As someone who's been told I have a beautiful speaking voice but really, really can't sing, I do strongly appreciate that Hadestown has two of the most powerful spoken-word numbers for a male voice ever, back-to-back (Hermes in "Wait for Me", Hades in "Why We Build the Wall")
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My ideal for Hermes' lines in "Wait for Me" would be a mixture of Ben Knox Miller from the concept album and Chris Sullivan from the NYTW live album This direct contrast with Hades' calm, authoritative baritone A frenzied whisper, filled with tension
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The album putting his voice through a filter, so it sounds like a scratchy tape recording, a frayed and worn-out memory playing over and over in the back of Orpheus' mind as he descends into the Underworld
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"You're on the lam, you’re on the run Don't give your name, you don't have one And don't look no one in the eye That town'll try to suck you dry" Chills, man
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I do have a lot of thoughts and feelings about the archetypes in the show, and how ideally Hermes is as much a contrast to Hades as Persephone is, on a different axis As well as being this enemy of the Fates The voice of the loophole, the longshot, the million-to-one chance
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(Just as the Fates never speak and only sing, and when they sing they sing in this effortlessly mellifluous three-part harmony Hermes rarely sings as opposed to talk-singing or chanting, and his voice is ragged, imperfect, always with this sly ironic edge)
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I should clarify that I'm not saying that Andre De Shields doesn't get this or doesn't have any of this energy, like I think him introducing the show as Hermes in "Road to Hell" is perfect, it's the ideal version of that song
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End of conversation
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