“If you’re a theater person, you know what Hadestown is,” says Kendra Kannegaard, theatrical performance and production guru at Scotts Valley High School. “It’s unlike any other show you’ve ever seen.” And Kannegaard hopes that this familiarity will bring people out to see the SVHS theater troupe’s production of Anaïs Mitchell’s play.
The cast of thespians and vocalists at Scotts Valley High debuted their production of Hadestown: Teen Edition last Friday, with performances continuing through May 3.
Mitchell’s play weaves together two mythic tales—Orpheus and Eurydice, and King Hades and his wife Persephone—that involve journeying to the underworld and back. According to the school press release, Hadestown pit “industry against nature, doubt against faith, and fear against love. Performed by a vibrant ensemble of actors, dancers and singers, Hadestown is a haunting and hopeful theatrical experience that grabs you and never lets go.”
The rights to Mitchell’s new Hadestown: Teen Edition were just released in April of 2024, Kannegaard says. “Within 20 minutes of learning about its availability, we applied and were approved. I’d been waiting for years to be able to do this show. I had heard it in college and then saw it on Broadway, and I just knew that if given the chance, my kids were going to do this show.”
Part of the poignancy of performing Hadestown this year is due to the student who advocated for its place in the 2024-25 seasonal lineup for the SVHS Theater Department. Milo Anima was a much beloved member of the department, and he alerted Kannegaard about the release of the musical, designed for high school students to perform.
Anima died in June 2024. As they mourn their friend and colleague, the entire theater department knows that this show belongs to him.
“We’re the first in the area to perform this musical, and it’s all thanks to Milo,” Kannegaard says.
Atlas Hinkle, a senior at SVHS, is the stage manager and co-student director.
“It’s definitely hard, because this show holds such an important place in our hearts for a variety of reasons; the main reason we decided to do this show is because of Milo—it was his favorite show, and I remember that when we found out the rights came out, we were texting back and forth about it. I’m happy that we’re doing it for him,” says Hinkle, who also mused about this being their last show with the high school. “I’ve done stage management since sophomore year, and I’ve learned something new from each show. This one has a lot more technical aspects to it—we have a turntable and an elevator—so it’s very different from a genre point of view.”
Senior V Nivelle plays Orpheus and is also a co-student director, student producer and house manager.
“Hadestown has been rooted in our department for a while now. When I was a freshman, we went on a field trip to see it in San Francisco and I think everyone just fell in love with it right then and there,” Nivelle says. “Orpheus is such a great character; the sets and the scenes and the music were all so powerful, but the rights weren’t out yet. Now it’s happening, and I think everyone is so incredibly happy to be part of this show, even though it’s something different.”
Junior Jaycee Barber plays Persephone and is also the show’s choreographer.
“I’m an actress first. Being on stage is my favorite thing to do, but choreography is really close to my heart. I’ve been doing dance since I was 3, and it’s really great to bring that experience to this stage,” Barber says.
Hadestown: Teen Edition runs through May 3 in the SVHS Student Union. Shows are April 24–26 and May 2–3 at 7pm, plus 2pm matinees on April 27 and May 3. Two casts will split the performances. Tickets, $18–$20, can be purchased at tinyurl.com/mvf4wk28.
