I loved watching UA-cam documentaries on this musical it's truly magical the creator said it was like the Greek muses were guideing her through this musical
In some versions Apollo is Orpheus' father, and in most he's the one who taught him how to play the lyre and to sing, while his mother, the muse Calliope, taught him poetry and writing. It is said that Orpheus would sing so beautifully that he could control nature, make trees and stones weep. As far as i remember Hermes wasn't in the original myth, but as he said "someone has to tell the tale"
Fun fact: Lillian White, who voiced Calliope in Disney's Hercules succeeded André De Shields in the role of Hermes in Hadestown. Adds a new meaning to "his mother was a friend of mine."
One of my favorite moments whenever seeing someone experience Hadestown for the first time (whether it proves to be true or not): - "Oh, I know some Greek mythology. I wonder what this show is about?" - "Oh, it features Orpheus and Eurydice." - "OH NO, it IS Orpheus and Eurydice!"
@@ForthwithJackal Very vague spoiler warning I didn’t know the story of Orpheus and Eurydice going into it, so you can only imagine my shock at the ending.
Just in case someone hasn’t answered this already: At least in my venue, Hadestown does not have a pit. All of the instruments and musicians were present on stage on the side. Six also had a similar situation, where all the band members were on stage.
Fun mythology fact Hermes domain as the god of travelers and roads (dude wears many hats pun intended) included being a psychopomp a underworld guide and often was depicted along with Charon helping people to safely get to their afterlife, so If Hermes is the guy at the station I guess Charon is the guy actually driving the train in this analogy.
Just to add to this, Hermes was basically a part-timer for Hades, since usually the job fell to Thanatos but Hermes would also help when he didn't have shenenigans to pull, especially since there was also Iris to be "messanger of the gods", so he wasn't needed to deliver messages that much. There's also the Keres (Myths are a bit too split if there's only one god with this name or if the Keres are a whole species of spirits) which also do the same thing but only for violent deaths. People rarely know that the underworld was as populated by gods as Olympus, and just like there are many nature or water gods, there were a lot of overlapping domains in the underworld.
A large head-fanon is that Hadestown and Epic are happening concurrently; and that the reason Hades doesn’t appear in the Underworld Saga is because he’s doing this at the same time.
genuinely watching your dawning realization of horror at exactly what story they're telling is just *chef's kiss* I got to see it for my birthday 2 years ago and even from the very back seats (like, as far away from the stage you can get bcuz lol im poor) it was a breathtaking experience.
YESSSS he’s doing Hadestown!! So I don’t know if every single song has an animatic like EPIC but luckily it’s sung-though so you won’t miss anything by just listening to some songs.
This play honestly saved my life. My father passed away 6 years ago as of a couple days ago. Our relationship was very complicated, in some ways he was loving but was also controlling and verbally/emotionally abusive. The second anniversary was ROUGH and had a lot of baggage unpacking. Sad songs made it worse and happy songs were repellent. This play/cast recording is a beautiful combination of all th emotions and helped me heal in ways I didn't know I needed
I saw this play the last time it was in town and want to force my parents to see it the next time it comes around. While their relationship isn’t as toxic as Hades and Persephone’s, they definitely have elements of my dad thinking my mom’s always disappointed in him and my mom thinking he’s too quick to anger. Hoping that seeing it will help them realize that they need to work on communication or better yet go to therapy (since it has been ignored when I mention the option to them)
THE SPEED AT WHICH I CLICKED THIS WHEN I SAW IT I love Hadestown so much, I'm so glad you're finally listening it. It is genuinely one of the best plays I have ever had the pleasure of listening to and watching. If I could wipe my brain of it so I could listen to it all again for the first time I would.
I've seen Hadestown 5 times now. I can't wait to go back next month! Hadestown & Beetlejuice were the last 2 shows I saw before the world shut down, so they'll always have a special place in my heart. 🚂
I am SO GLAD you are covering this. This is literally one of my favorite musicals of all time, and I don't say that casually; I love a LOT of musicals. This one still hits me hard every time. The Fates aren't a general chorus; they affect everyone, but they torment Eurydice especially. When Hermes introduces "The hardest workin' chorus", he gestures to the actual background performers. And yes, the band is onstage, they are PART of the performance. And so are you. It's not shown often in animatics, but in live performances, they look to the audience at important moments. You're a part of the story being told. There certainly are motifs to pay attention to! There are a lot of words and phrases that have double or even triple meanings, all reliant on context. Just like in Hamilton, the "We fought with him/Me, I died for him/Me, I loved him", everything is layered in a way that, once you get to the end of the line, it hits you like a train. I believe you'll be able to parse a good chunk of 'em, too ;D
I saw the OBC with Andre De Shields as Hermes and recently went back to see Stephanie Mills as Hermes. A full circle moment as i saw both of them back in the 70's when they played The Wiz and Dorothy respectively in The Wiz when it was originally on Broadway. They played the role of Hermes deliciously differently ❤❤ Enjoy ❣️
The fact that the specific motif will play or not in the rest of the musical is not as important as the fact that it repeats and repeats and repeats. The fact that it REPEATS is a huge clue about the context. You're saying, of course, it's a motif, that's what they do. But the use of motifs in this case is a very deliberate tool to make you wonder why they repeat so much. And it's right there in the introduction. Keep in mind Hermes says "it's an old song and we're gonna sing it again" For Hermes it is diegetic and he tells you this in the first song. The again implies that he's sung it before.
fun fact! I was Hermes in Hadestown recently! I'm so glad u like the musical so far! You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to review this show lol.
