Alison Stewart: You're listening to All of It on WNYC. I'm Alison Stewart. This hour we're taking a trip way down to Hadestown. For the first time since the Tony Award winning Musical opened in 2019, Hadestown has launched an all new cast for all five principal roles. We were lucky enough to welcome that new cast and amazing band for a live event in the green space as part of our series, Broadway on the Radio.

That new cast includes Paulo Szot as Hades, Rebecca Naomi Jones as Persephone, Morgan Dudley as Eurydice, Jack Wolf as Orpheus, and Kurt Elling as Hermes. You'll hear my conversation with the cast in just a minute. If you want to watch along, you can find the video of this event on WNYC's YouTube channel. Now, here is Kurt Elling and the cast of Hadestown with a special live performance of Road to Hell.

[MUSIC - Hadestown: Road to Hell]

[Hermes] Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa'ight?

Audience: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa'ight?

[Hermes] Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa'ight?

Once upon a time, there was a railroad line [mmm]

Don't ask where, brother, don't ask when [mmm]

It was the road to Hell, it was hard times

It was a world of gods-- and men

It's an old song [old song]

It's an old tale from way back when

It's an old song [old song]

We're gonna sing it again.

Gods and men, a'ight?

We got some gods in the house tonight

[cheers]

See, on the road to Hell, there was a railroad line [mmm]

And there were three old women all dressed the same [mmm]

And they was always singin' in the back of your mind

Everybody, meet the Fates [mmm, mmm, mmm]

And on the road to Hell, there was a railroad line [mmm]

And a lady steppin' off a train [mm-hmm]

With a suitcase full of summertime

Persephone, by name.

[cheers and applause]

And if you ride that train [ride that train]

If you ride that train [ride that train]

If you ride that train to the end of the line [mmm]

Where the sun don't shine and it's always shady [mmm]

It's there you'll find the king of the mine

Almighty Mr. Hades.

[cheers and applause]

[Hermes, spoken] We got any other gods?

Oh, right, almost forgot--

On the road to Hell, there was a railroad station [mmm]

And a man with feathers on his feet [mmm]

Who could help you to your final destination [mmm, mmm, mmm]

Mr. Hermes, that's me

[cheers and applause]

You see, someone's got to tell the tale

Whether or not it turns out well

Maybe it will turn out this time

On the road to Hell, railroad line

It's a sad song [sad song]

It's a sad tale, it's a tragedy

It's a sad song [sad song]

We're gonna sing it anyway

[Hermes, spoken] Now, not everyone gets to be a god

And don't forget that times are hard

Hard times in the world of men

Let me introduce you to a few of them

You can tip your hats and your wallets

With your pennies or your pearls

To the hardest-working chorus

In the gods' almighty world

[cheers and applause]

And workin' just as hard for you

Let's see what this crew can do

[band instrumental interlude]

[Hermes] Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Take me there with you. Na, na, na, yeah. Ha. Wooh.

[cheers and applause]

On the road to Hell, there was a railroad line [mmm]

And a poor boy workin' on a song

[Orpheus] La la la la la la.

[Hermes] His mama was a friend of mine

And this boy was a muse's son

On the railroad line on the road to Hell [mmm]

You might say the boy was touched

[Orpheus] La la la la la la.

[Hermes] 'Cause he was touched by the gods themselves [mmm]

Give it up for Orpheus.

[cheers and applause]

[Hermes] Orpheus. [laughs] [mmm]

There was one more soul on this road

Girl, come on in from the cold

On the railroad line on the road to Hell [mmm]

There was a young girl looking for something to eat [mmm]

And brother, thus begins the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice

[cheers and applause]

It's a love song [love song]

A tale of a love from long ago

It's a sad song [sad song]

We're gonna sing it even so

It's an old song [old song]

It's an old tale from way back when

And we're gonna sing

We're gonna sing

We're gonna sing it again [yeah]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, again, again, again. Yeahhhhhhhhhh. [yeahhhhhhhhhhhh]

[cheers and applause]

[song ends]

Alison Stewart: Kurt Elling, that was great.

[cheers and applause]

You're about to make your Broadway debut. This is your Broadway debut.

