The 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album went to the Broadway cast recording for Hadestown. The award was presented at the Grammys Premiere Ceremony January 26 prior to CBS’ primetime broadcast of the 61st annual event.
Sharing the win for Hadestown were the album’s principal vocalists—original cast members Reeve Carney, André De Shields, Amber Gray, Eva Noblezada, and Patrick Page—as well as composer Anaïs Mitchell and producers Mara Isaacs, David Lai, and Todd Sickafoose. Mitchell took the stage to accept the trophy.
The Hadestown cast recording is available on Amazon, iTunes, and Apple Music.
Also nominated in the category were Ain’t Too Proud—The Life and Times of the Temptations, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, and Oklahoma!.
Hadestown began as a theatrical concert in 2006, with Mitchell releasing a concept album four years later. The fully staged show made its world premiere at New York Theatre Workshop in 2016 and opened at Broadway’s Walter Kerr Theatre in April 2019, releasing its cast recording in a digital roll-out from June to July ahead of a September physical release.
READ: How Did Hadestown’s Anaïs Mitchell Write Orpheus’ Famous Broadway Melody?
The show won eight Tony Awards last June, including Best Musical, Best Original Score for Mitchell, and Best Director for Rachel Chavkin. DeShields won for his performance as Hermes, while Gray, Noblezada, and Page earned nominations for their portrayals of the mythological characters. As previously announced, a national tour will launch in fall 2020. The musical continues its run on Broadway, breaking house records twice in December.
Additional winners included Waitress composer Sara Bareilles, grabbing her first Grammy for "Saint Honesty." The singer-songwriter reprises her performance as Jenna in the West End production of her musical beginning January 27. Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato took home Best Classical Solo Vocal Album for her genre-bending Songplay.