"Why do you guys do this to me?" All I'll do is repeat one of the lines of the song "maybe it'll turn out this time." Plus, we knew you were going to love the music. The music for this one is just so good.
mortius!! this is a bit unrelated but if you have time i definitely recommend jay’s other musical “my heart says go.” it was made before epic while he was still in college and it has a lot more traditional musical vibes. a lot of people theorize (it might actually be true idk for sure) that it’s based off his life and how he started to write music. it’s pretty good! it’s just very fast paced and rappy and a little hard to understand at times but with captions it should be easier. (great reaction as always btw, i’m excited for this journey!)
I never listened to Hadestown before seeing this was coming, and as soon as I saw that pop up on my thread I grabbed my headphones and went for a 2 hour walk to listen to it and it's AMAZING! really improves on a greek myth I didn't really like that much
For some of Hadestown animatics I would suggest Miranda Pla - her ''Wait for me'' and ''Way down Hadestown'' were the first Hadestown animatics I've ever saw and I still prefer them over all others.
Oh my GOD, YES. FINALLY HADESTOWN 🫶🫶🫶🫶 Hadestown and Epic are def my fav musicals, and I’m so SO glad you’re reacting to both 😭😭😭😭🫶🫶🫶 I hope you have an awesome time reacting to this very beautiful musical. Also, for some context (no spoilers), if I’m not wrong, the musical is an adaptation that takes place during the depression era, the 1920’s, hence the jazz and Hermes singing "Hard times in the world of men" and "Don’t forget times are hard". Also, that will help you understand more about why is the way to Hadestown represented by a railroad 🫶
Was so excited to see this video, I love Hadestown analysis, and seeing someone experience it for the first time is rad. You asked if Hermes in the musical gestures to the musicians at 13:00, and I wanted to mention that on stage at that point he steps back and the chorus gets up to dance. There are five members of the chorus that are seen pretty consistently throughout the show, in different ‘background’ roles. I think Hermes is showing appreciation for both the human background characters of the musical’s world and the actors themselves. “You can tip your hats and your wallets-brothers and sisters, boys and girls-to the hardest working chorus in the Gods-almighty world.”
13:00 while many already told you there ain't an orchestra pit, even cooler is that at this point the trombone player actually comes downstage during his solo and dances around while playing. It's freaking awesome!
If you get the chance check out part of a live reaction to see the Hadestown stage. Because the show doesn’t have any dialogue between songs there are no set changes, yet there are so many different characters and locations. It’s really cool how they built it (and yeah I’m pretty sure it’s custom made just for this show).
I’m so excited that you’re listening to Hadestown! I saw the musical live about a year ago and it was one of the best experiences of my life, the fates’ vocals had me shooketh
The fates in Hadestown really makes me think of the trio in little shop of horrors, serving as kind of omniscient narrators (it’s totally just cause my school’s doing little shop right now and the cast list comes out tomorrow with me luck 😼)
I would sell my soul to Hades for you to listen to the live version of Epic III. The lyrics are different to the studio recording and I prefer it much more. Spectacular reaction, once again, Mortius! ❤ (Edit) I don't mean that the studio recording should be replaced by the live version of Epic III, I just meant that the live recording is like air to me, and that it would be awesome for Mortius to react to it too. Sorry for the confusion! ❤
No, it's a different version of the show with a different orpheus and it will be very confusing, let him stick to the main version of the show then he can check out other stuff later
@@omarsalem1219 I didn't mean to replace it with the original in this reaction, sorry if that's what it sounds like. I just meant that I would love to see him react to it in general.
I don't know if anyone else has said this yet but there are two versions of Hadestown the original Broadway cast, and a live recording of the older version of the show before it came to Broadway proper, with a slightly different cast and vibe. Someone also made a documentary about the making and story of the show its fantastic and it's fun to learn about the backstory of the show and how it came to be as it is now.
Just a fun little tid-bit. Did you know if you look up the script lyrics for Road to Hell in the original broadway cast, the reason Hermes says Orpheus' name twice is because he's supposed to miss his que and only bows after the second time his name is called.
So with “anyway the wind blows” on Broadway, it’s basically sung as a quartet with the 3 Fates and Eurydice. It’s a great song to showcase how Eurydice is almost just a puppet of The Fates.
the entire live show looks a little bit like bar entertainment. a lot of the set pieces are chairs and tables, anyone that would be in the orchestra pit is in the corner of the stage, and hermes is nearly always there with his little microphone showing the audience everything. it's a story being told at a pub night.
