This quote reminds me a lot of they very first article we read from "20 Seasons Broadway". It mentions how people are more likely to see and engage with a show that is inspired by other things or that talks about topics that are familiar with other people. For example, not only is Les Miserables a very well known play, but the topics of politics, climate change, capitalism, greek mythology, are all topics that are familiar to people and so I think that's why Hadestown blew up in the era that it did, because that's when a lot of these topics were booming!

I feel like what the critic is trying to say here is that even though Hadestown has a rather rough subject matter, that it's still ultimately a hopeful and inspirational form of art. It has the potential to be a call to work towards a better world, and not just a dream (even though it is very difficult). You can really see how collective action was not only impactful in the musical, but how it could be impactful in the everyday world.

Mitchell's adaptation of this tragic myth sort of reflects on the "grey area" between a metaphorical hell and everyday life. She implies in a sense that modern day capitalism in itself, it very hellish. I feel like this is also shown heavily in the costumes that they have in the musical. For example, Eurydice's costume is more beat up and not the "nicest," while Hades' outfit is more sophisticated and serious, it shows the difference between worker and boss and how that can be represented in today's society.