Kurt Elling: This is my theater debut from the time I was in high school.

[laughter]

Every other time, all the rest of the time, I've been 30 years on the road as a jazz musician with my own bands and guesting with other bands and such like, and now, I get to have this adventure.

Alison Stewart: What has this adventure been like?

Kurt Elling: Oh, it's a thrill. I love to be challenged. I always want to be learning new things. When I'm on the road, I'm always trying to meet other musicians and find out, because every person you meet, every musician you meet, has an incredible galaxy of memories and songs and harmony ideas and notes and stories to tell, and I'm just hungry for all of that.

Alison Stewart: As you mentioned, you're a Grammy winning jazz vocalist. How did you have to adapt for this role?

Kurt Elling: I have to sing higher than I would like to.

Alison Stewart: Oh?

Kurt Elling: Yes, man. They wrote all of this for a tenor, which I am not, [laughter] especially not at this hour of the morning. [laughter] That's the hardest part. There's not the kind of blowing space that I'm used to, but that's not really important because it's not a part of the function of the art form. Jazz has its history, and it has its traditions and its habits and its creative resources and the stories to tell, and musical theater is an equally rich, flavorful experience, and so, as I say, I like to learn stuff, so let me put the harness on me for this, and I'll give this the best that I can.

Alison Stewart: Let's talk to Liam Robinson for a minute.

Kurt Elling: Okay.

Alison Stewart: Liam, hi.

Liam Robinson: Longtime listener, first-time caller.

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: You are the musical director for Hadestown. First of all, would you introduce everybody in the band?

Liam Robinson: Great. I'm not going to screw this up. [laughs] We got Marika Hughes on the cello.

[cheers and applause]

Give it up for Dana Lyn on the violin.

[cheers and applause]

Ben Perowsky on drums.

[cheers and applause]

We got Mariel Bildsten on the trombone.

[cheers and applause]

Christopher Tordini on the bass.

[cheers and applause]

Ilusha Tsinadze on the guitar.

[cheers and applause]

Alison Stewart: We said to you, "Can you bring some of the staff and some of the crew down, and you can make it really a small group and put them on stage?"

Liam Robinson: Yes, we can do that.

Alison Stewart: You can do that?

Liam Robinson: Yes.

Alison Stewart: How did you do that if you can-- [unintelligible 00:09:41]?

Liam Robinson: Yes, we'll bring everybody. Yes, how about that?

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: Tell me about directing this group. What has been the challenge of directing this group?

Liam Robinson: What are the challenges of directing this group? A lot of these musicians were in the show when we were Off-Broadway in 2016, so this show has had a long history, even with just the folks that you see on stage, let alone before that. Yes, I joined years into Anaïs writing the show, and it was an honor for me to also be one of the arrangers in the show. I arranged for the voices in this show, which that was-- I don't know about a challenge, but that was one of my great pleasures is arranging for the many beautiful voices that come through our building.

Alison Stewart: Kurt, we're talking about Greek myths here. Why is Hermes an interesting character for you?

Kurt Elling: Oh, it's such a meta role. There are so many layers of consciousness that I get to try to inhabit. I get to tell the story to the audience, and I'm used to not having a fourth wall anyway, so that fits with me. I can talk to people, and it's no vibe, so I tell the audience, in which case, I don't think the other characters can hear what I'm saying because they're inhabiting the reality of the story. Then sometimes, I'm in the story.

Sometimes I'm sort of in-ish the story, and I'm trying to maneuver things and everything like that. Then, of course, there's my own consciousness as a person telling this story to this audience on this day, with the news of the world happening, and how this story plays into that or comments on that. Every night, there's some other layer. I'm really trying hard to get as much of the right messages across with nuance and with the clarity that it needs.

When you ask about it, jazz musicians say, "Oh, man, it must be like a straitjacket." It's really not. It's such an exploration. Of course, the actors that I'm working with are so beautiful and inspiring, and so every night, you're interacting with people of a very high level of intense creativity. Even if the actual stuff that's written down is the thing that's supposed to happen, you're humans and you're breathing it and you're living it, so it's a thrill for me.

