queerorpheus

[queerorpheus]

okay so i've been working on some hadestown designs on and off for MONTHS and i wasnt planning on posting them until they were all done but i decided to post what i have done to maybe motivate me to finish the rest. so heres the two main couples!! every time i listen to hadestown a little fake production plays in my head so i wanted to get it out into the world. notes under the cut i have a lot to say <3

my orpheus is a butch lesbian idc you cant take this away from me

i'm bringing back the jean jacket from the london production because i love it so much but ALSO because its always bothered me that orpheus is the only human character that doesnt get a jacket for the winter?? it's worn for some scenes in act 1 including wait for me but is gone in act 2. i imagine she lost it at some point during the journey to the underworld, especially because its so hot down there

the idea was that orpheus' clothes are pretty nice (nice slacks, nice shoes) but theyre all worn out. scuffed shoes, baggy knees, holes in the shirt etc etc

patch on the knee matches eurydice's dress <3

i like the idea of eurydice having a bright dress under her huge dark coat. during summer she is happy and opening up to orpheus so her wardrobe changes to reflect that. but on the flip side during winter when her coat is stolen she is forced to bare her raw self to hades

she keeps her headband even in her hades uniform to show shes still holding onto her fading memories and individuality

okay so while i was working on this i came to the realization that i dont really like persephone's dress that much. and then i realized i can do whatever i want.

i referenced a lot of 30's evening gowns. i wanted something poofy and with a lot of movement. not super happy with how i drew the sleeves but its hardddd

theres this one persephone wig that has gray streaks in her hair i loveeee

both dresses of hers would be very shimmery and sparkly. im imagining a lot of subtle texture thats just hard to capture with digital art

i still HATE drawing suits

not a lot to say about hades i didnt stray too far from his established look because its so perfect

OH i added a red pocket square to both match the red back of his vest but also to be evocative of his heart! like under all the layers and walls he still has some feelings lol

[queerorpheus]

Hehehehe he’s my fave <3

[queerorpheus]

Got some new Hadestown memes from Broadway and the tour :)

[queerorpheus]

Got some new Hadestown memes from Edmonton, Broadway, the tour, and the West End!

[queerorpheus]

Orpheus and Eurydice from Hadestown Orpheus are Queer Platonic Partners.

Requested by Anonymous 

[queerorpheus]

today i turned the bandana i used for an orpheus costume last year into a mask

[queerorpheus]

eva noblezada eurydice and...... khalia wilcoxon orpheus.....

[queerorpheus]

I hear the gays require lesbian orpheus 👀

[queerorpheus]

i’m sure lots of people have done percy jackson/hadestown au’s but WHOOP that’s not gonna stop me

[queerorpheus]

Ellie Jordan

Month of Love 2020 ~ Heroes (reprise)

Coloured pencil and digital

"The dog you really got to dread

Is the one that howls inside your head

It's him whose howling drives men mad

And a mind to its undoing"

Hermes, Hadestown

[queerorpheus]

lady persephone......M’aam...

[queerorpheus]

Hay kids its me your favorite local broke tumblr princess. If you follow me you know that yes I have a job interview on tuesday. Im not sure if I’m going to get it or not. But I had to get my registration for my car renewed. I charged it on my credit card and part of me is worried that if I don’t get this job ill be stuck with this huge bill on my card. The bill in total is $135.00 I would really appreciate any help at all. If I’m lucky and I get this job I’m interviewing for hopefully I won’t have to reach out to you guys for help at all. My cash app is- $SophiaChes https://www.paypal.me/SophiaChester

[queerorpheus]

“Come home with me!”

“Who are you?”

“The woman who’s gonna marry you!”

Role-swap Orpheus and Eurydice, anyone ??

I tried to design them based on something Reeve and Eva would wear, so of course I’d give Reeve his iconic red bandanna. (I don’t know if Eva’d wear suspenders, but thought I’d make Eurydice wear ‘em because they look cute—)

Initially I drew role-swap art for the NYTW cast forever ago, but never finished/colored them, so take those, too.