This musical is my FAVORITE definitely watch it along side mortius and then listen to the cast recording after!!! It’s all sung so you can JUST listen to the cast recording and get the whole story and its so powerful back to back
Talking about character introductions in musical openings, I’d love for you to listen to that one Great Comet musical at some point! The opening is beyond catchy! (And what I remember best of the musical lol)
Hadestown going all in on the aesthetics of 1920s jazz scene is one of my favorite parts of the show. Love a good period piece made out of an even older story
I was eagerly anticipating your first exposure to the harmonies of the fates. Wasn't disappointed. This is one musical that I REALLY hope they manage to do the Hamilton-style movie treatment with (and I really hope they could get the original cast if they managed it). Edited to add that the women who played the fates put out a Christmas album. Pretty sure it was during the pandemic shut-down of Broadway. It's called "If the Fates Allow".
so glad you're reacting to this!! hadestown is my absolutely favorite musical, its an actual masterpiece. you should try and take a listen to anais mitchell's (the writer of hadestown) original music, its breathtaking. her npr tiny desk concert is one of my faves (not to be confused with the hadestown tiny desk, which is also great!)
Found Mortius during my Six obsession, learned about Hadestown, listened to the whole soundtrack at work, now anxiously waiting on Mortius to react to the rest of the show! It's soooo good!
Hell yeah, finally someone reacting to Hadestown its such an underrated musical Was kinda hoping for Live Original Cast recording, both versions are great but that one will Always stay my prefered one because all of them are so talented and have such unique voices Still so excited for this reactions and more to come!
This is a musical that is truly perfectly made for the stage. They do have a live ensemble on stage and it's framed as if it's a jazz band performing in an old grungy bar telling the story. I am glad to see the animatics are quite well done, but I highly recommend getting tickets to see a live production if you can at some point because it literally felt like at one point I couldn't breath due to how magnificent the theatrical production is.
Once you finish the musical I 110% recommend you give the off-broadway cast recording version of "Epic III" a listen, there are variations in the lyrics of the earlier version of the show that are * chef's kiss* _SPECTACULAR_
I tried more than one time to listen Hadestown and I always stopped at the third/fourth song, I don't know why. Maybe following these video can help me to undestand the hype around this musical, since I simply LOVE your type of reacions. So... let's go!
I saw this musical in previews on Broadway knowing virtually nothing about it, including very little about Orpheus and Eurydice. I had seen it advertised when it was being workshopped at the National Theatre in London, saw that it was coming to Broadway, and that it had a New Orleans-type setting, so my friend and I said, "That sounds fun. Let's go." It was the singular most amazing show I've seen and it was the best way to go into it. We were blown away and sobbing by the end of Act I. It's tragic, topical, timeless, and beautiful. Also, André de Shields (Hermes) is indeed a legend. He commanded that stage, even when doing absolutely nothing.
I was actually able to see this show live! The musicians are all onstage, with seats integrated into the set, sort of in the background, but you can see them the whole time. The line you had trouble hearing was "and we're going to sing it even so". I'm so excited for this series!
So this musical, like most, has gone through several incarnations. There are a lot of wonderful animatics for the original cast recording (perhaps even more than for the official broadway recording). I suggest you check them out in your own time if you don’t want to react to them or make them patreon exclusives. They’re truly wonderful pieces of art and I think you’ll get a kick out of the lyrical changes and how it changes the character’s motivations. You’re in for a treat with this musical.
My SECOND FAVORITE MUSICAL OF ALL TIME IM SO GLAD YOURE HEARING THIS Fun fact, yes during the instrumental the 5-6 people were onstage playing but it was (at least when I saw it) a big show off of the ensemble and their dancing!
Fun fact i learned today from a content creator friend via their instagram, they live in Korea which actually just got a production of hadestown going through it, and they actually opened up the role of hermes to be played by any gender, so their hermes is actually being played by a woman actress right now and i think that is just so cool, as a female who wants to go into stage acting and plans to at least try to be able to play any role male or female, it really peaks my interest (to be fair if i get a male role i plan to portray as a male for the stage) It also makes me think of epic the musical and how i feel some of the roles could possibly be interchangeable for male and female characters, like Aeolus who was originally said to be a male, you actually hear Odysseus say in luck runs out "I'm gonna climb to the top and ask HIM for a hand" meanwhile we have a female actress for Aeolus, i absolutely love the idea of some future plays playing with this idea it's so cool, lil cool info of the day Also another lil tidbit of info, eurydice is actually my dream role for broadway since i discovered hadestown
Choi Jungwon (최정원)!! she's really well known within the Korean musical theatre scene as she played both Roxie AND Velma in Chicago (she's still continuing to portray Velma even now) among other roles. The other actors (Korea's productions have multiple actors playing the same character and just switch off on different days) are well known in their own rights: Choi Jaerim (최재림) also currently plays Billy Flinn from Chicago, and has done Lola from Kinky boots and Tom Collins in Rent. Kang Hongseok (강홍석) also played Lola and is set to play the genie in the new production of Aladdin coming to Korea soon
@@midnightmoon7257 i actually forgot to mention that Choi Jungwon also played Calliope in the Korean dub of Hercules. feels very fitting for both the first female hermes in the US and Korea were 'friends of calliope'
I saw this show on Broadway and it was absolutely phenomenal!! I was introduced to this musical in 2021 when I was home with covid and I became obsessed!
