Original Hadestown Stars Celebrate Bringing the Musical to the Big Screen
Ahead of the July 24 theatrical release, Reeve Carney, Eva Noblezada, André De Shields and Anaïs Mitchell reflect on preserving the Tony-winning musical for a new generation
(Photo: Matthew Murphy)
What to Know
- The original Hadestown cast reunites in the live-capture film, in theaters across North America on July 24
- Reeve Carney, Eva Noblezada, André De Shields and Anaïs Mitchell discuss bringing the Tony-winning musical to the big screen
- The film introduces Hadestown to new audiences while preserving its legacy
Hadestown is going way up this time, on a silver screen near you! The West End production welcomed back original London and Broadway stars Reeve Carney, André De Shields, Amber Gray, Eva Noblezada and Patrick Page for a live capture, coming to movie theaters across North America on July 24. Ahead of the film's release, Broadway.com attended a special press event and got the inside scoop from the OGs.
The Tony Award-winning Best Musical written by Anaïs Mitchell and directed by Rachel Chavkin has been running on Broadway for seven years, and is now offering the story to new audiences. “I think the myth is timeless, and as many times as you watch the show or the movie, you can absolutely see yourself in all of the characters in every single part of the show,” says Noblezada. “For me, I’m a sucker for love. The love story is heartbreaking and complex and a true parallel to life.” Referring to her husband and former co-star, Carney, Noblezada adds, “If we ever have little babies one day, they can be like, ‘That’s mommy and daddy.’”
With a new medium comes a new framing. “In terms of accessibility, this film focuses the story in a way that I think not only is incredible for the film, but I think will be great for Hadestown superfans and people who’ve never seen the show,” says Carney. “This might be their first time seeing Hadestown, and then I think it’s going to make them want to go see the show live as well.”
The original concept album and subsequent cast recordings meant that fans of the show were able to hear the music, but Mitchell knew many were missing out on Chavkin’s visual world and the "delightful and powerful physical presence" of the actors. “Now, that’ll be visible to everyone,” she says.
“The film will one day be called an art treasure,” agrees De Shields. “It is forever. It is eternal.” The preservation of this cast and musical on film will be passed down through generations, with De Shields declaring: “In the 22nd century, people will be talking about Hadestown.”
