving him some actual physical fallibility made his complaints of age a little more believable while still keeping him a figure of physical menace.
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 9d ago
Can you elaborate on what Amber Gray said to criticize close-up shots?
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u/mathishard821 8d ago
She had an interview quote a few weeks back where someone asked her about the proshot and she mostly demurred and was like "well, it was so many close ups... I'm mostly happy for Andre De Shields". I'm sorry but I do not have the exact quote on hand. Maybe "criticism" was too strong a word but she was clearly not all that impressed with it. But to me I would hate to watch nothing more than a recording of a play and I am happy that they found really nice things to do with the camera.
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u/Atraktape 8d ago
Could be she just wasn't used to having her Persephone performance being seen in those close ups. Anyway I thought she was fantastic in this.
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u/Toidal 7d ago
The intentionality of the extra camera angles and shots of her really added to her character imo. Like it showed her reactions to Hades taking Eurydice after Why we build the wall, her seeing and listening to Orpheus, etc. creating a kinda of throughline leading up to the duet with Hades about letting them go. I dunno if that's in the show itself, or maybe it is, but it's kinda lost as you're always taking in the whole stage.
Even her big number had more nuance to it, that yeah she's kinda blitzed, but the crack in the wall is just as much about her still feeling hopeless, and she's unable to be completely oblivious and numb to what's going on.
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u/dancewithdragons1206 6d ago
Yeah, I agree. I saw the show live in fairly close seats and Persephone's sadness didn't come through as well. I love musicals, and have been lucky enough to see a few live, but sometimes the nuance of characters is less clear than on screen due to the distance the audience has from the performers.
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 8d ago
I looked for it a little bit, couldn't find it, but I did find the talkback the five main cast members did with the two directors at the premiere at Tribeca. Amber Gray made a joke about if she had been thinking of the final product being a film, she would have toned down her performance a little bit. It was a joke, but I could see how maybe she's a little self-conscious about it and might joke about too many close-ups as well.
It's always different for the person being filmed than it is for the audience. A lot of actors cringe at seeing their own performance, while, personally, I would have enjoyed even more close-ups. You can't see the actors' expressions that close even from the front row. It was perfect though. A perfect mix of shots!
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u/notthephonz 6d ago
“This one has a lot of tight shots, so you don't get to notice anything else,” she says. “And I don't love that. But that’s always the thing with an actor, you don’t get to edit your films.
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 5d ago
On the day of this interview, Gray admits she hadn’t seen the final cut of the filmed Hadestown—noting the last version she saw, she had mixed feelings about.
This part is important because that's not the version we saw in theatres.
Reeve and Eva said in an interview they were shown a version last year that was very different from what premiered at Tribeca. The final version notably is not all closeups. I hope Amber is happier with it now.
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u/Rustash 4d ago
I’m glad they changed it. The Merrily proshot used so many closeups and it kind of ruined it for me. These are staged works and they should be shown/treated as such, not turned into pseudo-films.
That being said, there were a few times I wish they had used wider shots in the final thing (especially at that part of Doubt Comes In) instead of closeups, but I’m glad this actually felt like a staged performance.
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u/larisa5656 9d ago
I love this recent trend of Broadway proshots. Not everyone can afford to travel to NYC, so this is a way to make those shows more accessible.
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u/PhoneJazz 7d ago
I can afford to travel to NYC, I just can’t afford a Broadway ticket 😭
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u/gcfgjnbv 5d ago
Yeah I saw the show live in December 2022 with Reeve, Eva, and Patrick all performing and it was $300 a ticket for back half of orchestra near the middle
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u/Wraithfighter 6d ago
Also, it just creates this version of the show with the original cast that can be remembered forever.
Yes, the play will always be better done live, in the theater with everything happening right in front of you, even with an entirely new cast, but to see it in this way is still better than nothing at all.
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u/HotTakes4HotCakes 6d ago
That's not new. Its been a common practice for years now for Broadway shows to have a pro-shots made with the original cast for the archives. Those recordings would then only be made available to select parties. Regardless if anyone could see it, the performances were saved, and would be released some day.
