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Where the River Styx ferries souls to the Land of the Dead, one woman will have to decide whether to remain with her deceased father or return to her musician of a husband.

WSU Performing Arts presents “Eurydice,” a modern spinoff of the old Greek myth, following the story of Eurydice’s journey in the Underworld after her tragic, untimely death.

The original myth tells of the musician Orpheus who journeys to the Underworld to take back his wife. After softening the hearts of Hades and Persephone, the rulers of the Underworld, Orpheus attempts to lead his wife to the land of the living, only to ultimately fail.

On the reverse side of Orpheus’ journey to save his wife is the tale of Eurydice finding her father and her place in the world.

“(‘Eurydice’) is very mythical. There’s a lot of love and emotion and compassion that you see through the characters,” said sophomore creative writing and human development major Aryn Allen, who plays Eurydice.

This is Allen’s first performance, having little prior theater experience. Though unfamiliar with the story of Orpheus before starting the play, Allen said she analyzed the script to understand that the story is about Eurydice, and the relationships she has with Orpheus and her deceased father.

Karl Moore, a sophomore with an undecided major, plays Orpheus. Moore said the audience will have a bit more perspective from seeing a familiar story from the eyes of Eurydice.

“People who already know the story of Orpheus will think I might be on the stage more than Eurydice,” Moore said. “It’s more like I’m one of the supporting characters.”

Allen described Eurydice as strong and independent, while Moore said Orpheus is self-centered and flowy. He never had a trying moment until his wife died. Though the audience doesn’t see a lot of Orpheus, what they do see they will want to feel for, Moore said.

The majority of the plot takes place in the Underworld, described by director and WSU professor of acting Mary Trotter as a dark, damp, gray place. A theme of water comes into play, touching on the original Greek mythology including the River Styx.

“The theme of water and memory and how those are connected, we see throughout the play,” Trotter said.

Within the Underworld are seemingly random sounds like a tea kettle constantly whistling, and the soft, colored lighting adds to the general creepiness of a land full of dead people.

“There are rules that aren’t rules and things that aren’t what they are,” Moore said. “You never really get this sense of ‘Oh, I can be comfortable here.’”

Greek mythology and theater have a huge impact on the show. Various aspects of that type of storytelling, such as a Greek chorus who guides the characters, acted as a starting point for the playwright Sarah Ruhl to tell her own story, Trotter said.

A large part of this story revolves around relationships, specifically between Eurydice and her father. Living with him in the Underworld, Eurydice has to relearn everything her father taught her and regain that connection they lost, Allen said.

“If you miss something, you don’t get it,” she said. “But if you feel for Eurydice and you have an emotion of father-daughter love, you are going to understand it.”

Moore said Eurydice’s relationships and the choices she makes boil down to her deciding which is stronger: blood or love. That is, would Eurydice want to stay with her husband or her father?

The importance of focusing on these relationships helps the audience see Eurydice’s journey, Trotter said. The choice to return to Orpheus or stay with her father rests in where she would be comfortable and who she thinks she is.

“I think that’s a journey that a lot of people can relate to,” Trotter said. “Where do we want to be in life, where do we want to call home?”

“Eurydice” performs at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 1, 3, 8, and 9 and at 2 p.m. on Dec 3 and 10 at Wadleigh Theatre in Daggy Hall. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors, $5 for non-WSU students and youth and free for WSU students with ID.