‘Eurydice’ flips a classic Greek myth on its head

Lansing Community College’s production of “Eurydice,” by Sarah Ruhl, is a sumptuous reinterpretation of a classic Greek myth as a contemporary story of love, loss and sacrifice. 

The script is based loosely on the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. In the Greek tale, Eurydice is bitten by a snake and dies soon after their wedding. A despondent Orpheus uses his preternatural musical talents to charm his way into the underworld to bring Eurydice back to the land of the living. Hades agrees to release her, with the caveat that Orpheus cannot look upon her until they have left the underworld. Unfortunately, Orpheus turns to look at her when he reaches the upper world, and because Eurydice has not yet crossed the threshold, she vanishes forever.

A’Layah Houston as the titular character in LCC’s production of “Eurydice.” Photo by Cass Hopp

Ruhl presents the narrative from Eurydice’s point of view and adds a new major character, shifting the focus of the story from Orpheus’ loss to an empowered Eurydice making choices that impact all around her. In Ruhl’s story, we meet Eurydice’s (A’Layah Houston) deceased Father (Mark Gmazel), who watches his daughter from the underworld. On her wedding day to Orpheus (Daedyn Lockhart), Father sends Eurydice a letter, which is intercepted by the Nasty Interesting Man (Will Jodloski). Nasty Interesting Man persuades Eurydice to come back to his penthouse apartment to retrieve the letter. When he tries to seduce her, she flees, trips on the stairs and falls to her death. 

In the underworld, dead people are dipped in the river Lethe, causing them to forget their lives and language. Father somehow avoided this fate, but Eurydice does not. A significant part of the play focuses on Father restoring Eurydice’s language and memories. The scenes between Houston and Gmazel are funny and touching, but be warned: This is a Greek tragedy. Ruhl brings the story to its inevitable conclusion, which is poignant and heartbreaking. 

It’s almost a shame that LCC’s performances are free, because it becomes underwhelming to say that Jodloski’s and Gmazel’s performances alone are worth the price of admission. Gmazel’s Father is grounded, warm and comforting, while Lodloski’s Nasty Interesting Man and Lord of the Underworld — who are likely the same character — are cartoonishly yet very creepily menacing. 

While Gmazel is a seasoned actor who anchors the play with his naturalistic delivery and physicality, Jodloski is a first-year theater student who resists the adrenaline rush of being on stage and patiently holds his syllables a little longer than a human would be comfortable doing to portray his snaky, scary character. Ruhl’s Lord of the Underworld is childlike yet chilling, and in his last appearance as the “grown-up” version of the Lord, Jodloski is horror-film terrifying as he threatens to make Eurydice his bride.

Dart Auditorium is a fine performance space with a generous stage and fantastic lighting equipment, allowing light designer Michael Beyer to create a rich landscape of blues and purples to fill in the otherwise spartan set. While the props are minimal, designer Anna Szabo adds a special Michigan touch by decorating Eurydice’s and her Father’s underworld accessories in a Petoskey stone pattern.  

Although the play starts out a bit slow, it becomes a very moving experience once Eurydice enters the underworld, highly recommended for daddies and daughters who are too old for those elementary school dances.