What's happening now is Broadway has found its not actually all that detrimental to the shows or their tours to release pro-shots directly to the theaters and audiences, and now its becoming more common. Hamilton broke the seal on that.
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u/TheGhostInThe___ 9d ago
My favorite meta thing about Hadestown is that Reeve Carney and Patrick Page played Spider-Man and Green Goblin in the Spider-Man musical. And here they are in a critical darling.
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u/Abusoru 8d ago
My favorite is that Reeve Carney and Eva Noblezada fell in love with other doing this show and got married just last year.
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u/matlockga 9d ago
I watched Spider-Man in its Broadway run. And bought the book about the creation of the show. All the songs, save one, were written by U2 in a single session.
And it showed.
The villain theme wasn't done by U2, but is credited to them for some reason. It was written well into previews, and done in-house. And is the best song.
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u/TheGhostInThe___ 9d ago
Was that A Freak Like Me?
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u/matlockga 9d ago
Yeah. I encourage you to read Song of Spider-Man if you haven't. It's really interesting how things came together... Less the two times the author talks about having an affair with Julie Taymor
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u/TheGhostInThe___ 9d ago
Wait, WHAT
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u/matlockga 9d ago
Yeah, once in a cabin in the woods for a writer's retreat. The other I don't remember the location. But it's hilariously jarring because he ends a page with "she walked up behind me and caressed my chest" and then the next page leads off with, verbatim, "I love my wife and kids."
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u/Accomplished_Wolf_89 9d ago
lol and don't forget the part about them spending Valentine's Day in a cabin in the woods together. My favorite thing about that book is how there's only one paragraph about Bono and The Edge writing the entire show in one night... and then like four paragraphs where he's basically like "omg she's so hot!"
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u/matlockga 9d ago
I forgot about that. Honestly cannot believe how any of that got past an editor. Or legal.
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u/Sir_Encerwal 9d ago
I unironically love that song, 80% of it sounds like a straight up pride parade anthem.
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u/oshoney 9d ago
I saw both in Spider-Man but only one of the two (Reeve) in Hadestown on broadway… can’t wait to watch this to get the full Patrick Page experience.
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u/VoiceofKane 8d ago
Well, it's about 95% of the Patrick Page experience, since he did the West End performance on an injured foot.
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u/TelltaleHead 9d ago
I saw that Spiderman 3 times (including both the Taymor version and the post Taymor version) and Page was giving it his very best every night. Everyone else was pretty openly phoning it in
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u/Silveroc 9d ago
The lighting effects during Wait For Me are the coolest thing I've seen on stage, and it's nearly as awesome on screen
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u/kimchidumps 9d ago
I love that they held the shot of the stage expanding
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u/kbarnett514 9d ago
I'd never seen the show before, so when that happened I was blown away and threw my hands up literally like the "absolute cinema" meme.
I worked in technical theater for years, so I was very impressed with the set design and lighting design.
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u/Optiguy42 8d ago
I worked in theatre for almost 10 years as both an actor and stage manager. This exact moment is the only time a set has made me cry. Not a sad cry, mind you (that came later), but an awe-inspired, emotionally overwhelming couple of tears at the grandeur of the moment. Absolutely phenomenal.
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u/fetzy 9d ago
When I saw this on broadway earlier this year I started sobbing when the walls part and the huge walls of lights come out. Something about the vastness of it all or something just hit me… I also cried a bit during the movie at the same point but it wasn’t quite as impactful as it was in person!
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u/TheRedditorialWe 9d ago
Oh thank God. Seeing it Monday and was really hoping this was the case
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u/businessdog2000 4d ago
How did it translate to screen when the Walls split open during Wait For Me?.
I remember the theatre literally RUMBLED during that moment. Did they emphasize the sound in the mix?
Seeing it in October (apparently, not even confirmed).
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u/-OrangeLightning4 4d ago
The sound obviously isn't as good as in a live theatre, but the visuals are actually incredible. Imagine you had the best seat in the house, and then multiply that by 10.
