Hell Gate, inspired by Canto III of Inferno by Dante Alighieri, was created as a part of Inferno presented by Maelstrom Collaborative Arts and performed in October 2019.

In the original poem, as Dante approaches the gate of Hell he encounters souls who were rejected by both Heaven and Hell for having always hedged their bets and never committing to either good or evil. They have not been given a place in death because they never took a stand in life.

At Hell Gate, viewers enter into an 8′ x 8′ space where the shadows of rejected souls float on either side and the sounds of the gate buzz overhead. The door closes behind them and they are presented with the gate keepers. Here, viewers must make the conscious decision to walk through the keepers and enter the performance.

Inferno was a performance wherein the nine circles of hell were evoked through the work of dozens of artists using a variety of disciplines and media to explore modern day interpretations of sin and redemption. Each level of hell was created by a different artistic discipline, examining, interpreting, and remixing Dante’s poem through theater, dance, visual arts, music, performance art, installation design, and puppetry.

Gate performed by: Janine Jones, Nino Meyo, Rachel Mulholland, Varsha Vydyula, Tay Williams, and Elaine Hullihen

Sound by: Devin Hinzo

Directed by: Jeremy Paul

Photo Credit: Kaitlin Walsh