this is so extremely random but im feeling emotional so i just wanted to say im so grateful i found your channel, mortius, you are such a delightful person!! im always having fun watching your videos !! :] so glad to see you reacting to one of my favorite musicals
Mortius: “why do you make me hurt” Me: YOU MUST SUFFER WITH US! CRY WITH US! Endure the hardships of the story with us… So we feel less saddened by its tale
This is one of my favorite musicals, i cant wait for you to go through it. there is a song in Act 2 that has impacted me in such a strong way, im a different and better person after falling in love with this musical.
i'm so existed for these reactions!! Hadestown is my favorite musical, i really recommend you to listen to the concept album and the original off broadway album (my personal favorite) for yourself!! The vibes are really different and interesting for each recordings!
I have seen a lot of versions of this, my favorite has Orpheus the son of Helios and a Muse, which would explain why his worries about life are not as intense as a mortal's would be. Making him like Heracles but for music instead of strength. That said, this particular production, thing i like is he is actually feels autistic coded to to me. How strong his emotions are and the way he is about stuff. Felt really cool.
i've seen hadestown live 4 times, and on andre's final show in 2022 when i went and saw he held that note at the end of road to hell for probably around 17 seconds or so it was WILDLY impressive
I’m so happy you’re reacting to this musical. It’s so cool! Just as a heads up, there’s at least one song I know of in the second act (not saying which) without a full animatic using the broadway soundtrack. I’m sure you’ll have something planned for it, but just wanted to let you know
Hi, I was wondering if you were planning to react to any of the alternate versions of certain songs, since they're very different. Song title spoilers Epic 1-3 especially are very different
Fun fact about this show, there is no orchestra pit, all of the musicians are on stage and it's only about 5-10 instruments
Also isn't it sort of done in blackbox/dinner-theater style?
Not black box, but the stage is an amphitheater. Two turntables and an elevator in the middle.
@@Katie281 Ah, I might've been mixing it up with Great Comet
I loved watching UA-cam documentaries on this musical it's truly magical the creator said it was like the Greek muses were guideing her through this musical
"Why do you guys hurt me?"
The Old Greeks: Why do you get hurt so easily?
His realization when they only introduced Orpheus and Eurydice is everything XD
"Oh, this is gonna SUCK!"
I confess I LOL'd.
@@elkins4406me too, I bursted out laughing
The line you didn't know was "But we're gonna sing it even so"
If Casper watches this he will definitely call it dry poseidon city
LMAO
That would be a good name for a "slime tutorial" 😆
"Hadestown starts with trumpet... that's Poseidon's instrument! I think I've figured it out!"
@@cojecnot to be that guy… but it’s a trombone
@@mrmatrixmusicman8787 _I_ know that it is, but will Casper? I give him a 50/50 chance :)
“Holy Cow Hermes” - Apollo asking Baby Hermes where his cattle is.
In some versions Apollo is Orpheus' father, and in most he's the one who taught him how to play the lyre and to sing, while his mother, the muse Calliope, taught him poetry and writing. It is said that Orpheus would sing so beautifully that he could control nature, make trees and stones weep.
As far as i remember Hermes wasn't in the original myth, but as he said "someone has to tell the tale"
Fun fact: Lillian White, who voiced Calliope in Disney's Hercules succeeded André De Shields in the role of Hermes in Hadestown. Adds a new meaning to "his mother was a friend of mine."
Hermes is the only god who can move freely between the underworld and Olympus
One of my favorite moments whenever seeing someone experience Hadestown for the first time (whether it proves to be true or not):
- "Oh, I know some Greek mythology. I wonder what this show is about?"
- "Oh, it features Orpheus and Eurydice."
- "OH NO, it IS Orpheus and Eurydice!"
@@ForthwithJackal Very vague spoiler warning
I didn’t know the story of Orpheus and Eurydice going into it, so you can only imagine my shock at the ending.
I’ve never heard or watched hadestown until this very moment so I reacted along with Mortius at that line😂😂😅
@@sarahhandberg5185 same!!!
Luckily there's no dialogue to miss in Hadestown
Theres only a few one liners that just about get missed unfortunately but they’re not important so its not that bad
Just in case someone hasn’t answered this already:
At least in my venue, Hadestown does not have a pit. All of the instruments and musicians were present on stage on the side. Six also had a similar situation, where all the band members were on stage.
When I saw it on Broadway, the band is on stage, and the cast sometimes interacted with the band.
In the West end this is the same! The band are supposed to be on stage as that’s how Anais Mitchell intended it.
That’s SO cool honestly
The Lord of the Rings Musical is the same. It’s fun seeing the musicians as well interacting with the story
Orpheus and the fates also play their own musical accompaniments
Fun mythology fact Hermes domain as the god of travelers and roads (dude wears many hats pun intended) included being a psychopomp a underworld guide and often was depicted along with Charon helping people to safely get to their afterlife, so If Hermes is the guy at the station I guess Charon is the guy actually driving the train in this analogy.