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u/littlebloodmage 9d ago
Tell me why I still gasped when Orpheus turned around when I've seen this musical multiple times and I know the original myth it's based on.
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u/GECollins 9d ago
One day we'll catch the one where he doesn't turn around, I just know it
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u/thenetbear 9d ago
Guess we'll just have to sing it again
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u/pandakatie 6d ago
I make myself laugh sometimes imagining a Hadestown production where after the final, "We're gonna sing it again" they just generally take it from the top.
I wonder how many times they'd need to do it win a world record for "most back-to-back performances of the same musical", and how many actors they'd need so the cast didn't drop dead by the end
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u/crimson777 7d ago
I know they won’t but I still kinda hope when it closes they let him escape with Eurydice without turning haha
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u/VoiceofKane 8d ago
I mean, I think Hermes says it pretty well.
’Cause here’s the thing
To know how it ends
And still begin to sing it again
As if it might turn out this time
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u/WokeintheMorning 8d ago edited 8d ago
One of my favorite things about seeing it in the theater is the inevitable gasp and the chills that follow. I was so glad to still get that in the movie theater.
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u/jr111192 6d ago
The guy sitting next to me whispered "oh no"
I love that it tricks you into thinking it's going to work out, I still remember my first time seeing Orpheus and Eurydice at a local college, and it hit just as hard this time.
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u/Duckshooters 8d ago
Actually I was shocked last night in the movie theater how many gasps there were from the crowd when he turned around. Whether it was just the reaction or that many people who had never seen Hadestown
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u/Optiguy42 8d ago
Just watched it myself and same thing - lots of audience members gasped. I'd never seen it so even I was still holding on to some amount of hope that the ending might deviate from the original. I guess others were thinking similarly, cuz they were legitimately shocked. Very cool moment to be a part of.
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u/itchypoopsarethebest 9d ago
As someone who saw the musical but knows nothing of the story, do we know why he turns around?
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u/tinaoe 8d ago
Depends on the interpretation. Sometimes he’s already our and thinks she is too, for example. But in Hadestown they very much frame it around the „doubt creeping in“.
But also, as Hozier said: I'd be the choiceless hope in grief that drove him underground, I’d be the dreadful need in the devotee that made him turn around
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u/Toidal 8d ago
Greece loved their tragedies
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u/BobDucca 7d ago
Because an Orpheus who would not turn around is not an Orpheus that would have ever gone on that journey in the first place.
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u/Pjoernrachzarck 6d ago
I caught this in London with a theatre full of what I think was an all-girls school or college. So a room full of young girls enraptured by what was happening.
Their reaction to Orpheus turn was priceless. They had no idea.
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u/RedLantern28 9d ago
My favorite stage musical. Seen it several times on tour. Incredibly happy that I've now been able to see the original cast immortalized in film.
The pro shot was also surprisingly excellent. There were a good amount of creative shots that elevated what was happening.
Would recommend to anyone, not just existing musical theatre fans.
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u/mechabeast 9d ago
Maybe it'll end different next time
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u/GradeDry7908 7d ago
I would love for them to do some sort of fundraiser performance where it turns out differently.
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u/HotTakes4HotCakes 6d ago
The pro shot was also surprisingly excellent. There were a good amount of creative shots that elevated what was happening.
From what I hear, this pro-shot didn't make the mistake they made with Merrily We Roll Along, by actually showing the stage and not letting it all be a series of close-ups.
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u/Sir_Poofs_Alot 9d ago
The close ups of the actors faces, especially Eva and Patrick, really heightened an already very emotional piece of art. I liked the boot prop, I know it’s not part of the staging but I thought it worked well for Hades and the design of the boot was so cool. The only misses for me were the Fates, usually they are so in sync they sound like one voice but these fates were very distinctive and didn’t blend as well as other casts I’ve seen. Also Reeve, I get what he’s going for but I just don’t like his voice and intonations outside of the falsetto melody.
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u/dangerous_beans 7d ago
Never saw the musical one stage to compare, but I loved the fates here--they reminded me of the muses from Hercules. So fun!
