#orpehus

A few more steps

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Orpehus and Eurydice. I wonder how long he’s going to drag her corpse forward.

And even when the pain in your feet takes root

When her breath behind you becomes one with your own

Dear Oprheus, she won't fault you

Because as you turn around to catch her gaze

And PT.2 here

Gigi Blasi

Lazio Rome

JP "Italy's strongest guardian deity who boasts of his steady saves."/EN "He's the best goalie in Italy, so you can count on his saves."

Headcanons:

He's just a chill guy, a big brother kind of teammate. He always looks out for the others, ensuring they all get along well (truly an impossible mission). He has zero tolerance for bullies and, in general, for disrespect. He keeps a cool head in most cases, but you surely don't wish to see him mad.

His father is a middle school history teacher, while his mother used to work part-time in a local museum before deciding to become a full-time housewife. Since he can remember, Gigi has always been fascinated by the Roman Empire, and for his very first summer job, his mother put in a good word for him to work at the very same museum she used to.

Although young, he's already a very popular figure in Italy and is often taken as a role model.

His favourite teammates to spend time with are Angelo and Fidio, but truth be told, he finds enjoyable aspects in every single Orpheus player.

He sings opera in the shower.

The only thing that breaks his state of perpetual chillness is carbonara made "alla cazzo de cane".

Die-hard fan of Gianluigi Buffon.

Vento Gagliano

Sicily Palermo

"He takes exquisite care of his personal style, even wearing tailored boxers."

Headcanons:

His father has a renowned tailor shop in Palermo where Vento sometimes helps out. His mother is an accountant, but Vento hardly ever speaks to her.

Upsetting subject ahead (Tw: mentions of homophobia).

Unfortunately, his mother filed for divorce when he was just approaching his early teens (around 10 years old). The reason being Vento's father's sexual orientation. After many years of marriage and a kid together, Vento's father felt he couldn't keep lying anymore, not to the people he loved the most. So, one evening, he simply came out to them, naively hoping things would remain the same. Needless to say, Vento's mother didn't take it well.

She left immediately the day after and returned to live with her parents, leaving Vento behind. She never explained to her curious friends and family members why her marriage had fallen apart, not out of courtesy for her ex-husband, but rather to avoid bringing dishonor to her family's name. Heartbroken, Vento's father agreed to sign the divorce papers anyway, on the condition that she'd let Vento be in his life nonetheless. Yet after a while of living with his mother and witnessing his father being the object of constant ridicule, Vento begged the court that had ruled the custody in favor of his mother to let him stay with his father instead. Afterwards, he cut off his maternal side of the family alongside his mother.

He's very touchy, quick to anger, and gets easily upset over the smallest things (which also includes being told he's too touchy). Unconveniently, he is also very prideful and stubborn, so good luck getting forgiven if he feels like you somehow wronged him.

His closest friend on the team is Cannavaro, with whom he has a love-hate relationship. They are constantly at each other's throats, yet share a level of trust that matches no one else on the team. Giuseppe knows about Vento's family situation and the issues he has with managing anger, and tries to be there for him when Vento needs it.

They're not exactly best buddies, but Vento also has a soft spot for Alessandro because he always treats him with the utmost respect, even though the reason behind said respect often borders on simply being intimidated by the Sicilian.

Eats lemons whole. Yes, even the seeds.

Sprays an objectively abhorrent quantity of perfume on himself.

Has a nice singing voice, yet shies away from ever using it.

Ottorino Nobili

Tuscany Pisa

"He's from Pisa, and he wants to do his hometown proud."

Headcanons:

His parents own a trattoria in Pisa's countryside, where Otto grew up.

At first, proud Pisan as he is, he wasn't thrilled to be on the same team as Dante and Giorgio, two Florentines. The infamous atavic rivalry between Pisa and Florence goes back ages, and as hilarious as it is in the eyes of Italians from other regions, it actually made the relationship between these three players strained. Or, better said, mainly the relationship between Otto and Dante, as Giorgio, always rather peaceful, tries his best not to get involved.