Just to add to this, Hermes was basically a part-timer for Hades, since usually the job fell to Thanatos but Hermes would also help when he didn't have shenenigans to pull, especially since there was also Iris to be "messanger of the gods", so he wasn't needed to deliver messages that much.
There's also the Keres (Myths are a bit too split if there's only one god with this name or if the Keres are a whole species of spirits) which also do the same thing but only for violent deaths.
People rarely know that the underworld was as populated by gods as Olympus, and just like there are many nature or water gods, there were a lot of overlapping domains in the underworld.
MASON REVEAL!!!!!!!!!! (Probably happend before, but I wasn’t there!)
Hi Mason! Nice to finally put a face to the name.
😁
A large head-fanon is that Hadestown and Epic are happening concurrently; and that the reason Hades doesn’t appear in the Underworld Saga is because he’s doing this at the same time.
When I saw it live, Hermes held that final note for literally like a full minute it was WILD
Watching this guy speedrun the stages of grief when he realised what he was getting in for with Orpheus and Eurydice was everything
the line u couldn't make out in road to hell is '& we're gonna sing it even so'!!
genuinely watching your dawning realization of horror at exactly what story they're telling is just *chef's kiss*
I got to see it for my birthday 2 years ago and even from the very back seats (like, as far away from the stage you can get bcuz lol im poor) it was a breathtaking experience.
The moment amortigua realized it was the actual story of Orpheus and Eurydice was priceless xD
YESSSS he’s doing Hadestown!! So I don’t know if every single song has an animatic like EPIC but luckily it’s sung-though so you won’t miss anything by just listening to some songs.
This play honestly saved my life. My father passed away 6 years ago as of a couple days ago. Our relationship was very complicated, in some ways he was loving but was also controlling and verbally/emotionally abusive. The second anniversary was ROUGH and had a lot of baggage unpacking. Sad songs made it worse and happy songs were repellent. This play/cast recording is a beautiful combination of all th emotions and helped me heal in ways I didn't know I needed
I saw this play the last time it was in town and want to force my parents to see it the next time it comes around. While their relationship isn’t as toxic as Hades and Persephone’s, they definitely have elements of my dad thinking my mom’s always disappointed in him and my mom thinking he’s too quick to anger. Hoping that seeing it will help them realize that they need to work on communication or better yet go to therapy (since it has been ignored when I mention the option to them)
@@alliew31 I hope you can persuade them to see it and I hope it helps them grow. 🤞🏻🤞🏻
I would love to hear Road to Hell sung by Troy Doherty. I can practically hear his voice echoing
THE SPEED AT WHICH I CLICKED THIS WHEN I SAW IT
I love Hadestown so much, I'm so glad you're finally listening it. It is genuinely one of the best plays I have ever had the pleasure of listening to and watching. If I could wipe my brain of it so I could listen to it all again for the first time I would.
Hermes: It's a tale of a love from long ago
It's a sad song
[Chorus]
It's a sad song!
[HERMES]
But we're gonna sing it even so
Ah, good. We have now reached another musical I'm fully obsessed with.
I've seen Hadestown 5 times now. I can't wait to go back next month! Hadestown & Beetlejuice were the last 2 shows I saw before the world shut down, so they'll always have a special place in my heart. 🚂
You are going to love Stephanie Mills' take as Hermes
@@rmcmariusable Last I went, the Hermes I saw was Malcolm Armwood, so I'm excited to see Stephanie.
This was the first show I saw, and the first to return to my city's theater, after the world reopened! We saw it opening night and it was electric.
I am SO GLAD you are covering this. This is literally one of my favorite musicals of all time, and I don't say that casually; I love a LOT of musicals. This one still hits me hard every time.
The Fates aren't a general chorus; they affect everyone, but they torment Eurydice especially. When Hermes introduces "The hardest workin' chorus", he gestures to the actual background performers. And yes, the band is onstage, they are PART of the performance. And so are you. It's not shown often in animatics, but in live performances, they look to the audience at important moments. You're a part of the story being told.
There certainly are motifs to pay attention to! There are a lot of words and phrases that have double or even triple meanings, all reliant on context. Just like in Hamilton, the "We fought with him/Me, I died for him/Me, I loved him", everything is layered in a way that, once you get to the end of the line, it hits you like a train. I believe you'll be able to parse a good chunk of 'em, too ;D
I saw the OBC with Andre De Shields as Hermes and recently went back to see Stephanie Mills as Hermes. A full circle moment as i saw both of them back in the 70's when they played The Wiz and Dorothy respectively in The Wiz when it was originally on Broadway. They played the role of Hermes deliciously differently ❤❤ Enjoy ❣️
Hadestown is one of my absolute faves, I can't wait to see what Mortius thinks of it!
The lyric you didn't understand was "It's a sad song, but we're gonna sing it even so."
The fact that the specific motif will play or not in the rest of the musical is not as important as the fact that it repeats and repeats and repeats. The fact that it REPEATS is a huge clue about the context.
