“Hadestown” began in Vermont, in 2006. “The original was a D.I.Y. theatre project,” Mitchell said. “It was a lot of, like, wild cabin-fever Vermont artists coming together, fringe people who have chosen this off-the-beaten-path life style—homesteading, chickens, stacking their own wood.” The music grew more complex over the years and on a studio album, released in 2010; Michael Chorney, who plays guitar in the show, was its primary arranger. On it, Mitchell sings the part of Eurydice; Justin Vernon, of Bon Iver, is Orpheus; Ani DiFranco is Persephone; the Haden Triplets, as the Fates, “laid their tight sister harmonies down,” Mitchell said. The album has fervent devotees, as does the show. (Lin-Manuel Miranda, on his third night of post-“Hamilton” freedom, tweeted a rave: “thrilling . . . unreal. goooooo.”)”
Read more from Sarah Larson’s article at The New Yorker.