This show wasn’t even on my Fringe calendar, but it provided the perfect ending to my Adelaide Fringe 2026 experience. The sister show to Wright and Granger’s Orpheus, Eurydice is a performance from the female protagonist's point of view. A show from a woman’s perspective is best served with a woman in the lead, and stepping into the role was Megan Shandley. Phil Grainger and the harmonious four-piece orchestra perform double duty, following on from Orpheus, and provide the music for this beautiful show. Set in The Mortlock Library, which is now part of The Courtyard of Curiosities, you could not wish for a better venue in which to see, hear, and, more importantly, feel the story of Eurydice.

Eurydice is a strong-willed, level-headed girl. Changing her name to Leni (she wants nothing to do with this Greek tragedy), at a young age, she meets a boy who sweeps her off her feet, Ari, and they marry at only 16 years of age. Their young age means nothing to this lovestruck couple, as they sing, dance and love each other's company more than anyone else in the world possibly could. That is, until Ari meets someone else. Heartbroken and alone, Leni wonders what the point of life is if you can’t find someone to share it with. The man she loved has gone, and she has been left alone. Walking past a karaoke bar, it seems as if Cupid's arrow has struck Leni again, as she meets a man named Orpheus. And with love striking her a second time, she thinks that nothing in the world could stop her from experiencing this amount of joy and togetherness again, could it?

You don’t have to see the show Orpheus before experiencing Eurydice. It’s told from a different perspective, and although the stories do intertwine in parts, there are no major plot points that will confuse new viewers. Having said that, watching Eurydice just two days after seeing Orpheus certainly adds to the experience of the show, as we bear witness to what and why Eurydice did what she did when Orpheus came to her rescue.

Megan Shandley is perfectly cast as storyteller and Eurydice. She has a beautiful, poetic way with words, and her singing voice reverberated up and down the walls of the two-storey Mortlock Library. Grainger is, as he was in Orpheus, a musical genius. With help from the four-piece orchestra, he’s added more music to the Eurydice story but created it in a way that gives you a different perspective on things. And, as I keep comparing the Orpheus and Eurydice shows, the lighting and sound design are the best I’ve seen at this Adelaide Fringe. Raging reds, light-filled golds and giant, inky black shadows paint the walls of the library throughout the story and add to the emotions the performers are evoking. If you don’t think lightning can strike twice in the same place, obviously, you haven’t seen Orpheus, or more importantly, Eurydice. 

***** Five Stars