Review: Flowertown’s “Eurydice” captures love, loss

If there’s a lesson to learn from Sarah Ruhl’s “Eurydice,” it’s that one should never marry an artist. The Flowertown Players’ production, reprised for Piccolo Spoleto from a September 2024 production, turns young love into a cautionary tale. But focusing solely on the title character and her husband, Orpheus, misses the point of this production.

An adaptation of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, Ruhl’s play puts Orpheus on the back burner. Instead, after Eurydice’s untimely death on her wedding day, her underworld relationship with her father takes center stage. While introducing the play, director Julia Sorenson referenced questions Ruhl wanted audiences to consider: Who have you lost, and what would you say to them if you suddenly found you could have more conversations?

A father-daughter bond takes the spotlight

Father (David Moon) and Eurydice (Katie Fleming) ultimately serve as proxies for Ruhl and her father, becoming the focal point of the piece. Moon and Fleming’s relationship onstage felt authentic, fueled by an undercurrent of grief over lost time. Bolstered by a powerful script, the pair shined in the last 20 minutes of the play, leaving members of the audience in tears when the lights came up. It’s no wonder Fleming was voted Best Local Actress Who Performed in 2024 in Best of Charleston 2025.

Although the relationship between Eurydice and Father was moving, her connection with Orpheus (Jake O’Donnal) didn’t carry the same emotional impact. It was difficult to parse whether the disconnect was intentional on the part of the playwright and director, or simply a lack of chemistry between the actors.

From a technical standpoint, certain elements felt disconnected. The lighting didn’t reach the actors’ faces on one elevated platform. When Father spoke of strange, high-pitched noises in the underworld, the constant rattle of the HVAC system felt relevant. But as Threshold Repertory Theatre is hosting a variety of shows during Piccolo Spoleto, these issues likely stem from the rapid turnover in the space.

Thoughtful touches, with a few distractions

What can’t be attributed to the space, however, are confusing directorial and design elements. The production’s use of instrumental pop songs underneath scenes, while charming at times, occasionally felt out of sync with the onstage action. In particular, Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love” and Simon and Garfunkel’s “Sound of Silence” distracted from the power of Ruhl’s text.

That said, “Eurydice” is a powerful piece of theater. Memory is fallible. As people age, they can forget who they are. When someone dies, the sound of their laugh fades from memory. Ruhl captures that feeling — the grief of remembering and forgetting — and brings it to the stage with specificity and care. Just don’t forget the tissues.

“Eurydice” will be performed at Threshold Repertory Theatre at 7:30 p.m. May 31 and 3 p.m. June 1.

Ally Watkinson is an arts, style and culture journalism graduate student at Syracuse University.