Epic III
Original artist: Anaïs Mitchell
Performed by Kyle Yu, Tobi Omooba, Nat Wilkinson, Ayokunmi Oladesu
From "Hadestown"
[ORPHEUS]
Heavy and hard is the heart of the king
King of iron, king of steel
The heart of the king loves everything
Like the hammer loves the nail
But the heart of a man is a simple one
Small and soft, flesh and blood
And all that it loves is a woman
A woman is all that it loves
And Hades is King of the scythe and the sword
He covers the world in the color of rust
He scrapes the sky and scars the earth
And he comes down heavy and hard on us
But even that hardest of hearts unhardened
Suddenly, when he saw her there
Persephone in her mother’s garden
Sun on her shoulders, wind in her hair
The smell of the flowers she held in her hand
And the pollen that fell from her fingertips
And suddenly Hades was only a man
With a taste of nectar upon his lips, singing:
La la la la la la la…
[COMPANY]
La la la la la la la…
[ORPHEUS]
And what has become of the heart of that man
Now that the man is King?
What has become of the heart of that man
Now that he has everything?
The more he has, the more he holds
The greater the weight of the world on his shoulders
See how he labors beneath that load
Afraid to look up, and afraid to let go
And he keeps his head low, and he keeps his back bending
He grows so afraid that he'll lose what he owns
But what he doesn't know is that what he's defending
Is already gone
Where is the treasure inside your chest?
Where is your pleasure? Where is your youth?
Where is the man with his hat in his hands?
Who stands in the garden with nothing to lose, singing:
La la la la la la la…
[HADES]
La la la la la la la…
[ORPHEUS]
La la la la la la la…
[BOTH]
La la la la la la la…
Heavy and hard is the heart of the king
King of iron, king of steel
The heart of the king loves everything
Like the hammer loves the nail
But the heart of a man is a simple one
Small and soft, flesh and blood
And all that it loves is a woman
A woman is all that it loves
And Hades is King of the scythe and the sword
He covers the world in the color of rust
He scrapes the sky and scars the earth
And he comes down heavy and hard on us
But even that hardest of hearts unhardened
Suddenly, when he saw her there
Persephone in her mother’s garden
Sun on her shoulders, wind in her hair
The smell of the flowers she held in her hand
And the pollen that fell from her fingertips
And suddenly Hades was only a man
With a taste of nectar upon his lips, singing:
La la la la la la la…
[COMPANY]
La la la la la la la…
[ORPHEUS]
And what has become of the heart of that man
Now that the man is King?
What has become of the heart of that man
Now that he has everything?
The more he has, the more he holds
The greater the weight of the world on his shoulders
See how he labors beneath that load
Afraid to look up, and afraid to let go
And he keeps his head low, and he keeps his back bending
He grows so afraid that he'll lose what he owns
But what he doesn't know is that what he's defending
Is already gone
Where is the treasure inside your chest?
Where is your pleasure? Where is your youth?
Where is the man with his hat in his hands?
Who stands in the garden with nothing to lose, singing:
La la la la la la la…
[HADES]
La la la la la la la…
[ORPHEUS]
La la la la la la la…
[BOTH]
La la la la la la la…
About the artist
Ayokunmi Oladesu
Ayokunmi is stoked to return to VCP for her fourth (and final) year. She currently studies film prodcution and is the Production Manager for the season! Art has been her lifelong passion in all of it's avenues and she's excited to push herself into new challenges. She's excited to be part of the company's production of The Wolves, she'll be taking on (for the first time) lighting design for the Dance Collective and will be showing her visually artistic side in the BIPOC Artist Hub!
Kyle Yu
Kyle Yu is a third-year Film Production student. He has a strong passion for filmmaking and performing. He has been activally involved in the past two years of VCP as a member in Show Choir, Dance Collective, Ricky in For Show and Twig from bring it on. As the work piles on for his third and forth year he couldn't commit to a long running musical nor a show this year. He decided to join the BIPOC Artist hub as it was the only way to be involved in VCP this year.
Nat Wilkinson
Nat is in her third year of Gender & Women's Studies and Concurrent Education. She loves drawing, singing, dancing and writing. She is also a part of VCP's Dance Collective.
Tobi Omooba
Tobi is a third-year criminology student in his second year at VCP. Last year he graced the stage as Cameron in Bring It On: The Musical. Though he will not be returning to the VCP stage, he has curated an experience for those attending BIPOC Hub, Read the walls and find out more about the world he has created.