Cultural References in Sarah Ruhl's Eurydice:

"Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree”:

(Sung by Orpheus and Eurydice in Scene 4 of Eurydice)

Written by Lew Brown and Charles Tobias in 1939. They added the lyric “Til I come marching home…” in December of 1941.

The original lyrics fit the theme of Eurydice perfectly. These lyrics are from the song “Long, Long Ago,” which “Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree” originated from and was an early English ballad.

Long, Long Ago

By: Thomas Haynes Bayly

"Tell me the tales that to me were so dear, Long, long ago, long, long ago: Sing me the songs I delighted to hear, Long, long ago long ago: Now you are gone, my grief is remov'd, Let me forget that so long you have rov'd, Let me believe that you love as you lov'd, Long, long ago, long ago:

Do you remember the path where we met, Long, long ago, long long ago. Ah yes, you told me you ne'er would forget, Long, long ago, long ago. Then to all others, my smile you prefer'd, Love when you spoke gave a charm to each word, Still, my heart treasures the praises I heard, Long, long ago, long ago.

Thought by your kindness my fond hopes were rais'd, Long, long ago, long, long ago, You, by more eloquent lips have been prais'd, Long, long ago, long ago, But by long absence, your truth has been tried, Still to your accents, I listen with pride, Blest as I was when I sat by your side, Long, long ago, long ago."

King Lear quote:

(Said by Father in scene 11 of Eurydice)

“We two alone will sing like birds in the cage. When thou dost ask my blessing; I’ll kneel down and ask of thee forgiveness; so we’ll live, and pray and sing…” (King Lear: Act V, Scene 3)

This particular quote comes at a poignant moment in King Lear, when Cordelia, his youngest daughter whom he had cast out, and Lear are reunited right before they are imprisoned. King Lear is imagining a world they can no longer live in, and Cordelia lets him tell her about the world he has created in his mind.

"I Got Rythm”:

(Sung by Father in Eurydice in Scene 13)

Written by: George Gershwin

It was written at first as a slow ballad for an unfinished musical. It was then reworked for the musical Girl Crazy in 1930, where the tempo was picked up and accented the second beat, which helped give it the jazz feel it's known for. Ethel Merman sang the song in Girl Crazy, which propelled her to stardom.

“The song itself, on the most basic level, became the perfect vehicle for jazz improvisers. Swing and bebop musicians thrived on its formula: a memorable 32-bar AABA structure and irresistible chord progression. This structure served as a model for many other successful jazz tunes, some say hundreds, like Duke Ellington's "Cotton Tail," Sonny Rollins' "Oleo," and Nat King Cole's "Straighten Up and Fly Right." Remarkably, the "I Got Rhythm" form rivals only the blues structure as the most adapted, mimicked, or ripped-off, depending on how you look at it.”

-Simon Rentnor. NPR: Evolution of a Song. https://www.npr.org/sections/ablogsupreme/2011/02/19/133590208/evolution-of-a-song-i-got-rhythm

“If If’s and and’s were pots and pans, there’d be no need for tinkers…”:

(Spoken by Eurydice to Orpheus in the second scene of the third movement in Eurydice)

A saying in response when someone is exhibiting wishful thinking.

A collection called “Melodist and Mirthful Olio: An Elegant Collection of the Most Popular Songs, Recitations, Glees, Duets, Etc.” It was written by John Pritt Harley and published in 1828. Harley was a well-known theater manager and one of the principal actors of the St. James Theatre in London. There was a song in his Olio called “A Song of Ifs and Ands,” and it began with: “ If ifs and ands were pots and pans, ‘Twould cure the tinker’s cares; If ladies did not carry fans, They’d give themselves no airs.”