Hadestown West End review – the road to hell is paved with exultation

The musical Hadestown keeps changing, keeps moving on, winning fans and friends on its journey towards becoming a cult classic. Singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell’s ‘folk opera’ which started life as a concert piece in Vermont in 2006 was last seen in London in 2018 on its way to being reconfigured for a triumphant Broadway run in 2019.

It won eight Tonys, but not content with resting on their laurels Mitchell and director Rachel Chavkin have twisted it again, bringing an even sharper, more sophisticated and definitely more English (and Irish) version to the West End.

It’s always been a phenomenally clever show, mashing up the stories of Orpheus and Eurydice (young musician falls for woman and goes to Hell to save her with the power of his song) and Hades and Persephone (god sees beautiful girl picking flowers in the sunshine and sweeps her to the underworld; allowing her to return to earth for half the year causes the change in the seasons.)

Those basic myths are given another spin by flinging climate change into the mix, and turning Hades into an industrialist who builds a wall to keep his workers “free”, as they mine the earth’s precious minerals. Then making Eurydice a girl who fears poverty more than she trusts love – and Orpheus a poet, who is sure he can write a song that will fix everything that is wrong with the world. And setting the entire thing in a kind of Depression-era speakeasy, presided over by Hermes, messenger of the gods, in a glittery silvery suit and with a knock-out band as backup.

On paper it always feels as if it shouldn’t work. Yet on stage Hadestown is the most exhilarating ride.  That band, with its bluesy trombone and folksy guitar is consistently thrilling, the songs are vibrant and smart, the sung-through text is compelling. In this version, the relationship between Orpheus and Grace Hodgett Young’s down-to earth Eurydice is also much refined, with a glorious and deeply felt performance from Dónal Finn that turns our hero into an agonised dreamer rather than a guitar-strumming popstar.

The moment when he sings to Hades to procure Eurydice’s exit from his kingdom is utterly spine-tingling, part of a propulsive second act that brings two world views into collision. Perhaps that’s the problem. Everything in Hadestown makes you long for a happy ending, and although the conclusion is deeply moving and highly sophisticated, it doesn’t quite provide the desired emotional release.

But there is so much to enjoy en route. Rachel Hauck’s scenery, and Bradley King’s lighting make the setting pared back and industrial, yet their rough-hewn approach yields maximum effects, neatly contrasting above and below ground. David Neumann’s choreography is energetic yet precise, imaginatively using multiple revolves. Chavkin’s direction is direct and impassioned.

The band is superb, and the performances across the board pack an extraordinary punch. I particularly loved Gloria Onitiri’s Persephone, full of life but also full of doubt, singing with her entire heart and soul and illuminating every scene she’s in. Zachary James’ deep-toned Hades gets some of the best songs and delivers them with panache. Melanie La Barrie’s Hermes keeps beautiful control of unfolding events, her commentary punchy, her expressions matching the mood.

It’s a terrific musical and a sensational evening but in the end, for me, the material just doesn’t quite coalesce into the ending I long for.