By: Hayley Strahs

Editor-in-Chief

Tonight, LGHS invites you to go way down to Hadestown. Winning the Tony for Best Musical in 2019, Hadestown is a jazzy and heart-wrenching retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Director and LGHS alumna Lexi Balistreri described Hadestown as “a beautiful story about love and loss and aspirations and kind of just finding yourself.” As Orpheus attempts to save Eurydice from the underworld, the two characters’ stories “mirror each other in a way, so we get to follow these characters and see what happens in their lives and see them reflected in each other,” as Balistreri phrased it.

In addition to its distinct music and timeless story, Hadestown is known for being especially tech-intensive. To transition from the underworld to Earth and vice versa, the crew has a myriad of complex light cues to illuminate the notably large set in different ways throughout the show. In addition, the original Broadway production utilized a turntable built into the stage, so LGHS had to improvise. Rather than a turntable, choreographer and LGHS graduate Katarina Kelly is “relying a lot more on dancing and physical movement” to achieve a similar effect. In each scene, the ensemble takes on new roles. As Kelly explained, “In the mines, they become like machines almost, and they’re also people in the overworld [scenes].”

On the audio side of things, senior and Sound Lead Lylie Cheri pointed out that “the band is onstage, so we have to regulate that more carefully than we usually do for other shows.” Since Hadestown has few spoken lines, all of which are set to music, everything must go according to plan sound-wise. Sophomore Devika Raj remarked how the constant music is also a challenge for the cast: “Getting everybody to be exactly on the same page is kind of difficult at times, but we’re getting better at it for sure.” While music for Hadestown has been difficult for all parties, both Cheri and Raj remarked how they love spending time with the younger cast and crew. Raj commented that “we have a lot of new faces and a lot of new talent coming in,” and Cheri reflected that “it’s been really nice seeing them grow.”

Junior Adolfo Orendain, who plays Hades, has been involved in theater at LG since his freshman year. Engrossed in the process, Orendain elaborated on the most rewarding parts of Hadestown rehearsals: “meeting new people, practicing singing, practicing acting, and then setting goals for myself to improve.” While often strenuous, Orendain implores fellow students to give acting a chance. He asserted, “If you like movies and if you think movies are cool, you should always think of trying to act because maybe you have a passion for it. If you like it, you should always try your best to do what you love.”

The cast and crew of Hadestown will perform in the LGHS Theater on Mar. 20, 21, 26, and 27 at 7:00 PM and on Mar. 28 at 5:00 PM. Tickets are available on GoFan; come support these talented performers and technicians!