[queerorpheus]

okay y’all, i need thoughts on orpheus and eurydice as fantasy rpg classes

i think the basic description of a bard fits orpheus perfectly, but what about eurydice?

i feel like rogue is the easy choice because of her personality and background, but that feels a little to easy to me. druid could be cool because she’s technically a dryad, but for some reason i feel like she’d be more of a physical damage versus magic type of gal. maybe ranger/archer could be good for her too? it kind of combines the rogue with the druid.

please reblog and add your thoughts!!!

[queerorpheus]

the path to paradise - pt. 2

hermes and persephone comfort orpheus.

“Orpheus,” a gentle voice calls from behind him. It momentarily paralyzes his thoughts, but he doesn’t move except to finally lower his aching arm. Hermes walks up to the boy and kneels beside him, staring at his face. No matter how many times he tells the story, the look on Orpheus’ face never fails to hurt the god. He rests a hand on Orpheus’ shoulder. Orpheus turns, slightly startled, and his tear-filled eyes look with Hermes’. Orpheus tries to speak, but for once his words fail him. A few small noises come out, but he quickly gives up trying. Hermes opens his arms and Orpheus falls into them, crying into his godfather’s chest. Orpheus doesn’t speak; he’s never able to this soon. In his arms, he feels the young boy shaking each time he lets out a sob. He can hardly breathe. Hermes holds the back of Orpheus’ head, hoping to steady him, even though this has never worked before.

Neither of them know how long they sit there, holding each other. As soon as Orpheus is able to breathe again, Hermes gestures for him to stand so he can help the boy back home. 

When they arrive, Hermes brings Orpheus into the building, setting the boy down on a bed and offering him a blanket. Orpheus slowly wraps the blanket around himself, sitting at the edge of the end, staring at the floor. Hermes grabs a cup, and as he fills it with water, he looks over at Orpheus, who is now staring at his palms, his mouth slightly agape. Tears still drip from his face, but they are slow now. Hermes hands him the cup, deciding this time, instead of saying “Drink, poet,” or “Drink, Orpheus,” he will say nothing. Orpheus gingerly takes the cup and puts it to his lips, and he drinks it down quickly. This is how the rest of the day is spent. Hermes gets the boy cups of water, and eventually small bits of food, and Orpheus takes them. Hermes hardly talks, either; through the many retellings, he’s found that Orpheus copes better when Hermes lets him be alone with his thoughts. 

Hours later, Orpheus falls asleep. Hermes glances at him occasionally, relieved to see the boy asleep, alive, even if he does still seem to grieve in his sleep. 

When Orpheus wakes up the next morning, he can hear Hermes quietly talking to someone. He slowly pushes himself up to sit, scanning the room for Hermes and his unknown companion. He rubs his eyes and sees Hermes talking at a small table with Persephone.

“Morning, Orpheus.” Persephone says gently. She wanted to say “Good morning,” but that had always caused Orpheus’ face to fall. Hermes had advised her to drop the “good” part when she was around to greet Orpheus the morning after it all. 

Orpheus meets her eyes and looks down, searching for his words. 

“That was real, wasn’t it?”

“Yes, poet.” Persephone says. Her and Hermes wait for Orpheus to speak; they’d learned to give the boy time to think.

“She’s gone.”

“Yes, poet.” 

“I’m never going to see her again. Even when I die, I won’t—she signed a contract—”

“Now, you wait just a moment.” Hermes begins. Orpheus looks up, confused. “You’ve changed things in Hadestown, boy.”

Persephone stands and goes to kneel before Orpheus, gently taking his hands in hers. 

“Hades will destroy her contract.” Orpheus’ eyes widen. 

“What does that mean—”

“It means, poet,” Persephone interrupts. “That she is waiting for you. Soon, she will be in Elysium.”

[queerorpheus]

the path to paradise - pt. 1

orpheus and eurydice struggle to cope with their collective mistakes once eurydice is eternally doomed to hadestown.