Alison Stewart: Did you check in with past Hermes?

Kurt Elling: I did ask around, and I did solicit advice, and I didn't get any back.

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: Womp womp. You have an album coming out?

Kurt Elling: I do. Which one is it?

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: I don't know. You recently released a solo album.

Kurt Elling: Yes, there's a duo record with my friend Christian Sands. It's Wildflowers, Vol. 3. We have a Wildflowers series. Jazz musicians, we don't see each other enough, usually. You always meet, and then it's gone in a heartbeat. Usually, there's all this rigamarole to make a record, but if we've been practicing forever, we should just be able to go into the studio and sing some songs and do some stuff and do it. We just grab them on the way, so there's a Wildflowers series. Also, I've got a big band record coming out in February that will be called In The Brass Palace. Ooh, it's exciting. Yes, that's going to be big. I'm excited about that. Thank you for asking.

Alison Stewart: Of course. How are you balancing the two?

Kurt Elling: Well, let's see. Last week, I did, Tuesday, one show, and, Wednesday, two shows, and then I got on a plane to fly to Stockholm because I got to do a concert in Stockholm [laughter] with the Yellowjackets. Then we went to a town in Poland that only Paulo can pronounce.

[laughter]

Kurt Elling: Słupsk.

Alison Stewart: Słupsk? Okay.

Kurt Elling: Yes. See? Kind of. See? Then Bratislava, and then I got on the plane in Vienna to come back to do the Tuesday show, start the week off again.

Alison Stewart: Oh, why don't you have a seat?

[laughter]

Kurt Elling: Yes.

Alison Stewart: Why don't you have a rest? I'm here with Broadway's Hadestown. We'll have more with the cast after a break. This is All Of It.

[cheers and applause]

[MUSIC - All Of It: Interlude]

Alison Stewart: You are listening to All of It. On WNYC. I'm Alison Stewart. We're airing our special Broadway on the Radio live event with the brand new cast of Hadestown. That cast includes a new Orpheus played by Jack Wolfe and a new Eurydice played by Morgan Dudley. Here they are with a special live performance of Wedding Song on WNYC.

[MUSIC - Hadestown: Wedding Song]

[Eurydice] Lover, tell me if you can

Who's gonna buy the wedding bands?

Times being what they are

Hard and getting harder all the time

[Orpheus] Lover, when I sing my song

All the rivers'll sing along

And they're gonna break their banks for us

And with their gold, be generous

All a-flashing in the pan, all to fashion for your hand

The river's gonna give us the wedding bands

[Eurydice] Lover, tell me, if you're able

Who's gonna lay the wedding table?

Times being what they are

Dark and getting darker all the time

[Orpheus] Lover, when I sing my song

All the trees gonna sing along

And they're gonna bend their branches down

To lay their fruit upon the ground

The almond and the apple

And the sugar from the maple

The trees gonna lay the wedding table

[band instrumental interlude]

[Eurydice] Lover, tell me, when we're wed

Who's gonna make the wedding bed?

Times being what they are

Hard and getting harder all the time

[Orpheus] Lover, when I sing my song

All the birds gonna sing along

And they'll come flying from all around

To lay their feathers on the ground

And we'll lie down in eiderdown

A pillow 'neath our heads

The birds gonna make the wedding bed

[Eurydice] And the trees gonna lay the wedding table

[Orpheus] And the river's gonna give us the wedding bands

[Eurydice & Orpheus] [mm, mmm, mmm]

[cheers and applause]

[song ends]

Alison Stewart: That was Wedding Song from Broadway's Hadestown, live in The Greene Space. Thank you so much for being with us. We really appreciate it.

Jack Wolfe: Oh, thank you for having us.

Morgan Dudley: Thank you, yes.

Alison Stewart: Morgan, when we meet Eurydice, Hermes describes her as, "A runaway from everywhere she's ever been." What is she running away from? What is she looking forward to?

Morgan Dudley: Wow. I think I think the whole point of her running away is just moving around to survive. When she sees trouble somewhere, she just wants to make sure that she's safe, and I don't know if she has a clear vision of what she's looking forward to as far as optimism goes. I think it's just more food, more shelter, and then, when she meets Orpheus, it's the first time that she's realized that she's missing something in her soul, I think.

