Hadestown (Original Cast Recording)

Alternative folk singer/songwriter Anais Mitchell originally presented her epic musical version of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice as a recording in 2010. The album featured Mitchell herself as Eurydice, Bon Ivers Justin Vernon as Orpheus, and Ani DiFranco as Persephone, among other role players and a band of over a dozen musicians. After being reworked by Mitchell with Broadway in mind, Hadestown ran off-Broadway in 2016, then in Edmonton and London before receiving its Broadway premiere in March of 2019. Marked by alternatively soulful and playful acoustic arrangements and rich harmony vocals, the over-two-hour cast album features performances by an ensemble led by singer/songwriter and actor Reeve Carney as Orpheus, Eva Noblezada (Miss Saigon) as Eurydice, Patrick Page (Beauty and the Beast, Spring Awakening) as Hades, and Amber Gray (Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812) as Persephone. Septuagenarian Andre De Shields won a Tony Award for his turn as Hermes in the production, which won eight Tonys in total, including Best Musical and Best Original Score of 2019. ~ Marcy Donelson