Despite this, he is more than glad to be on the national team and have a chance at representing both Italy and his beloved Pisa.

Aside from Dante and Giorgio, he tries to get along with everyone.

He longs to live in the city instead of in the countryside.

The family cat is named after him, Otto.

He makes a mean Cecina.

Anton Gattuso

Calabria Reggio Di Calabria

JP "He says his dream is to be a police officer and fight against evil organizations."/EN "This plucky chap hopes to join the police and take on the criminal underworld."

Headcanons:

He comes from a family of police officers who have been fighting criminal organizations like the Mafia alongside the Italian Ministry of Domestic Affairs for generations. Determined to follow this honorable tradition, Antonio trains hard every day, physically and mentally, to achieve his biggest dream: becoming a Judicial Police officer. He hopes to participate in the required public competition and get accepted. His parents couldn't be prouder.

Upsetting subject ahead (Tw: mentions of honor killings, feminicide, and the mafia).

His great-great-grandparents were the first to devote their entire lives to fighting back after their firstborn daughter became one of the many victims of the 'Ndrangheta, Calabria's mafia. While working, she met a seemingly nice boy from a good family, and everyone was initially very happy for her. After all, a happily married child meant one less mouth to feed and more joy in the home. However, over time, her family began to notice how washed out and distant their once cheerful little girl had become. She had cut ties with all her friends, insisting that she didn’t have time for those “nasty-minded, dumb girls” now that she was married.

And then they started noticing the bruises. How defiantly tall he stood when she hunched her shoulders, looking so small. She had always been so full of life, and he had never borne to see it.

Before they could realize the full extent of what was going on behind closed doors, their little girl dared to square her shoulders one last time. One terrible morning, their daughter was gone.

Suicide, they had said. Yet her parents had no doubt.

It had been an honour killing, poorly staged as a fake suicide by the murderers. Unfortunately, a crime that was never properly investigated and filed suspiciously quickly. Not even the friendship that bound the local police chief to the poor victim's parents had helped counter the ever-present omertà. In fact, not even a day after the discovery, the man had been immediately taken off the case and demoted to managing traffic in a neighboring town, for no apparent reason. The victim's ex-husband, the prime suspect, had been acquitted despite there being more than sufficient evidence to prove that he wanted to see the young woman dead.

Desperate for justice, Anton's great-great-grandparents vowed to do whatever it took to ensure no other family suffered as theirs did.

He tends to keep to himself, so his relationships with his teammates are very professional; they're more like colleagues to him than friends.

Obsessed with going to the gym and eating enough protein.

Dyes his lock of blonde hair at home, and every time, a towel needs to be sacrificed.

Not to be stereotypical, but his spicy tolerance is off the charts.

Marco Maserati

Emilia-Romagna Bologna

"If it's a pasta-based dish you're after, ask this guy! He's very proud of his regional cuisine."

Headcanons:

Although he lives in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, his mother is actually from Gragnano, in the province of Naples. She's the one who instilled in him a love for cooking, both Neapolitan and Emilian cuisine. Together with her mother-in-law, she owns a pasta shop where Marco spends a lot of his free time helping out his mamma and nonna.

He's sunny, carefree, and always in a good mood that's impossible to spoil. He tends to act oblivious on purpose to avoid confronting his issues, and has a habit of masking his negative emotions behind a facade of easy laughter and big smiles. He can be extremely stubborn once he has made his mind up.

He gets on the nerves of everybody at least once per day, but they all love him to some degree.

Best cook among them.

The rest of the team jokes that he's the perfect Italian representation, being exactly 1/2 from the South and 1/2 from the North.

His favourite colour has always been green, but since meeting Gianluca, he's starting to appreciate blue a lot more.

Angelo Gabrini

Piedmont Turin

JP "A cameo artisan who's already received many awards."/EN "He's already won many awards for artisanship, as a crafter of cameo brooches."

