8th Wonder Theatre — a professional musical theater company founded by a three theater artists (Phil Walker, R. MacKenzie Lewis, and Brian Carbine) at Eastern Michigan University — will present the premiere production of “Blackwater Ballad” at The Village Theater in Canton on July 23-25.

The new musical, by award-winning local playwright Joseph Zettelmaier and local musician Brian Lillie, retells the mythical story of Orpheus and Eurydice, and is set in the bayous of New Orleans in the 1930s.

In the show, traveling musician Orlandus Duval arrives in the small town of Blackwater Creek and captures the heart of Euralie, the daughter of the town’s sheriff (aptly nicknamed “the Hangman”). Their plans to wed in secret are dashed by betrayal and murder, forcing Orlandus to make the hardest of choices. His only hope lies with the hoodoo people who live deep in the swamps.

"Blackwater"'s cast includes Ann Arbor’s Maggie Meyer as Euralie, Chelsea Sadler as Laura; Ypsilanti’s Katie Driscoll in the female chorus and Peter Morgan in the male chorus; Zettelmaier hails from Milan, and Lillie is based in Ann Arbor.

In a prepared statement, author/director Zettelmaier described "Ballad" as “a Southern Gothic full of murder and hoodoo. 'Blackwater Ballad' was written out of my desire to try my hand at a musical. I like to try writing things outside my comfort zone, so that seemed like a logical step. Also, I love bluegrass music. This is the first full production of 'Blackwater Ballad.' It was performed as a staged reading at both EMU and the Performance Network.”

Audiences will recognize a variety of music styles. In a press release, Lillie stated: “The music has a mostly rootsy/bluegrass/folk/blues vibe, but I would avoid calling it a ‘bluegrass’ musical, as that term is a very specific type of music and we only really quote it here and there. It's probably best categorized as an acoustic roots/country blues musical.”

Performance times for "Ballad" are Friday, July 23rd at 8 p.m.; Saturday, July 24th at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sunday, July 25 at 2:00 p.m. All performances happen at The Village Theater at Cherry Hill, located at 50400 Cherry Hill Rd. at the corner of Cherry Hill & Ridge Rds. in Canton Township. For advance tickets, call 734-394-5460 or visit www.canton-mi.org/villagetheater. Tickets cost $17 ($13 for seniors & youth).

8th Wonder’s profits feed directly into Scholarships and Service Awards for both incoming and continuing students at EMU who are studying Music, Theatre, or Dance. For more Information, visit www.8thwondertheatre.com.

Jenn McKee is the entertainment digital journalist for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at jennmckee@annarbor.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.