Alison Stewart: Orpheus is a character who's a little bit awkward, but he speaks from his heart, he sings from his heart. Tell me about navigating these two sides of Orpheus.

Jack Wolfe: Yes. I have to say I was really interested in the idea of this Greek myth hero who is really reluctant to be one. I like the idea of Orpheus being just an everyman, one of the workers in the bar that we set Hadestown in, who just happens to have this-- he's a vessel to something that's much bigger than him, much greater than him, which I think is a very lovely metaphor. That, when this sort of poetry comes to him, it isn't necessarily something that he's very confident in sharing, but it's something that he feels like he should. Yes.

Alison Stewart: The Wedding Song comes right after Orpheus and Eurydice meet. He professes his love for her. How does Eurydice react?

Morgan Dudley: Yes, I think she's just so taken aback, like, "Wow."

[laughter]

Morgan Dudley: "That's pretty audacious to say you're going to marry me and you just looked at me," [laughs] but I think what's really cool about their story, though, is that Eurydice feels it too, and feels that connection. It's something that she's actively running away from and is yet intrigued by, especially with the difference of energy coming from Orpheus.

Alison Stewart: What is he saying to her? What is Orpheus saying to her in the Wedding Song?

Jack Wolfe: I think the love between Orpheus and Eurydice, which seems so wild to us, and to an audience, to see something so instant, I think it speaks to the myth in that it's this cosmic connection. I think as soon as he locks eyes on Eurydice, he knows that is his whole future. That is now what he lives for, and he has to go through some wild trials within the show for her, and I think, as soon as he meets her, that's just a given that he will do that. I think the Wedding Song and the beautiful poetry that Anaïs wrote, it's just wonderful ways of expressing that love and those feelings. I also think within those epic relationship things, there's space for us to be immature or naive and silly, and that's a really special thing to get to play on stage, too.

Alison Stewart: Hadestown was an album before it was a musical. What was your first reaction to Hadestown? When did you first experience it?

Morgan Dudley: I first saw the Good Morning America performance of the Wait For Me (Reprise). That was my first--

Alison Stewart: Really?

Morgan Dudley: Yes, so I was late. I remember it was 2019, and I had heard it, and I was like, "Wow, that's amazing," and I listened to the original Broadway cast album. When I moved to New York, Hadestown was one of the first shows that I bought tickets for myself to see. It was the first show I bought tickets for myself to see, and I was absolutely obsessed with it ever since then. Then I got to listen to all the past albums.

Alison Stewart: Then you got to be on it.

[laughter]

Morgan Dudley: [laughs] I know, yes.

Alison Stewart: How about for you, Jack?

Jack Wolfe: I'm a bit of a fanboy. I came to the show as a fan of Anaïs already, and Bonny Light Horseman, her band, and I discovered the concept album had so many people that I love, like Bon Iver, Justin Vernon. Then this-- oh, I think it's the off-Broadway cast recording that has Damon Daunno on it, who, again, is another idol of mine. I think the show has such a rich history of amazing artists who've been involved with it, so I think getting to join and be a small part of that tapestry is a really special thing. I take that very seriously, and I'm very grateful. [chuckles]

Alison Stewart: This is your Broadway debut, but we should put an asterisk because you performed on the West End as we can hear from your accent.

[laughter]

Jack Wolfe: Well, I'm from Idaho. [crosstalk]

Alison Stewart: What's the difference between New York and London audiences?

Jack Wolfe: Oh, wow. There is a huge difference.

[laughter]

I think it's amazing to do a show here. I think there's such a present energy in the audiences in New York. I think I feel so close to everybody in the building there. There is maybe a slight reservation in audiences in London; you never really know if they're on your side until the end. [laughter] Whereas here, it feels like a real family thing. It's, yes, very special.

Alison Stewart: Now, you've stepped into roles before. You're in Jagged Little Pill, right?

Morgan Dudley: Yes. Yes, definitely.

Alison Stewart: When you're taking over a role, where does your process begin? Do you start brand new? Do you peek into the other actors' renditions?