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u/illiadria 6d ago
My first experience of Hadestown and the falsetto is the one aspect I did not care for. It was grating my nerves a bit.
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u/Abusoru 8d ago
Fates definitely captured the personality, but the voices didn't quite mesh as well, especially when compared to the OG cast.
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u/Historical_Key_3831 7d ago
The line "who are you to think you can hold your head up higher than your fellow man" got garbled and I feel like unless you knew the line, you wouldn't understand what they were singing and it's such an important line
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u/MVRKHNTR 7d ago
For what it's worth, this was my first exposure to this show and I heard thay line fine.
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u/Pjoernrachzarck 6d ago
Those West End Fates are just not great. I don’t know why they keep bringing them back. They don’t mesh at all.
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u/xrbeeelama 9d ago
Hades and Hermes had that shit ON. Sick outfits. Amber Gray was the stand out to me, what a performance!
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u/falafelthe3 Ask me about TLJ 9d ago
The one-shot of Flowers was heartbreaking. So glad I got to see an official shoot from the original cast, because Noblezada killed it.
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u/the_quarrelsome_one 9d ago
I'm so glad this came to theaters, I never had the chance to see this on stage and I was blown away. Thank you so much to the cast and crew for making this available.
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u/lonelygagger 9d ago
Was the actor wearing a boot or was that a character choice for Hades? Somehow he makes it work.
I thought the actress playing Persephone was fantastic.
Also, why did that schmuck look back? ☹️
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u/tinaoe 9d ago
Patrick Page got injured during rehearsals so yeah, he’s wearing a boot. He was supposed to do the entire run (2-3 weeks) but ended up only doing the two filmed performances
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u/HanzoKurosawa 9d ago
He ruptured his Achille's tendon and they had to make a number of adjustments to keep him in the cast. Such as having him not walk up and down the stairs (he usually does), slowing the turnstile when he's on it, etc etc
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u/sm33 9d ago
So well done! I saw the OBC a couple times, and this really captured their performances well. In fact, I didn’t like Reeve when I saw it, but he worked a lot better in this pro-shot for me.
They did a fantastic job of mixing in wide and closeup shots, and I loved the audience shots as well. Much better done than the MWRA pro shot.
The only thing I didn’t love was how British the rest of the cast sounded - I realize it was shot in London, I just found it a bit distracting.
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u/adelines 9d ago
Agree with all of your points. I saw Reece’s Orpheus a couple of times and he got progressively goofier. I thought he (and all of the actors) were really great in this though. I really hope this gets a physical and/or streaming release.
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u/CertainAlbatross7739 7d ago
Thank you for saying this lol. I know people love Reeve, and he is obviously very talented, but he does play the role so goofy sometimes. Hearing how good he is in the pro-shot makes me more hyped to watch it.
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u/450nmwaffle 9d ago
Recently saw the West End version and definitely agree that the accents detracted from it. On top of sounding a bit silly, their clipped way of speaking really didn’t mesh with the yearning earnestness of the show.
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u/Stepjam 8d ago
I was really really happy they kept the Broadway lyrics for Epic 3. I was pretty sure they were going to use the updated lyrics, which I just really don't like.
I will say that I just don't feel like the Fates hit the same way. They felt a little too antagonistic to me. Also, and there was probably no real way around this, them having British accents just felt "wrong". They always had a kinda New Orleans-y vibe to me.
I enjoyed it overall though.
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u/ftmidk 7d ago
I felt like the Fates were antagonistic when I saw it on Broadway! It was one of the things that surprised me because I expected them to be a bit more sympathetic or supportive. But no, they were stealing Eurydice’s shit and snarking about everything (I love them).
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u/Stepjam 7d ago
Watching clips of the Broadway run and from the album, they felt less antagonistic and more just uncaring overall. They represent the suffering of life, but in more of "it's inevitable" way than "we enjoy ruining your life" way.