You're saying, of course, it's a motif, that's what they do. But the use of motifs in this case is a very deliberate tool to make you wonder why they repeat so much.
And it's right there in the introduction. Keep in mind Hermes says "it's an old song and we're gonna sing it again" For Hermes it is diegetic and he tells you this in the first song. The again implies that he's sung it before.
This could be a spoiler...
@@joseantoniogomezrodriguez1724 I tried to keep it to the first song exactly because of this. It's not a spoiler if it's really good foreshadowing.
fun fact! I was Hermes in Hadestown recently! I'm so glad u like the musical so far! You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to review this show lol.
"Why do you guys do this to me?" All I'll do is repeat one of the lines of the song "maybe it'll turn out this time." Plus, we knew you were going to love the music. The music for this one is just so good.
"Don't ask why, brother, don't ask how…"
mortius!! this is a bit unrelated but if you have time i definitely recommend jay’s other musical “my heart says go.” it was made before epic while he was still in college and it has a lot more traditional musical vibes. a lot of people theorize (it might actually be true idk for sure) that it’s based off his life and how he started to write music. it’s pretty good! it’s just very fast paced and rappy and a little hard to understand at times but with captions it should be easier. (great reaction as always btw, i’m excited for this journey!)
16:50 the line is “and we’re gonna sing it even so”
The first line you missed is “we are gonna sing it even so” it’s a repeat of when he told us this was a tragedy
I never listened to Hadestown before seeing this was coming, and as soon as I saw that pop up on my thread I grabbed my headphones and went for a 2 hour walk to listen to it and it's AMAZING! really improves on a greek myth I didn't really like that much
For some of Hadestown animatics I would suggest Miranda Pla - her ''Wait for me'' and ''Way down Hadestown'' were the first Hadestown animatics I've ever saw and I still prefer them over all others.
No, they are from a different version of the show with different actors, let him finish the main show first
Oh my GOD, YES. FINALLY HADESTOWN 🫶🫶🫶🫶 Hadestown and Epic are def my fav musicals, and I’m so SO glad you’re reacting to both 😭😭😭😭🫶🫶🫶 I hope you have an awesome time reacting to this very beautiful musical.
Also, for some context (no spoilers), if I’m not wrong, the musical is an adaptation that takes place during the depression era, the 1920’s, hence the jazz and Hermes singing "Hard times in the world of men" and "Don’t forget times are hard".
Also, that will help you understand more about why is the way to Hadestown represented by a railroad 🫶
"But we all know what happens when you assume Hades is going to be in something."
I just can't 😭😂 Casper is so iconic ❤️
Was so excited to see this video, I love Hadestown analysis, and seeing someone experience it for the first time is rad. You asked if Hermes in the musical gestures to the musicians at 13:00, and I wanted to mention that on stage at that point he steps back and the chorus gets up to dance. There are five members of the chorus that are seen pretty consistently throughout the show, in different ‘background’ roles. I think Hermes is showing appreciation for both the human background characters of the musical’s world and the actors themselves. “You can tip your hats and your wallets-brothers and sisters, boys and girls-to the hardest working chorus in the Gods-almighty world.”
“I have never had my expectations so immediately wrong before.” That was my reaction too when I first heard this song!!!
13:00 while many already told you there ain't an orchestra pit, even cooler is that at this point the trombone player actually comes downstage during his solo and dances around while playing. It's freaking awesome!
If you get the chance check out part of a live reaction to see the Hadestown stage. Because the show doesn’t have any dialogue between songs there are no set changes, yet there are so many different characters and locations. It’s really cool how they built it (and yeah I’m pretty sure it’s custom made just for this show).
I’m so excited that you’re listening to Hadestown! I saw the musical live about a year ago and it was one of the best experiences of my life, the fates’ vocals had me shooketh
Mortius: NO SPOILERS
Hermes: it's a sad song
Im so excited to see your reaction!
The fates in Hadestown really makes me think of the trio in little shop of horrors, serving as kind of omniscient narrators (it’s totally just cause my school’s doing little shop right now and the cast list comes out tomorrow with me luck 😼)
As a trombonist, NO WONDER everyone has been asking me if I know "Hadestown." Whelp, this is a song I now need to memorize for those random moments.
YES!!! I'VE BEEN WAITING SO LONG FOR THIS!!! I got super attached to the two leads slowly throughout the musical and the ending lowkey made me cry😅
I would sell my soul to Hades for you to listen to the live version of Epic III. The lyrics are different to the studio recording and I prefer it much more. Spectacular reaction, once again, Mortius! ❤
(Edit)
I don't mean that the studio recording should be replaced by the live version of Epic III, I just meant that the live recording is like air to me, and that it would be awesome for Mortius to react to it too. Sorry for the confusion! ❤
It's sooooo good. I think it's a much more beautiful song but I think the Broadway version fit the themes more
No, it's a different version of the show with a different orpheus and it will be very confusing, let him stick to the main version of the show then he can check out other stuff later
@@omarsalem1219 I didn't mean to replace it with the original in this reaction, sorry if that's what it sounds like. I just meant that I would love to see him react to it in general.