Morgan Dudley: Oh, my goodness. If I had already seen the show, which, Hadestown, I had, so of course I have it living in my brain. There's just no way to separate the things. Coming into my own process, I like to try and meditate and clear my mind of whatever preconceived notion I feel like I should be putting on based off of anything I saw, and just try to really live the text and the language and the words. In doing that, especially being in the show for so long, I feel like I've really come into my own and found these new decisions that came to me just based off of what I felt about it, and so it's just been a process of learning to trust myself.

Alison Stewart: You stepped into the role in Next To Normal in the West End. How did you approach it?

Jack Wolfe: That was a very different vibe. We revived the show. It had never come to London before, and we were taking this show that had existed on Broadway 15 years ago and trying to revive it for an audience now, I guess, and that was amazing. I was a huge fan of that show 15 years ago, when I was a young teenager, and, again, never really thought I'd get to be in the room as part of the creation of a new production of it. Yes, I guess I had free rein to create a character almost afresh.

It's hard, I think, as actors, especially going into roles that have been iconically played by people before, not to feel some level of imposter syndrome or fear that you might let people down or that you know that people have something that they're expecting to see, but I think learning to be confident in your portrayal of something is definitely a journey. Yes, I had the most amazing time. I think, also, luckily, with both of these shows, with Next To Normal and with Hadestown, I'm just really, really blessed to be in the company of really incredible actors and people. We're really doing this as a unit, together, which is cool.

Alison Stewart: What are those keys to?

[laughter]

Jack Wolfe: Oh.

Alison Stewart: I'm sorry, I have to break--

Jack Wolfe: I'd lose them all the time. This is coming from rehearsals. If I have them on me, I can't leave them anywhere.

Alison Stewart: Just had to ask.

Jack Wolfe: That's why, [laughter] and I leave them everywhere. [laughs]

Alison Stewart: Everywhere. The next song we're going to hear is Epic. Can you just set this up for us a little bit?

Morgan Dudley: Oh, me?

Alison Stewart: Yes.

Morgan Dudley: What?

Jack Wolfe: Yes, go on.

Morgan Dudley: Oh, my goodness. [laughter] Set it up? Okay.

Jack Wolfe: Set it up, go on.

Alison Stewart: Jack, you can set it up, yes.

Morgan Dudley: Yes, come on.

Jack Wolfe: I really want to know what you think it is.

Morgan Dudley: What I think? I mean-

[laughter]

-I feel like it's the first time that you're put on the spot to use Orpheus' gifts, and we get introduced into what you were saying about how he feels like he has to share this story and explain the world that we're currently living in. Yes, why don't you--

Jack Wolfe: Absolutely, yes. I think it's Orpheus'-- exactly that, it's his poetry to describe what the story of Hades and Persephone is to the audience. Then I think playing the character, for me, my interpretation is a little window into how confident, or not so confident, he might be in sharing this kind of thing. Yes.

Alison Stewart: Okay, you give me that, you get to go off stage, and we'll invite Kurt Elling back on. This is Epic from Hadestown.

[cheers and applause]

[MUSIC - Hadestown: Epic]

[Hermes, spoken] Where'd you get that melody?

[Orpheus] I don’t know, it came to me

As if I'd known it all along

[Hermes, spoken] You have

[sung] It's an old song

A song of love from long ago

Long time since I heard it, though

[Orpheus, spoken] You’ve heard that melody before?

[Hermes, spoken] Sure

[Orpheus, spoken] Tell me more

[Hermes, spoken] Remember the tale I told you once about the Gods?

[Orpheus, spoken] Which ones?

[Hermes, spoken] Hades and Persephone

Remember how it used to be

Their love that made the world go 'round?