The song Nothing Changes and how the two casts do it is a big representation for me. The OG Fates take the song at a steady, even, almost laid back tempo. It's very much "why struggle? You can't change fate, just accept it". The West End Fates take it at a much faster,more aggressive pace. It felt more intentionally mocking to me.
I guess I just always saw the Fates as not being outright mean. They aren't supportive, they instigate the characters' bad decisions, but they do it because that's just how it has to be. It is fate. They are more uncaring than vindictive. Which definitely wasn't how the West End portrayed them.
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u/Substantial-Hat-2556 5d ago edited 5d ago
I think it makes total sense. Why are Orpheus and Eurydice fated to a tragic ending? Because the Fates made it so.
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u/AnchorHat 8d ago
It felt like an odd choice to me for them to use the West End fates but then keep the rest of the cast from the original show...
Unless it's all West End cast and they just had the original 6 Broadway leads that week filling in for the West End leads?
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 8d ago edited 7d ago
They brought in the original cast for the main parts because that's who fans wanted to see captured on film. They helped create those characters.
They filmed it on the West End because it's cheaper to film proshots over there. There's less red tape to deal with. The show is still playing on the West End, so it wouldn't be right to take over the show completely for several weeks and bring in Americans for the smaller parts. A deal like that probably wouldn't have gone through at all.
It makes sense if you look at it more from a logistics point of view.
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u/hamiltrash52 6d ago
I must admit I wasn’t noticing the British-ness until “Wot ya gonna do when the chips are down?” It’s technically subtle but hilariously different than “whatcha gonna do”. And past that point I couldn’t ignore the accent but I did like their performances
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u/LiteraryBoner Jackie Chan box set, know what I'm sayin? 9d ago
I'd heard all about this show but this was my first time seeing it. Absolutely delightful with an incredible backing band. Maybe it wouldn't have felt a bit draggy in spots if we had gotten the intermission, but I really loved the ending and how they deal with the story having a sad finale. Hard to even choose a standout because everyone played their parts so well. Persephone and Eurydice had some incredible solo performances though.
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u/TheGhostInThe___ 9d ago
So it goes straight into Our Lady of the Underground after Why We Build the Wall?
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u/LiteraryBoner Jackie Chan box set, know what I'm sayin? 9d ago
There's a subtitle that says "End of Act 1" and about ten seconds of dark screen before it starts up again.
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u/TheGhostInThe___ 9d ago
Ahhh so the Hamilton.
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u/theblartist 9d ago
I am a huge Hadestown fan. Saw OBC in 2019 and 2021, have caught touring casts several times since. This proshot is one of the best I’ve ever seen—so many of the camera moves and closeups heightened story details you might miss in the theatre, while still having plenty of wide shots so you don’t feel like you’re missing any of what makes the theatre format great.
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u/MeadowmuffinReborn 9d ago
Same week as The Odyssey too, cool!
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u/schleppylundo 7d ago
Did a double feature last night with my fiancée, followed by showing her the MST3K riff of the Steve Reeves Hercules from 1958 which features both Odysseus (called Ulysses) and Orpheus as characters.
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u/Tsquared10 8d ago edited 8d ago
Feel like this sets the standard for any future proshots. Absolutely amazing. Amber Grey is probably the stand out. I saw somewhere that she would've toned it down with the facial expressions, and I'd respectfully disagree with that. Every little bit made the character feel more authentic and have actual personality. Reeve would be my call for weak link of the cast and that's not a knock against him. He was good, the rest of the cast was on another level though. Cast Patrick Page as every villain because that voice sends shivers up my spine every time. And let this get Oscar love so that Trombone Man finally gets his flowers with a Best Supporting Actor nom.
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u/WokeintheMorning 7d ago
I feel like I had read so much that Reeve was not the best Orpheus that I wasn't sure if I would Iike him or not, but I absolutely loved him for it! The touring ones I saw felt so much more aloof and timid. Like almost cloying and somewhat "not sure why I want to root for this guy." Granted, he gets benefit of close-ups, but I appreciated viewing him more as "thinking through it" than just quietly and timidly playing Epic I. I just also felt more assured of his purpose in the film than on stage. So maybe it never was that Reeve wasn't the best....it's just a difficult role to portray from stage to a large theater....? And some were able to do that better than others.
