Horizon High bringing ‘Hadestown’ to stage

Horizon High School is combining Greek Mythology, intertwining love stories, a modern twist on the Steampunk style, and string and brass instruments to bring “Hadestown Teen Edition” to the stage.

The show has brilliant lighting and special effects, plus a live seven-piece professional band for each performance and two lead casts on alternating nights. The overall aesthetic is a blend of contemporary edge and classic Steampunk.

Horizon is the first Orange County High School to perform the show, and theater director Ashley Fisher and her students are thrilled to be part of the show.

“Our students were beyond thrilled last year when the rights for ‘Hadestown Teen Edition’ were announced — and even more so when we received them,” Fisher said. “It's always fun and exciting to do something new! You get to develop your own take on it before being overly influenced by other productions.

“In addition to being a popular Broadway show that has received so many awards ‘Hadestown’ offers a director creative license to play with innovative staging and dynamic ensemble and character work. What I love about this show is that every member of the company is such a vital part of the overall experience.

“Hermes' (played by Isis Tavarez and Brendan Alday) sassy but optimistic narration alongside the cynical narrative of the Fates (Gwen Poss, Olivia Maddock, Lara Avante Pio) tells the tale to the audience,” Fisher said. “Hades' (Tom Ferrer’s) dictatorship and persuasive demeanor alongside the ensemble's militant presence gives historical and social relevance to the story. Orpheus (Timothy Gittens and Matt Silva) gives us hope for a better future. The women at first glance may appear to be cogs in the system, but Persephone's (Rebeca Castro Mendes and Breyonna Crawford) mere presence brings about the change in seasons and impacts both the world above and below, and for Eurydice (Taja-Mya Bennin and Mimi Gibbons), Orpheus is ready to, quite literally, go to the ends of the earth for her.”

“Hadestown” follows two intertwining love stories – that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of immortals King Hades and Lady Persephone. The show invites audiences on a journey to the underworld and back. Inspired by traditions of classic American folk music and vintage New Orleans jazz, this musical pits industry against nature, doubt against faith, and fear against love.

ROAD TO HELL

“(The music is) beautiful, haunting, fun, lively all at the same time,” Fisher said. “No matter what your preference in musical style is, there will be a song in ‘Hadestown’ you will leave the theater singing. It's also very challenging and intricate music. The ensemble may be singing ‘ooh,’ but they are doing it in four-part harmony while three leads are singing another line in three-part harmony and Eurydice and Orpheus are each singing their own lines.

“Since there is essentially no unscored dialogue in the musical, the plot line moves from song to song without delay and it just flows so beautifully,” she said.

Fisher said she also loves Anais Mitchell’s way of modernizing the Greek gods.

“Since the ‘tale’ is endlessly circular (because history tends to repeat itself), you can quite literally put the world of Hadestown in any time or place,” she said. “Our overall aesthetic was a modern twist on Steampunk style. The main characters look most inspired by the classic style, while the mortal ensemble is a blend of both the above- and underground.

“We've worked together as a cast to develop the world and characters, and it's been such a fun experience,” Fisher said.

The Broadway production of “Hadestown” is staged for a small cast in an intimate theater, she said, and it has been exciting seeing the potential in expanding the ensemble to 22.

“Hadestown Teen Edition” has been double cast, and Fisher said this speaks to the tremendous talent of the students in the theater program.

“I encourage everyone to see both casts because each actor brings something different to the role,” she said.

WAY DOWN HADESTOWN

The Broadway version of the musical uses a rotating elevator lift in which the actors descend into Hadestown, and since Horizon didn’t have this stage apparatus, Fisher and the students came up with an alternate plan.

Of all the scenes in the show, Fisher said she is excited to see the audience’s reaction to the staging for the descent into the underworld.

She hopes to see the community show its support of the theater students who have been working hard to create this production.

“It can be hard to cultivate the assets needed to put on large high school productions, especially at the caliber to which OCPS theater programs are known for,” Fisher said. “However, theater teachers know the importance of theater as an outlet for these kids that will help shape who they become in life. They learn and grow so much in this space, not only as performers and artists, but as individuals.

“Through performance, they are building confidence, presentation skills and creative thought processes that are applicable in any job setting,” she said. “No matter what they choose to do in life, the skills they learn here will help them be successful. We want to keep giving them a professional experience that they can look back on with pride.”