Headcanons:

He is an art enthusiast who wishes to leave his hometown in Piedmont to better pursue his passion in Torre del Greco, near Naples, an Italian city internationally famous for its artisanal cameo making.

He can't keep secrets. Like, at all. Nobody is sure whether he is a snitch by accident or if he actually knows what he is doing (non è figlio di Maria il ragazzo).

As his looks would suggest, Angelo has a bubbly personality; he's kind, optimistic, and cheerful, albeit a bit childish at times. He becomes friends with everyone at first sight, including his teammates, even though his favourite person remains Fideo.

At Christmas school's recitals, he was always cast as the angel and never had a say.

He's the best at finding lost objects.

Can be very mean when he wants to be.

Nakata Hidetoshi

He's technically a real person, so I don't feel as comfortable. Maybe if I develop headcanons about him, I will make a separate post about him and Luca.

Giorgio Giannini

Tuscany Florence

 "He's from a well-established family, but he's not one to rest on his laurels."

Headcanons:

His family is one of the last remaining noble families in Florence, and although aristocratic titles no longer have any legal value in Italy, they still possess large artistic and real estate assets. His grandmother from his mother's side comes from a noble Sardinian family as well and she married into the Giannini family.

His mother teaches at the University of Florence, while his father oversees a renowned art gallery.

He's very eloquent and poised, often speaking quite formally by default. He hates violence with a passion and has a habit of putting himself in danger while trying to defuse situations with reasoning rather than with fists. He has a strong sense of justice.

He and Raffaele are best friends, and Giorgio is so head-over-heels in love with their friendship that he sometimes worries about crossing the line between platonic and romantic. (He does. A lot.)

Probably the only person in the FFI (besides Philip and Teres) to find Edgar genuinely charming.

Has a collection of old vinyls from all over the world.

I hope y'all know I love them even though I don't draw them often.

eyy second song in the transcript / analysis thing of Hadestown's lyrical differences from this one bootleg I found.

Having done a little research I've found out this is from the 2018 London run, from November 2, 2018, ending a few months before it re-opened back in the US of A on broadway!

(i'll only be including lines that have been changed, for length)

These are the opening verses of AWtWB and they're honestly pretty good. I like how the final line of Hermes' bit really strengthens the whole The Fates = The Wind thing going on because (for me at least) it wasn't super clear on my first couple listens of the broadway recording. I also like Eurydice's line referring to Summer as 'she', I think referring to Persephone as a literal representation of the seasons is very cool.

"you can’t see, but you can hear" is such an interesting line because I never really considered if the fates were visible to the characters. How much more devastating would that be for Eurydice, to have all her hard work snatched from her hands literally by the wind- she has no idea why or how she is starving but all she knows is that she must survive. Do you think she even knows the fates exist? UGH i love it

While I love the apocalyptic vibes this gives off I can kinda see why they weren't kept for broadway. Hurricanes and fires are caused by climate change but it's a touch too removed from the actual concept of climate change to help spark the analogy.

I really like the symmetry of "You’ve been looking since the day you were born / You’ll be looking ‘til the day you go" but that first line especially is pretty clunky. I'm no lyricist but maybe something like "you’ve been looking since you were born / you’ll be looking till you die”

I LOVE these final two lines. OBSESSED. I don’t know why they didn’t make it onto broadway. 

Those two lines relate to how Hadestown talks about art and what art means to people. Orpheus’ song (which here symbolises art) literally changes the world. It gives Eurydice hope for the future and rekindles the passion in Hades’ & Persephone’s marriage. It’s literally vital to the function of the world. But it’s unsustainable. If your head is in the cloud dreaming you need to have your feet on the ground. That's the half Eurydice represents.

Eurydice died because Orpheus was more focused on his song than getting food on the table. In this first half, Eurydice symbolises practicality and Orpheus symbolises passion for life + art. (I say the first half bc it def changes in the second half but ill save that for another post.)

The concept is still there but it's so much clearer with these two lines.

Good riddance To all the thieves To all the fools that stifled me They’ve come and gone And passed me by Good riddance To all