The Greek mythological tragedy Orpheus and Eurydice is an epic tale of how the musician Orpheus descends into the Underworld to rescue his wife, Eurydice, after she dies from a snake bite on their wedding day. His music moves Hades, allowing her to return, on the condition that Orpheus walks ahead and does not look back. On the last step, Orpheus turns back, causing Eurydice to disappear forever.

In a companion piece, the story is then told from Eurydice’s point of view. With Grainger still providing the musical contributions, Megan Shandley plays the role of Eurydice, who decides to change her name to Leni when she was five years old.

Falling in love with Orpheus and marrying as a teen, the pair have a full life ahead of them, full of hopes, loves and dreams. Their world is full of choices. But things sour and as in the myth, Leni dies and Orpheus descends into Hades to find her. While most Greek tragedies look at life from the male perspective, this retelling of the story imagines it from a female point of view.

So, while the two plays follow a similar path, the messages and impressions are quite different. Eurydice has a choice. She is not simply a prize for our hero Orpheus. It’s a fascinating twist on the narrative that has a sort of yin-yang overlay on the classical story.

Overall the two versions are a rock-opera style reimagining of a timeless love story.