Hadestown:
Teen Edition

Hadestown: Teen Edition is a story rooted in hope and faith—the belief that when people come together, they can create the world they dream about. The production explored the tension between the world as it is and the world as it could be, asking what happens when artists are forced to choose between passion and stability.

The ancient myth unfolded in an abstract world inspired by 1940s New York City. Set inside a forgotten speakeasy cabaret, the audience gathered as both witnesses and fellow artists to hear a story that repeats itself: a story of love, loss, doubt, and the struggle between freedom and security.

In this retelling, Hades and Persephone were once artists in the 1920s. Persephone was a radiant dancer, while Hades was a humble sculptor. When the Depression struck, Hades abandoned his art for ambition and built Hadestown—an empire of contracts, concrete, and control.

Orpheus and Eurydice entered this fractured world as young artists searching for survival and meaning. Orpheus held tightly to his songs as an act of hope, while Eurydice longed for security. Their relationship embodied the difficult choice artists often face between creating the life they imagine and accepting the safety the world offers them.