Hell yes, hadestown is my favourite musical of all time.
I don't know if anyone else has said this yet but there are two versions of Hadestown the original Broadway cast, and a live recording of the older version of the show before it came to Broadway proper, with a slightly different cast and vibe. Someone also made a documentary about the making and story of the show its fantastic and it's fun to learn about the backstory of the show and how it came to be as it is now.
Epic the musical wisdom saga is coming out in five days
Just a fun little tid-bit. Did you know if you look up the script lyrics for Road to Hell in the original broadway cast, the reason Hermes says Orpheus' name twice is because he's supposed to miss his que and only bows after the second time his name is called.
"It's a sad song. It's a sad tale, it's a tragedy." It was right there in the lyrics, I don't know why you're surprised. XP
11:40 "I'm curious if this whole show is supposed to be a tragedy or if it contains tragedy" I think the show itself is asking the same question.
BEFORE EPIC THIS WAS MY ALL TIME FAVORITE MUSICAL BY FAAAAAARRRRRR
I am sO happy to see this
So with “anyway the wind blows” on Broadway, it’s basically sung as a quartet with the 3 Fates and Eurydice.
It’s a great song to showcase how Eurydice is almost just a puppet of The Fates.
the entire live show looks a little bit like bar entertainment. a lot of the set pieces are chairs and tables, anyone that would be in the orchestra pit is in the corner of the stage, and hermes is nearly always there with his little microphone showing the audience everything. it's a story being told at a pub night.
I usually watch things before I watch reactions but this time I plan on going in blind.
Same here. I've seen the same clip he had and I'm so excited causer it's been recommended to me so much
This musical is my FAVORITE definitely watch it along side mortius and then listen to the cast recording after!!! It’s all sung so you can JUST listen to the cast recording and get the whole story and its so powerful back to back
Talking about character introductions in musical openings, I’d love for you to listen to that one Great Comet musical at some point! The opening is beyond catchy! (And what I remember best of the musical lol)
The whole band is on stage.
Omg the timing I literally saw the musical for the first time on Broadway today and turned my phone back on to this 😂
Hadestown going all in on the aesthetics of 1920s jazz scene is one of my favorite parts of the show. Love a good period piece made out of an even older story
first musical you’ve done which i haven’t seen - this is exciting!!
I was eagerly anticipating your first exposure to the harmonies of the fates. Wasn't disappointed. This is one musical that I REALLY hope they manage to do the Hamilton-style movie treatment with (and I really hope they could get the original cast if they managed it). Edited to add that the women who played the fates put out a Christmas album. Pretty sure it was during the pandemic shut-down of Broadway. It's called "If the Fates Allow".
Omg going to go check they out right now! Their vocals are unreal 🤩
so glad you're reacting to this!! hadestown is my absolutely favorite musical, its an actual masterpiece. you should try and take a listen to anais mitchell's (the writer of hadestown) original music, its breathtaking. her npr tiny desk concert is one of my faves (not to be confused with the hadestown tiny desk, which is also great!)
Found Mortius during my Six obsession, learned about Hadestown, listened to the whole soundtrack at work, now anxiously waiting on Mortius to react to the rest of the show! It's soooo good!
Hell yeah, finally someone reacting to Hadestown its such an underrated musical
Was kinda hoping for Live Original Cast recording, both versions are great but that one will Always stay my prefered one because all of them are so talented and have such unique voices
Still so excited for this reactions and more to come!
21:33 Can Confirm (Texan)
This is a musical that is truly perfectly made for the stage. They do have a live ensemble on stage and it's framed as if it's a jazz band performing in an old grungy bar telling the story. I am glad to see the animatics are quite well done, but I highly recommend getting tickets to see a live production if you can at some point because it literally felt like at one point I couldn't breath due to how magnificent the theatrical production is.
I mentioned it and it manifested!!!! Hadestown has been my favorite show in a decade.
“I mean in the way it’s gonna suck cause it’s gonna hurt” 🎶~it’s a sad song~🎶
Once you finish the musical I 110% recommend you give the off-broadway cast recording version of "Epic III" a listen, there are variations in the lyrics of the earlier version of the show that are * chef's kiss* _SPECTACULAR_
I tried more than one time to listen Hadestown and I always stopped at the third/fourth song, I don't know why. Maybe following these video can help me to undestand the hype around this musical, since I simply LOVE your type of reacions.
So... let's go!
13:50 my opinion of the overly repetitive motif was that it reminded me of a train, with the up and down of the tune
I saw this musical in previews on Broadway knowing virtually nothing about it, including very little about Orpheus and Eurydice. I had seen it advertised when it was being workshopped at the National Theatre in London, saw that it was coming to Broadway, and that it had a New Orleans-type setting, so my friend and I said, "That sounds fun. Let's go."
It was the singular most amazing show I've seen and it was the best way to go into it. We were blown away and sobbing by the end of Act I. It's tragic, topical, timeless, and beautiful.
Also, André de Shields (Hermes) is indeed a legend. He commanded that stage, even when doing absolutely nothing.