[Orpheus, spoken] Yeah, I remember now

But that was long ago

[Hermes, spoken] Tell it again, though

[Orpheus] King of Shadows

King of shades

Hades was king of the Underworld

But he fell in love with a beautiful lady

Who walked up above in her mother's green field

He fell in love with Persephone

Who was gathering flowers in the light of the sun

And he took her home to become his queen

Where the sun never shone

On anyone

[Hermes, spoken] Go on--

[Orpheus] The lady loved him and the kingdom they shared

But without her above, not one flower would grow

So King Hades agreed that for half of each year

She would stay with him there in his world down below

But the other half, she could walk in the sun

And the sun, in turn, burned twice as bright

Which is where the seasons come from

And with them, the cycle

Of the seed and the sickle

And the lives of the people

And the birds in their flight

[Hermes] Singing--

[Orpheus] La la la la la la la--

[Hermes, spoken] Down below and up above

[Orpheus] La la la la la la la--

[Hermes, spoken] In harmony and rhythm

[Orpheus] La la la la la la la--

[Hermes, spoken] The Gods sang his song of love

[Orpheus] La la la la la la la--

[Hermes, spoken] And the world sang it with them

[sung] But that was long ago

Before we were on this road

[cheers and applause]

[song ends]

Alison Stewart: That was Epic I from Broadway's Hadestown. We'll be right back with more music, and the show's King and Queen of the Underworld live in The Greene Space at WNYC.

[MUSIC - All Of It: Interlude]

Alison Stewart: This is All Of It on WNYC. I'm Alison Stewart. We're airing our special Broadway on the Radio live event with the cast of the Tony Award winning musical Hadestown. For the first time since the show launched in 2019, all five principal cast members are brand new to the show. That includes the new king of hell himself, Hades, played by Paulo Szot. Here he is with a live performance of Hey, Little Songbird from Hadestown.

[MUSIC - Hadestown: Hey, Little Songbird]

[cheers and applause]

[Hades] Hey, little songbird, give me a song

I'm a busy man and I can't stay long

I got clients to call, I got orders to fill

I got walls to build, I got riots to quell

And they're giving me hell back in Hades

Hey, little songbird, cat got your tongue?

Always a pity for one so pretty and young

When poverty comes to clip your wings

And knock the wind right out of your lungs

Hey, nobody sings on empty

[Eurydice] Strange is the call of this strange man

I wanna fly down and feed at his hand

I want a nice, soft place to land

I wanna lie down forever

[Hades] Hey, little songbird, you've got something fine

You'd shine like a diamond down in the mine

And the choice is yours if you're willing to choose

Seeing as you've got nothing to lose

And I could use a canary

[Eurydice] Suddenly, nothing is as it was

Where are you now, Orpheus?

Wasn't it gonna be the two of us?

Weren't we birds of a feather?

[Hades] Hey, little songbird, let me guess

He's some kind of poet and he's penniless

Give him your hand, he'll give you his hand-to-mouth

He'll write you a poem when the power is out

Hey, why not fly south for the winter?

Hey, little songbird, look all around you

See how the vipers and vultures surround you

And they'll take you down, they'll pick you clean

If you stick around such a desperate scene

See, people get mean when the chips are down.

[cheers and applause]

[song ends]

Alison Stewart: That was Hey, Little Songbird from Hadestown, featuring the show's Hades and Eurydice, Paulo Szot, and Morgan Dudley. We're going to ask to come to the stage, Rebecca Naomi Jones, who plays Persephone.

[cheers and applause]

You're such a cute couple. [laughter] Let's start with you and that song. Why does he call her down to the Underworld?

Paulo Szot: I think he saw an invitation before it happening in Eurydice's mind, and I think that's the opportunity for him to get his masculine power back after having a huge fight with his wife. He spent so many months away from her, and he prepared a whole new house for her as a reception. When she arrives, she hates everything, so he's very frustrated about that. He sees Eurydice on the edge of suffering in her own life and decides to get there and to give her a little push.

Alison Stewart: Let's get her side of the story.

[laughter]

Paulo Szot: All right.

Alison Stewart: Persephone, how would you describe her relationship with Hades?

Rebecca Naomi Jones: I think it's beautiful the way that in this musical, it's set up such that these two people actually do love each other, but I think something that I love so much about the direction of this is that with both couples, there's this dichotomy between the light and the dark and the hopefulness versus just a sense of, "Nothing is going to go as planned and I have no hope," and I think where both couples meet is where there's magic.

