Tony-winning sensation Hadestown is still a tremendous success, and its current leads are one of the reasons why. The show was bound to be a success from the story and music alone, but goodness, Jordan Fisher and Maia Reficco bring something indescribable to the Walter Kerr Theatre.
One of the most enthralling details about musicals is how different voices complement one another—how the story becomes indescribable because the performances add layers and nuances to the characters. Such is the cast with Hadestown at the moment because Fisher and Reficco are bold, breathtaking, and immensely vulnerable as Orpheus and Eurydice.
Long before I thoroughly listened to the original album, I’d caught a glimpse of “Wait For Me” and good gods of Olympus and everywhere else; there are no words to describe what Fisher and Reficco bring to the various versions of the song. There are previews and clips on the show’s official social media pages, but it’s not enough to prepare viewers for the real thing. The vulnerability bursts out of every cadence and high note and greatly contributes to the relationship’s angst.
This is my first viewing of Hadestown on Broadway, so I can’t compare it to the original, but I can say that I’m in awe—floored to the point of no return. I knew the story, and I’d seen the Tony performance, but this version is the one that feels tailor-made for me, personally. It’s also not just Jordan Fisher and Maia Reficco but the entire principal cast and the ensemble.
It was, quite literally, a perfect, inexplicably brilliant production. I can’t say I’ve loved every show I’ve watched, nor can I say that I felt compelled to review everything. Broadway is an insurmountable gift, but not every production leaves a mark. This version of Hadestown does (and I know the show’s a hit all around from the original cast to whoever comes afterward). That’s not the point; the purpose here is to scream about how every bit of longing and adoration stretches on the stage and extends toward the audience.
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When two voices complement one another, something magical transpires on the stage. A show that’s this dark and heavy shouldn’t be warm or even a little comforting, but the devastating emotions somehow claw into us and refuse to let go. (The same can be said about how Reeve Carney and Eva Nobladeza’s voices blend together.) These performances of Hadestown feel like they’re for every person who loves a little growl and guttural scream with their music. The people who read angsty stories because we somehow relish the feeling of our hearts being stuck in our throats. The edginess and passion that Fisher and Reficco bring to the stage are transfixing, so much so that when you’re watching, the escape feels palpable.
If you can catch Hadestown while the current cast is there, run, don’t walk. Run. Click here to purchase tickets. Trust me.
First Featured Image Credit: ©Evan Zimmerman