The Tony Award-winning musical Hadestown has announced original Broadway cast member Jewelle Blackman as the new Persephone following current star Lana Gordon's departure. Toronto native Blackman will began performances April 5 at the Walter Kerr Theatre, with Gordon playing her final performance as Queen of the Underworld April 3. 

Blackman has been part of the Hadestown family since 2017 and currently stars in the musical as one of the Fates, a role she created in the original cast. She was previously an understudy for Persephone. Blackman has been in the Canadian companies of The Lion King, We Will Rock You and Caroline, or Change and spent three seasons at the Stratford Festival. 

Soara-Joye Ross (Carmen Jones) will also join the cast April 5, succeeding Blackman as a Fate and performing alongside Jessie Shelton and Kay Trinidad.

Hadestown features a book and lyrics by singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell, and currently stars Grammy winner Reeve Carney, Tony winner André De Shields, and Tony nominees Eva Noblezada and Patrick Page.

Emily Afton, Malcolm Armwood, Timothy Hughes, Trent Saunders, Grace Yoo round out the cast as the chorus of workers. Swings include Sojourner Brown, Tara Jackson, Tomás Matos, Sayo Oni, Yael Reich, and T. Oliver Reid.

From Raven Brunner for www.playbill.com.

Photo: Jewelle Blackman in Hadestown. © 2022 Michael Murphy.