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Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Awesome Adaptations (44) Cupid and Psyche

Posted by Charlene // Tags: ,
This meme celebrates an awesome adaptation related to a weekly category. Any format of adaptation (television series, film, web series, etc.) is acceptable as long as it is based in some form on a book. This meme is hosted by Alisa Selene at PictureMeReading. Check out her site and join in on the fun!

An Awesomely Mythological Adaptation
Title: Cupid and Psyche by Hartley and Kim
Adapted from: the Cupid and Psyche myth

I have traveled to you from Olympus
With all of my greatest speed
To bless you with beauty, grace and love
Which you clearly dearly need.

This is an off-Broadway musical that ran in 2008/2009 and featured a small cast with a focus on the characters of Cupid and Psyche with Venus as the villain.  And it also features such cute songs!  Although the show is set on Mount Olympus, they work in modern references and language to create an anachronistic setting but this also makes for some great funny lines.  It also gives this story a contemporary, accessible feel, especially given the relationship between Cupid and his overbearing mother Venus.  And Psyche's character is fleshed out to become someone who wants to see more of the world than what her small town will give her (almost Disney's Beauty and Beast there!)  The myth is given more heart and character development in this musical, even if the romance is still a little too "insta".

The best part of this musical is how much humor is added!  Mercury, Cupid's best friend, is especially fun because he doesn't understand what Cupid is doing but helps him anyways, while also doing his best to keep the rules of Olympus.  The humor is unexpected in a story that has a bit of darkness to it - especially with Cupid keeping Psyche in the dark about his nature, and Psyche's betrayal (which really, is it that bad? I mean Cupid won't let her see him and she should have been happy with that?!)  The humor keeps the dark at bay and the show very entertaining while the music highlights the sweet romance between the two leads.

This musical has humor, catchy tunes, and a great reimagining of the classic Greek myth. It's a really awesome adaptation!

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6 comments:

  1. Though not the kind of "adaptation" you're talking about here, C.S. Lewis's Till We Have Faces is a great reinterpretation of the myth.

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    1. I'll have to check out that book, I'm very interested in reinterpretations of this myth!

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  2. Interesting; I just finished Till We Have Faces, the book mentioned by the previous commenter, which is a retelling of Cupid and Psyche, but it definitely sounds different than the show!

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    1. I'll have to check out Till We Have Faces - it sounds interesting!

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  3. I definitely want to check this out now!:)

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    1. It's such a cute show, I hope I can see it live someday!

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