HADESTOWN’S STORY
Hadestown is an 8-time Tony Award and Grammy Award winning musical that is currently playing on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre. Hadestown is a new musical by celebrated singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and Tony Award winning Director Rachel Chavkin that re-imagines a sweeping ancient tale as a timeless allegory for our world. Hadestown follows two intertwining love stories - that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife, Persephone - as it invites audiences on a hell-raising journey to the underworld and back. Mitchell’s beguiling melodies and Chavkin’s poetic imagination pit nature against industry, faith against doubt, and love against fear. Performed by a vibrant ensemble of actors, dancers, and singers, Hadestown delivers a deeply resonant and defiantly hopeful theatrical experience.
Hadestown was originally developed with funding from The Broad Stage under the supervision of Dale Franzen and Mara Isaacs (Octopus Theatricals). The project was further developed in collaboration with The Broad Stage through NYTW’s Artist Workshop programming, including the annual Usual Suspects Summer Residency at Dartmouth College and the Larson Lab Studio. Hadestown is a winner of a Richard Rodgers Production Award, and completed an acclaimed Off-Broadway run at New York Theatre Workshop in 2016. Hadestown’s off-Broadway run played to sold-out houses and the run was extended twice. The reviews were saying, “Hadestown will be your next musical theater obsession” by Vogue and “Inventive. Beguiling. Luminous. Spellbinding.” by The New York Times. Warner Music Group in collaboration with Ghostlight Records released the original live cast album on October 6, 2017. After the release of the original live cast album, Hadestown had its Canadian debut at Edmonton’s Citadel Theatre in November 2017 before hopping over the pond to London's National Theatre in November 2018.
In late 2018, Hadestown announced its return to New York, but this time on Broadway. Hadestown started previews at the Walter Kerr Theatre on March 22, 2019 and opened on Broadway on April 17, 2019. Hadestown ran to sold-out audiences for weeks and had reviews saying “An epic celebration of music, togetherness, and hope. A Broadway musical like no other.” by Forbes, “Strikingly relevant and utterly alluring” by Entertainment Weekly, and “A Broadway Blockbuster!” by the New York Times. Hadestown took home 8 Tony Awards at the 2019 Tony Awards including Best Musical, Original Score, and Direction.
The Original Broadway Cast Album was released on November 1, 2019, which has topped the Billboard’s Broadway Cast Recording chart and debuted at #8 on the Top Album chart. The Rolling Stone said about the album, “An affirmation of art’s transformative power, with musicality you rarely hear on Broadway”. This album later won Best Musical Theatre Album at the 2020 Grammy Awards.
With the Covid-19 pandemic, Hadestown was forced to suspend all performances in New York City on March 12, 2020. During this time, If The Fates Allow: A Hadestown Holiday Album was released to offer both solace and celebration as we headed into a winter season like no other. This 14-track album includes beloved holiday classics and some original composed songs from Anais Mitchel, Yvette Gonzales-Nacer, and Liam Robinson.
In 2020, Hadestown announced that they are launching a North American National Tour. This was postponed until 2021 due to Covid-19, but the tour had opened at Washington DC’s Kennedy Center in October 2021. You can find out a list of complete stops, dates, and information about tickets for the national tour here. Hadestown also opened its first internationally licensed production at the LG Art Center in Korea in September 2021. You can watch Korean Hadestown Star Hyung Gyun Zo Sing "Epic III" here.
pening this week at LG Art Center in Korea as the first internationally licensed production
Hadestown will reopened on Broadway on September 2nd, 2021 after the Covid-19 shutdown. To keep up to date on the re-opening and when tickets go on sale, please visit the Hadestown website.