I was actually able to see this show live! The musicians are all onstage, with seats integrated into the set, sort of in the background, but you can see them the whole time. The line you had trouble hearing was "and we're going to sing it even so". I'm so excited for this series!
So this musical, like most, has gone through several incarnations. There are a lot of wonderful animatics for the original cast recording (perhaps even more than for the official broadway recording). I suggest you check them out in your own time if you don’t want to react to them or make them patreon exclusives. They’re truly wonderful pieces of art and I think you’ll get a kick out of the lyrical changes and how it changes the character’s motivations. You’re in for a treat with this musical.
My SECOND FAVORITE MUSICAL OF ALL TIME IM SO GLAD YOURE HEARING THIS
Fun fact, yes during the instrumental the 5-6 people were onstage playing but it was (at least when I saw it) a big show off of the ensemble and their dancing!
What's the first?
@@jamescook5783 Sweeney Todd ^^
Fun fact i learned today from a content creator friend via their instagram, they live in Korea which actually just got a production of hadestown going through it, and they actually opened up the role of hermes to be played by any gender, so their hermes is actually being played by a woman actress right now and i think that is just so cool, as a female who wants to go into stage acting and plans to at least try to be able to play any role male or female, it really peaks my interest (to be fair if i get a male role i plan to portray as a male for the stage)
It also makes me think of epic the musical and how i feel some of the roles could possibly be interchangeable for male and female characters, like Aeolus who was originally said to be a male, you actually hear Odysseus say in luck runs out "I'm gonna climb to the top and ask HIM for a hand" meanwhile we have a female actress for Aeolus, i absolutely love the idea of some future plays playing with this idea it's so cool, lil cool info of the day
Also another lil tidbit of info, eurydice is actually my dream role for broadway since i discovered hadestown
Choi Jungwon (최정원)!! she's really well known within the Korean musical theatre scene as she played both Roxie AND Velma in Chicago (she's still continuing to portray Velma even now) among other roles.
The other actors (Korea's productions have multiple actors playing the same character and just switch off on different days) are well known in their own rights: Choi Jaerim (최재림) also currently plays Billy Flinn from Chicago, and has done Lola from Kinky boots and Tom Collins in Rent. Kang Hongseok (강홍석) also played Lola and is set to play the genie in the new production of Aladdin coming to Korea soon
@@kino9643 ooo so coool!
@@midnightmoon7257 i actually forgot to mention that Choi Jungwon also played Calliope in the Korean dub of Hercules. feels very fitting for both the first female hermes in the US and Korea were 'friends of calliope'
I saw this show on Broadway and it was absolutely phenomenal!! I was introduced to this musical in 2021 when I was home with covid and I became obsessed!
this is so extremely random but im feeling emotional so i just wanted to say im so grateful i found your channel, mortius, you are such a delightful person!! im always having fun watching your videos !! :] so glad to see you reacting to one of my favorite musicals
Welcome to the bliss and the pain that is Hadestown. If you haven't GO SEE IT LIVE. Best I've ever seen.
DID YOU KNOW??? Our friend Gigi has one or two animatics for Hadestown. And I know Wolfy is a huge fan
Hadestown! I'm so glad your reacting to my favorite musical!
Mortius: “why do you make me hurt”
Me: YOU MUST SUFFER WITH US! CRY WITH US! Endure the hardships of the story with us…
So we feel less saddened by its tale
I took the exact same train of thought as you during the Hermes introduction
17:05 ish it's "It's a sad song, but we're gonna sing it even so"
fun fact hermes is also a pschopomp also filling in for charon sometimes.
This is one of my favorite musicals, i cant wait for you to go through it. there is a song in Act 2 that has impacted me in such a strong way, im a different and better person after falling in love with this musical.
25:38 I’m unsubscribing lmao
i'm so existed for these reactions!! Hadestown is my favorite musical, i really recommend you to listen to the concept album and the original off broadway album (my personal favorite) for yourself!! The vibes are really different and interesting for each recordings!
I have seen a lot of versions of this, my favorite has Orpheus the son of Helios and a Muse, which would explain why his worries about life are not as intense as a mortal's would be. Making him like Heracles but for music instead of strength.
That said, this particular production, thing i like is he is actually feels autistic coded to to me. How strong his emotions are and the way he is about stuff. Felt really cool.
i've seen hadestown live 4 times, and on andre's final show in 2022 when i went and saw he held that note at the end of road to hell for probably around 17 seconds or so it was WILDLY impressive
My high school a cappella group Any Way the Wind Blows near the end of the year, I actually got the solo in it
Wow, if he liked sounds in this song he'll like sounds that happen later. There's even a few songs that use sounds!
Oh i am so excited for this
I’m so happy you’re reacting to this musical. It’s so cool! Just as a heads up, there’s at least one song I know of in the second act (not saying which) without a full animatic using the broadway soundtrack. I’m sure you’ll have something planned for it, but just wanted to let you know
Hi, I was wondering if you were planning to react to any of the alternate versions of certain songs, since they're very different. Song title spoilers
Epic 1-3 especially are very different