Long before it happens, Eurydice can feel that her lover will not succeed.

Maybe she knows him too well, maybe it’s Hades tormenting her, maybe the Fates draining every ounce of hope. In front of her, Orpheus walks with quick, uneven steps. He is anxious. Anxious to see Eurydice, anxious for the both of them to be okay, to go home, to keep on living. 

Behind him, Eurydice trudges along, succumbing to the tired ache she’s been fighting off for so long. 

Light glints off a stone on the ground, and Eurydice lifts her head to see the sun, gently shining upon the grass, the trees, the birds, the flowers.  It fills her with hope. Her fears and doubts are melted away by sun; weakly, she smiles.

The sun’s effect is even greater on Orpheus. His pace evens out, his trembling subsides, and soon he walks with confidence. Then, he begins to run. Relieved, he runs and runs until the sun warms every part of him. He stands for a moment, bewildered, before he turns to Eurydice with an enormous smile. Their eyes meet, and Eurydice’s face turns white. 

“Orpheus,” she whispers, her voice trembling.

He doesn’t understand. They made it! They’re home!

His face turns white, too, when he finally takes his eyes off her to observe what’s behind her.

She hadn’t reached the surface yet. 

The ground beneath Eurydice begins to cave in around her. She stumbles and falls, reaching up for Orpheus, who crashes to the ground, frantically reaching for her.

“Eurydice!” he screams, using all the energy he has left to reach for her. For a moment, their fingers brush against each other. He struggles trying to grab hold, but fails.

Neither one can speak, they only scream, cry, and tremble. In just a few seconds, Eurydice has tumbled below the Earth and disappeared amongst the rubble.

Orpheus stares at the empty space below him. He is frozen, leaning over the hole, his arm stretched downward. Eurydice’s screams echo in his ears. He remembers nothing else before a familiar voice says his name, slow and sure. 

Eurydice’s throat hurts. So do her hands, her feet, her arms, her chest, her bones. Slowly, she pushed herself up, and tiredly lifted her head to look above her. The sun was gone. So too were the grass, the trees, the birds, the flowers. And so was Orpheus. Eurydice screams. She sobs so hard she can barely breathe. It isn’t until a small group of workers begins to draw near that she realizes how much noise she had been making. She pounds the dirt with fistfuls of agony. The dirt dampens under her tears. 

“DAMN YOU!” She screams, her voice cracking through her wails. She frightens even herself with the rage that comes from her mouth. 

“Damn you, Hades.” 

[queerorpheus]

Finally lived up to my url y’all

—

They don’t talk about her past.

It’s more of an unspoken rule than anything else. Eurydice doesn’t like discussing what happened before she met Orpheus, and in turn, Orpheus doesn’t ask. It’s a nice arrangement they have, held together mostly by fear of what will happen if they break it. Or well, Eurydice’s fears of what would happen. Because for all of Orpheus’ initial nervousness, he’s always brave enough where it counts.

The truth is, Eurydice’s not sure what would happen if she revealed her past. The way things are right now, with Orpheus and working in the bar. They’re good. She doesn’t want that to change, doesn’t want to rock the boat. That’s why she doesn’t talk about why the winter affects her so much. How the cold feels like it seeps into her bones and settles there. How she can feel herself cut off from the source of her energy whenever Persephone leaves, taking all the light and air with her. How Eurydice’s getting weaker every day. But she can’t share that. If she tells Orpheus, he’ll just leave like everyone else.

But like all secrets, the truth comes out eventually. It’s a slow day at the bar, but Eurydice’s still tired. She’s always tired nowadays, with the winter coming on so soon. She didn’t have any time to prepare herself, and now she’s paying for it.

Eurydice takes a step, then another. She just needs to make it to the storeroom, where she can lie down for a few minutes. She’s pretty sure Hermes knows about her not-quite secret, but she’s also sure that he’d give her the time regardless. Here, people are kind. They actually care for each other. It’s a little strange to Eurydice.