I think Persephone loves Hades, but she lives in the natural world, and she lives for the natural world. She lives in hope, and she holds onto that hope as much as possible. I think, for Persephone, when she comes down after the six-month stint for the fall time, and she sees what Hades has created for her, which is more construction and artificial light and all of these things, it feels to her like an assault of the natural world. I think that's where this couple struggles with each other.

Paulo Szot: Yes, she's right.

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: You're an opera singer star, you have a beautiful voice. You've been at the Met Opera. You've also been on Broadway in & Juliet. What is common about opera and Broadway?

Paulo Szot: Common?

Alison Stewart: Yes.

Paulo Szot: They both tell stories, they both use the human body and the voices in different ways, of course. What I like to always point out are the differences, which, for me, everybody, that's the first thing, "What's the difference?" And I say, "Eight shows a week." In opera, we have two shows a week or three shows a week, and here, that was the biggest challenge for me when I first had my first musical: how to pace, how to learn to do that for eight shows a week and not be absolutely destroyed.

Alison Stewart: You used the lower part of your register quite a bit.

Paulo Szot: That's news for me. I'm a baritone, so it's in the middle of the register of everything male and between the tenor and the bass, so I get to explore a little bit, and this guy helps a lot. The microphones give the intimacy that I can explore this kind of color that, in opera, would be not possible.

Alison Stewart: Hadestown is a unique musical, so much is told in verse. How is that for you as someone who's done a lot of Broadway?

Rebecca Naomi Jones: I think text is exciting. I think there's always more to be harvested than we think at first glance. Be it verse, be it prose, I just think there's just always so many layers. I think Anaïs did a beautiful job layering a lot of information into these songs, and so I think the storytelling is so well laid out for us. It feels like we can trust what's there and just do our job and pay attention to each other and listen and let it ride.

Alison Stewart: You can go big with Persephone.

Rebecca Naomi Jones: Yes.

Alison Stewart: An actor can go very big with Persephone.

Rebecca Naomi Jones: Yes.

Alison Stewart: What do you like to do with her?

Rebecca Naomi Jones: I do like to go big and get weird.

[laughter]

Rebecca Naomi Jones: I like that, again, she's really hopeful. I think we meet Persephone in a time in her life where she's self-medicating with alcohol and acting out because she's having a hard time holding onto that hope, because so much in the world is informing her otherwise. Things are bad, and she feels out of control, and she's spiraling, and so I think there's all this justification for me to just act out and be weird. The way I'm enjoying that, personally, is lots of unnecessary squats that no one told me to do.

[laughter]

A lot, just a lot of this for no reason. Yes, I have a full exorcism on stage where I get to shake myself and try to box the demons away. Yes, there's a lot of room for fun. [laughs]

Alison Stewart: Paulo, what made you want to be in the role of Hades? You could have had a ton of different roles. Why did you choose this one?

Paulo Szot: First of all, when I first saw the music, I was in love with the music. I left the show thinking the music is the star of this show, and I was so excited when they came back to me and proposed to do this. I still think the music is incredible, and also, to play a role that Hades represents; a big boss, a God, someone who, in a way, has lost his way of seeing the humanity in others, and just thinking about the work and the job, and get absolutely into that thing.

I think that's the main problem with their marriage. Whatever he prepares for Persephone, he thinks is the best, but it's the best in his vision of it. To play someone like that, that has such a great, for me, theatrical arc, because he goes through a change in this musical, and then he goes back to what he was, [laughter] but they leave in a better place in terms of their marriage, if you compare from the beginning of the play. I think it's a beautiful journey, to go through that every day.

Alison Stewart: For you, you could have played a ton of roles. Why did you choose Persephone?

Rebecca Naomi Jones: I really love being a part of something that is about trying to have hope and trying to connect with each other amidst chaos in the world. I'm happy that Persephone happens to be the vessel for me to be a part of that bit of storytelling in general, but, yes, I love that she is capable of deep sadness and garnering deep strength and deep love, and she's fun.

Alison Stewart: The last song we're going to hear is your song. Would you set it up for us a little bit?