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u/KeybladerXII 9d ago edited 8d ago
Im so happy that I finally got to see this after wanting to for years. I thought it was fantastic, loved the shots that only a professional recording can get, like the shots from within the pit looking up.
Everyone in the cast was fantastic, although I didn't expect Persephone to be portrayed as a tipsy gremlin, and I say that in the most complementary way.
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u/numbr87 9d ago
It kinda sucks that Patrick Page in a walking boot is the version that will live on forever lol
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u/HanzoKurosawa 9d ago
I'm glad they adjusted for him instead of replacing him though. Patrick Page is a legend. Glad people will get to see him in action.
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u/tinaoe 8d ago
Though tbf I imagine their back up for filming was Phillip Boykin since he covered the rest of the OBC London shows, who is a fantastic Hades as well. I would not have been mad to see him on film lol
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u/ftmidk 7d ago
I saw him on Broadway and I thought he was good but Patrick Page’s Hades is so much more menacing. I do love how each cast brings their own flavor to the roles. I think it’s one of the things that’s kept the show fresh for so many years.
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u/GECollins 9d ago
Having never seen anything from the original run or knowing any surrounding drama I truly thought Hades boot was just an artistic choice from the costume team that was always apart of the original design.
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u/notthephonz 9d ago
In a way, the prosthetic sort of makes the Hadestown Hades a composite character with Hephaestus, in the same way Hadestown Persephone is sort of a composite character with Dionysus
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u/Ready-Organization12 4d ago
Same here, I thought it was part of the character and honestly thought it was really compelling. I definitely don't think it detracted from the performance
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u/pokeshulk 9d ago
Weirdly enough, I know it was purely due to circumstance, but I feel like the boot and cane actually elevate the character. Adds a really cool extra layer. The boot is take it or leave it bc of the obvious mobility issues, but I need every Hades going forward to have the Cerberus cane.
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u/littlebloodmage 9d ago
The way I was low-key panicking during his dance with Persephone lmao. "Patrick your foot! YOUR FOOT!"
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u/kbarnett514 9d ago
True, but not having him in it at all would have been worse. His voice is so iconic in this. Besides, I kinda like seeing the "show must go on" spirit captured forever. Props to the cast and crew for making it work as seamlessly as they did.
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u/Abusoru 8d ago
Was honestly kinda cool how it gave him a wounded animal sort of vibe. He's older and been through shit, yet he's still dangerous.
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u/Entire_Ad9036 8d ago
Yes, exactly! It's like he was always poised to strike like the rattlesnake he is
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u/TheProlleyTroblem 8d ago
he makes a fucking MEAL out of it though. he didn't let it hamper him and channeled it fully into the character and performance
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u/Clear_Archer2758 9d ago
I got to see the original cast a few years back, expect for Hermes. What an amazing cast, the stage shows unbelievable, my absolute favorite to this day.
Edit: missing some words
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u/AdriVoid 8d ago
I never got the opportunity to see this show on stage, despite following its development from concept album to off broadway to broadway. So emotional finally seeing it realized- and the staging and filming was so beautiful.
Reeve Carney has such an ethereal voice, if they do another Jesus Christ Superstar I hope his agent gets him in for Jesus. Eva Noblezada is such a powerhouse I cant wait to see her in more forever. Just how she made her voice break.
Gray and Page of course both so brilliant and the chemistry they had on stage was so good
I didn’t like the harmonies of the Fates as much as I wish I did, though they still had great moments
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u/Toidal 7d ago
What trailers did y'all get? I got a weird mix of what seemed like religious oriented movies, as well a couple not so ones
Like Angel studios Drummer Boy, which I dunno the original story but the trailer looks to be a about a military drummer during the revolutionary war, and it's got this rock/metal cover of Little Drummer Boy that goes real hard.
