Broadway’s “Hadestown” is only one way of telling the story of Eurydice and Orpheus. Students from Lane Community College are about to present “Eurydice,” a play written by Sarah Ruhl, based on the well-known tale.
Claire Valentine, a student and assistant to the director for the production, said the play has a slightly modern take on the setting with a focus on Eurydice — unlike the well-known tale of Orpheus and Eurydice’s myth, such as in the Broadway show “Hadestown,” where the story focuses on Orpheus. It is a story about remembrance, forgetting and what it truly means to let go.
“I relate to her a lot in my real life,” Sarah Nesslin, a student who plays Eurydice, said. “I relate to her a lot when it comes to reading and love of books, and for wanting to understand people.”
“It talks about Eurydice’s perspective on getting married to Orpheus and what she goes through that causes death, and what happens to her in the underworld,” Valentine said. The underworld in Greek mythology is where people go when they die, and in this play, it is captured as more of an abstract wonderland.
Sven Kjellander had never played a role in a production, not counting his kindergarten play. He took an improv class and decided to join the production at LCC.
He plays the role of Lord of the Underworld, who has two versions of characters throughout the show, one being a man and the other being a child. “Part of it is the joy and fun of expressing emotions, challenging myself with my social anxiety,” he said.
Kjellander described his character as someone with a hot temper who gets into more sentimental scenes and brings chaos, serving as “comic relief” in the show.
Some of the students are part of the 2+1 program, where students can study theatre in three years, including two years at LCC and one year at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, while others are jumping into theater for the first time.
“I love the community college setting because it’s a college setting that invites students from a whole wide range of life experiences,” Eric Braman, the director of the play, said. Whether the students are fresh out of high school and coming into their higher education careers, or are returning to education for any number of years and reasons, they all work together for the production.
Braman has a rich background in education and student support, incorporating his experiences and knowledge in theatre.
Braman said it is important for the student actors “to get on stage and to perform and to use your life experience to inform a character and create something realistic. It’s a life skill that a lot of these folks are working on.”
“Eurydice” will be performed at Blue Door Theatre at the Lane Community College campus at 7:30 p.m. from Thursday, Nov. 20, through Saturday, Nov. 22, and 2 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 22. Admission is free.
