Songs of the Goat’s production of Eurydice is a powerful reimagining of a classic myth. Sarah Ruhl’s 2003 play reimagines the ancient story of Orpheus’ attempt to rescue his dead wife, Eurydice, from the underworld by centering it on Eurydice and adding new characters, especially Eurydice’s dead father. No knowledge of the original story or this new version is needed. Directed by Zach Campion, it is a thoughtful, touching exploration of love, language, and music.
Sia Li Wright plays Eurydice as a clever, childlike young woman. She lovingly touches Orpheus (David Jurbala) while also arguing with him about the importance of ideas. Wary of the Nasty Interesting Man (Joseph Wilson), she still follows him when he offers a proposal. Exhausted upon entering the underworld and having lost memory and language, she throws a brief tantrum to find a place to sleep. Later, she eagerly asks her Father (Silas Gordon Brigham) about his stories, imitating his deep voice. Her reunion with Orpheus is deeply emotional and conflicted: she’s excited to see him but questions whether to come back to a life with him.
Jurbala plays Orpheus with a youthful eagerness. His head full of music, he imitates the sea before saying anything and tries to teach Eurydice about rhythm. After her death, his letters to her are full of grief and quiet determination. Entering the underworld, he conducts his music. His final encounter with Eurydice is filled with sadness.
Brigham brings a quietly gentle paternal presence to Eurydice’s Father. On her wedding day, he sends her a letter full of good, sometimes humorous advice. Seeing her in the underworld, he calmly soothes her. He tells her stories from his life using humorous voices and broad gestures, writing words on a backdrop that serves as a large chalkboard. As she prepares to leave the underworld with Orpheus, his voice catches with emotion as he gives her useful advice. His final speech is filled with emotion, and by the end he cries.
Wilson brings an oddness with a hint of menace to the Nasty Interesting Man, who takes Eurydice away from her wedding party. Trying to be seductive through salsa dancing, talking about the “interesting people” he knows, and unbuttoning his shirt, he comes across as both funny and at times creepy to both Eurydice and the audience. At one point, he gets very close to Eurydice. Tariq Ambrose plays the Lord of the Underworld as a spoiled, petulant teenager who enters with heavy metal music and posturing. He yells when he learns that Eurydice and her father have been breaking the rules, then gets excited when Eurydice begs him not to punish them. Laughing, the other residents join in, stopping when he cuts them off. He eagerly tells Orpheus the rules for bringing Eurydice out of the underworld, offering no explanation for this seeming arbitrary condition.
Carlotta Capuano, Jordyn Nicole, and Michael Chamberlin play the Stones — a three-person chorus of longtime underworld inhabitants — who are irritated by newcomers. They explain the rules of the place, urgently rebuking Eurydice and her Father for not following them. With Orpheus’ music, they weep and urge Eurydice to follow him.
The show’s scenic designer — Michael Chamberlin again — has created an abstract set, with several different-sized ladders serving as stairs, elevators, and portals, while a backdrop serves as a chalkboard for the Stones and the Father to write and draw on. Prop designer George Kassouf has a transparent umbrella, strings, and bricks play prominently onstage, while water cans and water bottles throughout the stage wash away the dead’s memories and language. Costume designer Regan A. McKay makes each character immediately identifiable: Eurydice, Orpheus, and the Father wear contemporary clothing, while the Nasty Interesting Man wears black cowboy gear and the Lord of the Underworld a leather jacket and black trousers. The Stones wear dirty, flexible sheets.
Lighting designer Ben Harvey adds to the play’s atmosphere by dimming and brightening the lightbulbs suspended over the stage at appropriate moments, as well as flashing red lights for the Lord of the Underworld’s entrance. Sound designer Lex Allenbaugh enhances the mood by throwing out sounds of descending elevators, approaching trains, rushing water, and music, especially the music played by Orpheus. Director Campion gives plenty of space for the play’s silent moments, as well as the quietly emotional and funny ones. The actors’ movements, especially in Orpheus and Eurydice’s journey back to the land of the living, are beautifully choreographed. The play’s total effect is like watching poetry, or listening to moving music, giving much to think about afterward.
Songs of the Goat is a new production company producing Ancient Greek tragedies and theater inspired by it. Eurydice is their third production, and according to Co-Artistic Directors Elizabeth Van Den Berg and Zachary Campion, “their most ambitious.” They have succeeded tremendously and should be commended for tackling such a work, which Sarah Ruhl has called one of her most personal. Eurydice plays for two weekends only, so be sure to catch it.
Running Time: One hour and 45 minutes, with no intermission
Eurydice plays through September 13, 2026, presented by Songs of the Goat, performing at Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St NE, Washington, DC. For tickets ($37.25), call the box office at 202-399-7993 or purchase online.