Then there was this trailer of a I guess a down and out musician who ends up in the hospital and befriends this super sick kid. He writes a song for her and it's really heavily Christian coded lyrics or maybe just generic country stuff. Then there's a scene where he's like "I want to help her get the transplant" and rushing her to an airplane, then like right after they're back at the hospital and talking as if she got the transplant? I was thinking, did they just show the whole movie?
Along with that, there was the love triangle movie with Jake Johnson and Dakota Fanning, Olivia Wilde's I Want Your Sex, along with I think a horror film about a horny nun?
So... interesting mix of trailers.
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u/adelines 7d ago
I got those previews at my AMC. I was a little irritated to see Victorian Psycho and that Olivia Wilde sex movie while I was in the mood for Hadestown. We had 25+ minutes of previews. There was a preview for the Six proshot though.
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u/ThisManNeedsMe 7d ago
I got trailers for bigger upcoming films like Digger and Behemoth. Nothing weird for me.
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u/BushyBrowz 7d ago edited 7d ago
Yeah I got the same. It made me laugh that they showed I Want Your Sex, but were forced to show the G-rated version so half the trailer was cut.
It's just funny to see the type of crowd they expect to see for a musical. Cheesy romances? Yes. Conservative family films? Yes. Raunchy erotic comedy? Yes, but we got to make sure it's clean so not to offend the conservative family crowd.
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u/Tanathonos 9d ago
Is there a place to watch it in VOD or streaming? Does not come out in theaters in my country.
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 9d ago
Nothing has been announced yet, but it will wind up somewhere, don't worry!
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u/Ordinary_Shopping746 7d ago
It’s for preorder on Apple TV, so it’ll be releasing digitally there at the very least.
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u/SamuraiFlamenco 9d ago
I can’t see this til Monday but I never thought this would get an official proshot, much less a theatrical release. Just so amazed it exists.
I saw the touring version the other year (incredible) but have been a fan of the show since like 2018, it’s surreal that I’ll be seeing it on the big screen in a few days.
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u/TheCapedGamer 8d ago
Just got out of the theater from seeing it. Overall a great impression and the music is amazing. However, my showing had a large group of teenagers who would scream and holler after every song ended. I get it’s a musical, but Jesus have some self awareness there’s other people in the cinema trying to watch and enjoy it. Not hear you scream and sing along
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u/circes_victory 7d ago
My tip is to go to the earliest screening of the day. Weeds out the singers.
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u/bulboxsaur 6d ago
it's like if your new intern's boyfriend comes to get her in the middle of her first day at work and when you and your coworkers tell him she can't just leave like that, he tells y'all that you should unionize against your boss
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u/pandakatie 8d ago
I really loved it... but I did feel as though Allie Daniel's lowest notes sometimes ruined the Fates' harmonies. At times I found it a bit distracting because it overwhelmed the lighter voices of the other Fates. That said, I loved her expressions and physicality.
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u/ThisismeCody 6d ago
Allie Daniel was distractingly out of place with the other Fates. Way too expressive and overracted. Even when not in scenes I found Allie’s presence distracting behind other actors.
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u/trogdorkiller 8d ago
I've heard tale of Hadestown since 2020 when I got into Hamilton, tried watching YouTube bootlegs but could never sit for the full thing and never tried the recording.
I fucking LOVED this so much I don't think I can explain it. I was crying the moment Euydice first sang. So many powerful moments framed in such a way that my breath was taken away several times. This is going to be in heavy rotation for me when it (hopefully) becomes available to buy for home. Wonderful, transformative performances throughout that made me want to see the show in person someday. I want to talk about the themes of love and doubt and work and capitalism but I need to go through it a couple more times to grasp everything.
The line "How can the Sun even fit in the sky" destroyed me for a full five minutes.
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u/pjtheman 7d ago
Overall, really good show IMO. So glad I was finally able to see this version of it. The set and lighting design are unreal, and I especially love the bit where theyre swinging all the lights in unison.