Rebecca Naomi Jones: Yes. This is the Act 2 opener. It is like Persephone's little sneaky, drunken cabaret act that she does [laughter] when her husband, the boss, is not paying attention. It's really at her lowest point. I will not be giving you the version where I'm throwing myself around the stage, but, yes, it's like her rebellious moment where she's taking all of this darkness that she feels and she's just splattering it all over the place. [chuckles]

Alison Stewart: All right, let's get it set. This is from Hadestown.

Rebecca Naomi Jones: Thank you.

[cheers and applause]

[MUSIC - Hadestown: Our Lady of the Underground]

[laughter]

[Persephone]

[spoken] Step into my office.

[band instrumental interlude]

[sung] I don’t know about you, boys

But if you’re like me

Then hanging around this old manhole

Is bringing you down

Six-feet-under

Getting under your skin

Cabin fever is setting in

You’re stir crazy, stuck in a rut

You could use a little pick-me-up

I can give you what it is you crave

A little something from the good old days

I got the wind right here in a jar

I got the rain on tap at the bar

I got sunshine up on the shelf

Allow me to introduce myself:

Brother, what’s my name?

My name is-

[Band] Our Lady of the Underground

[Persephone] Brother, what’s my name?

[Band] Our Lady of Ways

Our Lady of Means

[Persephone] Brother, what’s my name?

My name is-

[Band] Our Lady of the Upside Down

[Persephone] Wanna know my name?

I’ll tell you my name-

Persephone.

[Band] Yeahhh.

[Persephone]

[spoken] Come here, brother- let me guess:

[sung] It’s the little things you miss

Spring flowers

Autumn leaves

Ask me, brother, and you shall receive

Or maybe these just ain’t enough

Maybe you’re looking for some stronger stuff

I got a sight for the sorest eye

[spoken] When’s the last time you saw the sky?

[sung] Wipe away your tears, brother

Brother, I know how you feel

I can see you’re blinded by the sadness of it all

But look a little closer and

Everything will be revealed

Look a little closer and

There’s a crack in the wallllllll.

[cheers and applause]

[band instrumental interlude]

Rebecca Naomi Jones: Put your hands together for Mariel Bildsten on the trombone.

[cheers and applause]

Marika Hughes on cello.

[cheers and applause]

Dana Lyn on violin.

[cheers and applause]

Ben Perowsky on drums.

[cheers and applause]

Christopher Tordini on bass.

[cheers and applause]

Ilusha Tsinadze on the guitar.

[cheers and applause]

And Liam Robinson on the keys.

[cheers and applause]

[Persephone] You want stars?

I got a skyful

Put a quarter in the slot, you’ll get an eyeful

You want the moon?

Yeah, I got her too

She’s right here waiting in my pay-per-view

How long’s it been?

A little moonshine ain’t no sin

[spoken] Tell my husband to take his time.

[sung] What the boss don’t know

The boss won’t mind.

[band instrumental interlude]

[cheers and applause]

[song ends]

Rebecca Naomi Jones: I didn't have my props.

[cheers and applause]

Alison Stewart: Thank you so much to the cast of Hadestown. Paulo Szot as "Hades."

[cheers and applause]

Rebecca Naomi Jones as "Persephone."

[cheers and applause]

Morgan Dudley as "Eurydice."

[cheers and applause]

Jack Wolfe as "Orpheus."

[cheers and applause]

And "Hermes," Kurt Ellington.

[cheers and applause]

Thank you to the band. Everybody, give it up for the band. Everybody, give it up for the band.

[cheers and applause]

This has been Broadway on the Radio with the new cast of Hadestown. If you want to go back and watch the event, you can find it on WNYC's YouTube page. There's more, All of It on the way. Coming up next hour, two plays you want to catch before they close. First, we'll speak with actor Bobby Cannavale and director Scott Ellis about the Broadway show art. It's a play about three friends who just can't seem to agree on the value of a very, very expensive abstract painting. Then the Off-Broadway play Queens, which follows a group of immigrant women living in a basement apartment, all trying to achieve their piece of the American dream. Pulitzer Prize winner Martyna Majok joins me alongside actors Marin Ireland, Anna Chlumsky and Julia Lester. That's coming up after the break. Stay with us.