Orpheus unfortunately does look back in most versions of the myth, a decision brilliantly discussed in Céline Sciamma’s cinematic masterpiece “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.” Many have concluded that his choice comes from a fear that she was no longer there. Meanwhile, Orpheus runs after her, conjures up some musical magic in a dead language (he chooses Latin) and then manages to broker the famous deal with Hades – lead Eurydice out of hell and never look back. They rekindle their relationship and suddenly Eurydice finds herself feeling at home in hell. There, she’s met by a trio of stones and her long-dead father.
But she’s not particularly happy at her wedding party so she rushes off to get some water, running into Hades himself, who tricks her into following him to the underworld. The opera’s plot starts off simple enough. 23, 2021, marking the second 21st century opera to hit the company’s cavernous stage during the 2021-22 season (the first being the masterful “ Fire Shut Up in My Bones”).
“Eurydice’s” unique qualities came to the fore in its Metropolitan Opera debut on Nov. And in doing so, the work asks questions about what Eurydice actually wants out of her life and afterlife. Sarah Ruhl and Matthew Aucoin’s “Eurydice” aims to break down this Orphean monopoly on the story and explore it from the opposing viewpoint of his dead wife. There have been some subversive looks at the myth in the operatic world, with Offenbach’s “Orpheus in the Underworld” the most prominent, but usually, these versions continue the tried and true method of exploring the myth from the perspective of the musical hero.
In the world of opera, this particular story has unsurprisingly been the inspiration for many a masterpiece starting with Monteverdi’s early example (the earliest opera in history that remains in performance) and most prominently with Gluck’s “Orphée et Eurydice.” A musician loses his wife, creates glorious music that moves the gods, and gets a chance to win her back. The Orpheus story is one of the most famous in all of Greek mythology.
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