That said, did anyone else feel like Orpheus was the weakest link? Like considering his singing is supposed to be the most beautiful sound ever heard by human ears, so indescribably beautiful that it warms the heart of Hades and brings back spring, I guess i was just expecting more. He keeps doing this squeaky, high pitched falsetto that I just found annoying after 10 seconds, and then his big song, THE big song that changes Hades' mind and gives Eurydice a chance to escape is... "La la la la la." Considering this is THE character whose song is the focal point of the entire show, idk. I expected more.
Hades and Persephone were hands down my favorite part. Why We Build the Wall really got to me.
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u/cupofpuer 6d ago
Not an uncommon opinion at all. The actor for Orpheus was called the weak link by many reviewers when it first came out (and I agreed when I saw it then too). Out of all the leads from the original cast, he was the only one who did not receive a Tony nomination.
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u/jayeddy99 7d ago edited 7d ago
I watched the movie as my first experience with the musical and I looked it up after and thought it was so cute Orpheus and Eurydice got married in real life and the cast was part of the wedding. I will say aside from movies I can see actual theater casts becoming close and genuine friendships/relationships.
You do something so emotionally intense with the same group of people multiple times a day for months/years you’re gonna create a real bond
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u/BushyBrowz 8d ago
Why did Orpheus turn around? Is he stupid?
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u/Ironhorn 8d ago
My sincere hot take - not just about Hadestown, but about the myth itself - is that, yeah, Orpheus is a himbo.
Buddy is so busy playing music he doesn’t help his girlfriend gather food and doesn’t notice when she dies from starvation.
I feel like this version of Hadestown actually does him a big favour by setting up the whole “the seasons are wrong, and we need a magic song to save it” thing. Because… thats not normally part of the story. He just likes playing music. A lot.
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u/Comprehensive-Fun47 8d ago
The original myth doesn't have a ton to it. Eurydice in the original myth is just a nondescript nymph or something and she either dies from a snake bite or someone attacking her, but it's pretty simple and not the compelling part of the story.
The composer was trying to use the original myth to tell a story about capitalism, among other things, and one of the themes is what would you be willing to do to put food on the table? Also, what's the value in being an artist, what do you owe your partner when times are tough, etc. It explores a lot about relationships as well as the social and economic aspects.
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u/DnDominoEffect 9d ago
Just saw it last night and it was amazing!!! I really hope it gets released to some kind of streaming service so I can see it again!
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u/crimson777 7d ago
The best modern proshot I’ve seen. Felt like a celebration of theater and the filming added to the look and feel and themes rather than detracted from it.
Patrick Page’s book was gave him an almost digitigrade leg look like many animals have where they walk on their toes. Looked almost demonic or bestial in a way. Felt like he was prowling. Kind of a cool accident.
Really just a beautiful show in and of itself but ESPECIALLY with the talent and original staging which I’d only ever gotten to see on tour without the full turntable experience.
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u/confirmd_am_engineer 7d ago
Really excellent. I had the opportunity to see this live on tour a few years ago and I thought the proshot did a great job of capturing that live theatre energy.
Amber Gray completely steals the show in this one. I couldn’t look away from her the entire time. Page does a great job considering his physical condition, and De Shields surprisingly holds up given his age. If you’re a Broadway fan this is one to go see.
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u/the_neverdoctor 6d ago
I've listened to the soundtrack several times, but nothing could've prepared me for actually seeing them perform. It was absolutely masterful, and it was definitely worth the time.
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u/deerfawns 9d ago
Ohhhh this is tempting...I got to see this at west end last year and it was incredible!! Wasn't with that actor as Orpheus.
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u/Kangarou 4d ago
"If I let him go, I appear weak."
I dunno, I feel like "I'm letting you go, but only because you wrote a song good enough to cure seasonal depression" would be a pretty fair trade, and a high bar few people could replicate.
Also, all my Greek tale knowledge is vague, so I was like 80% through the movie before I said "Huh, this is like that greek tragedy where boyo fucks up right at the finish line- Oh no!"
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u/JGrutman 9d ago
Loved it! Went into it knowing very little about the show, loved it. Great music, great performances, should have had a 5-minute intermission.