Eurydice is halfway to the storeroom when she trips. She’s not sure what she trips over. It could be a stray box or a chair or even the air at this point, but it doesn’t matter. She’s falling, and she can already tell she won’t be able to catch herself. Eurydice puts out her hands, hoping that she’ll at least be able to protect her face, but she never hits the ground. Instead, she feels strong arms enclose her, gently helping her sit down on the ground. She opens her eyes, which had closed on instinct, and sees Orpheus beside her, looking worried. Of course, Orpheus will always be there when Eurydice needs him. The thought causes a warm feeling to swell in Eurydice’s chest.

“Are you okay?” Orpheus asks, an arm still wrapped around Eurydice.

“Yeah,” Eurydice says, pasting on a fake smile. She hopes that Orpheus isn’t close enough to see the bags under her eyes, “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Orpheus’ eyebrows are pinched together. He knows her well enough to tell when she’s lying.

Nevertheless, Eurydice keeps at it. “Completely sure. It was just a dizzy spell.” She knows Orpheus will probably drop it. This is getting into one of those things they don’t discuss.

But Eurydice should’ve known better than to try and predict Orpheus’ actions. If there’s one thing she can count on, it’s that Orpheus will always find a way to surprise her. Instead of just letting the matter lie, he speaks up, voice serious. “Look, I can tell that you’re not well. It’s not just now, this entire winter has been rough. Please tell me what’s wrong,” the look in Orpheus’ eyes is intense, Eurydice wonders how long he’s wanted to talk to her about this, “I just want to help.”

The dam breaks then. All the feelings that Eurydice has been holding back come rushing in, overwhelming her. She feels all her emotions at once, crashing over her like a tidal wave. And then, as soon as they appeared, the feelings are gone, leaving Eurydice just feeling tired. It’s a different tiredness than the one she’s been feeling all winter, deeper somehow. She’s tired of running, tired of hiding. Just tired in general. If she can’t talk to Orpheus, than who can she talk to. 

Eurydice takes a deep breath, looking around. The bar is empty by now, all of the patrons have left and Hermes has disappeared somewhere. She closes her eyes and concentrates. She focuses all her energy, what little she has left, on her task. She tries to block out the feeling of Orpheus’ stare. If Eurydice gets distracted, she’s afraid she won’t have the energy to attempt this again.

Finally it happens. Eurydice opens her eyes at Orpheus’ gasp of shock, feeling the newly created flower in her hand. It’s red, like the one Orpheus had given her when they first met, the one she still keeps in her pocket, even though most of the petals have fallen off. Orpheus opens his mouth, then closes it, then opens it again, “Eurydice, you’re- you’re-” For the first time, his words fail him. Eurydice completes his sentence.

“A dryad.” There is only silence between them for a while. Eurydice can almost see the wheels turning in Orpheus’ head as he tries to digest her words. 

“Alright,” Orpheus says finally. Eurydice searches his face for disgust or loathing, (not many people are fond of nymphs), but comes up empty. The only thing she can see is the same love that’s always present when Eurydice’s around, “Is that why you’ve been… sick lately?”

“Yes,” Eurydice says. For a second she considers not elaborating. She waves away the thought, she owes Orpheus the information. He’s clearly been worried about her, “Normally winters aren’t supposed to affect us much. After all, trees survive. But these past few years haven’t been exactly normal.”

Orpheus nods. He is all too aware of the reason for this. That’s what he’s been working on, after all. Finding a way to fix what’s wrong and bring back the correct seasons, to bring back spring. “So what can I do?”

“What?” Eurydice is confused. She’d expected Orpheus to be halfway out the door by now.

“To make things easier on you,” Orpheus gives Eurydice a soft smile that melts her heart, “I love you, and I want you to be okay.”

Eurydice feels something in her shift, become lighter. It’s not the first time that Orpheus has said he loves her, but it’s the first time he’s had all the information when saying it. She considers his words and leans in, pressing the flower into his hand. “Just… stay with me. That’s all I want.”

“I will,” Orpheus says, he holds the flower close to him, like it’s something precious, “I promise.”