The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical

    

Oh Gods!

    Calling all fans (and soon-to-be fans) of Percy Jackson! Did you know there is a Percy Jackson musical? This story is a stage adaptation of the book The Lightning Thief by author Rick Riordan. If you're a fan of the book, you will definitely appreciate the musical. There's a film version of The Lightning Thief as well. If you've read the Lightning Thief before, I'd love to hear your thoughts on how the musical compares to the book! If you haven't read it or even heard of it before, get ready for an epic tale of the Greek Gods, quests, and 12-year-olds saving the world. 

Daniel, Jeremy

Daniel, Jeremy
 

History

    The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical was first created as an hour-long production in 2014, performing Off-Broadway and touring nationally in the United States. The soundtrack and script were updated in 2017, and the show appeared Off-Broadway once again for a period of two months that same year, with a whole new cast (with the exception of Kristin Stokes). The Off-Broadway 2017 cast released a professionally recorded album. The cast had a national tour in 2019, and officially opened on Broadway on October 16, 2019 (with a few cast changes). The show ran until January 5, 2020. This review will focus on that Broadway cast. A national tour was scheduled to begin in 2020, but no information has been updated on the status of the tour regarding the COVID-19 shutdown.

Who's in the Cast?

    Although many of the characters are children and teens, the cast is composed entirely of adults. Chris McCarrell starred at the titular charcter, Percy Jackson. Kristin Stokes played the role of Annabeth Chase, a role she originated in 2014 and continued to play from 2017 performances and forward. McCarrell and Stokes are the only actors in the show to play a single character; everybody else plays multiple roles. Jorrel Javier took on the dual roles of Grover and Mr. D. James Hayden Rodriguez played the roles of Gabe, Luke, and Ares. Jalynn Steele performed as Sally Jackson, Silena Beauregard, the Oracle, and Charon. Sarah Beth Pfeifer played the roles of Mrs. Dodds, Clarisse La Rue, and Katie Gardner. Finally, Ryan Knowles took on the role of five characters: Mr. Brunner/Chiron, Poseidon, Hades, Medusa, and Kronos. Many of the cast members also took on very minute and unnamed roles to assist with the show, as there are only 7 cast members in total. 

Overview

    Percy Jackson, a 12-year-old kid living in New York, sets the scene for us. He's always struggled with school, having ADHD and dyslexia, and he's been kicked out of 5 schools in 6 years, for events that he swears he had nothing to do with. Our story starts on a class field trip to the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. His handicapped Latin teacher, Mr. Brunner, is telling the class the story of Kronos, the Titan lord who ate his children. Mrs. Dodds, a substitute teacher, is acting strange. She pulls Percy aside from the school group, and transforms into a monster. Mr. Brunner throws a shocked Percy a pen, which turns into a sword. He slashes at Mrs. Dodds in self-defense, and she turns into smoke. He's confused about what just happened, and even more shocked when the principle declares him expelled. Mr. Brunner and Percy's strange friend Grover try to comfort him, but it's no use (Prologue / The Day I Got Expelled). 

    Percy goes home to his mother Sally and step-father "Smelly" Gabe. Percy is upset that he has now been kicked out of 6 schools in 6 years, and doesn't understand why weird things happen around him. Sally decides to tell him more about his father, who he never knew. They travel to the beach where Sally met his dad, and she reminisces. Percy hates that he's different, but his mom insists he's special and destined for great things (Strong). Grover appears at the beach, and Percy is shocked to see goat legs where his legs should be. Grover quickly explains that he's a saytr, meaning he is half-human and half-goat, but a more pressing matter is at hand: a Minotaur is chasing them. Sally tells Grover to take Percy to a nearby summer camp for safety, but Percy doesn't want to leave his mom behind in danger. He pulls out the pen/sword Mr. Brunner gave him, and tries to fight the Minotaur, but Sally is wounded anyway and disappears. Percy passes out as Grover takes him to camp. While passed out, Percy has a dream, and a strange man in a Hawaiian shirt approaches him, giving him a seashell. Percy is confused, but accepts the seashell. He realizes a blonde girl is caring for him, and as he wakes up, she runs to tell the camp director he's awake (The Minotaur / The Weirdest Dream).

    The camp director, Mr. D, is none too pleased to discover that Percy has absolutely no knowledge about the summer camp, which is called Camp Half-Blood. He angrily explains that the Greek Gods are real, and that the summer camp is a protective space for the children of the Gods. Percy is a demigod, or half-blood, meaning he is the son of Sally and a Greek God. Mr. D himself is Dionysus, the god of wine, and he runs Camp Half-Blood thanks to a punishment from Zeus, the King of the Gods. Percy is thoroughly confused, and becomes even more so when Mr. Brunner enters, and is revealed to be a centaur. He was handicapped in human form in a wheelchair to hide his horse-figure from mortals (Another Terrible Day). Mr. Brunner reveals his true name is Chiron, and it's his job to train half-bloods. Percy realizes that if all this information is true, his mom is actually gone. Percy is outraged that he has a powerful god for a father, and they let his mother die. Chiron has an idea of who is father is, but neglects to tell Percy. A fellow camper, Luke, tells Percy that he'll be Percy's counselor. Luke is a son of Hermes, whose camp cabin takes in "unclaimed" children of the gods. Percy wonders who his parent is, and Luke tells him to be patient and see if his parent claims him (Their Sign).

    The rest of the campers prepare to engage in a game of Capture the Flag. To the half-bloods, Capture the Flag is their chance to prove themselves to their godly parents. The blonde girl from Percy's dream reveals her name is Annabeth, daughter of Athena. Annabeth and Luke team up to take on Clarisse, daughter of Ares, in the game of Capture of the Flag. Clarisse already has a grudge against Percy, who defeated the Minotaur without any training, while the other campers have been training their whole lives to fight monsters (Put You in Your Place). Annabeth's team wins the game, and the campers host a bonfire. Each camper complains about the struggles of having a godly parent (The Campfire Song). The stars shift after the campfire, and a glowing trident appears in the sky. This is the sign Percy has been looking for. He's been claimed as a child of a god: The sea god, Poseidon. 

    Mr. D and Chiron explain how dangerous it is for Percy to be alive: Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades (The Big Three gods of Olympus) all made a pact years ago to not have any kids. Mr. D then accuses Percy of stealing Zeus's lightning bolt. Percy is totally confused, and Chiron explains that someone stole Zeus's master bolt, and that Zeus blames Poseidon. Zeus believes Poseidon used his son to steal the bolt in order to start a war. Chiron tells Percy that he has to find the bolt and return it to Zeus before war breaks out between the gods. He instructs Percy to ask the Oracle for advice. She prophesizes that on his quest, he will face a treacherous lord in the West, return what was stolen, be betrayed by a friend, and fail to save what matters most in the end (The Oracle). Luke determines that the "treacherous lord in the West" is Hades, since the Underworld is in Los Angeles. Chiron reasons that Hades may have stolen the bolt to aggravate a war between Zeus and Poseidon. Percy contemplates if he should help his father or not, considering that Poseidon never made himself known until he needed Percy, and Percy's life has been hard for years (Good Kid). Luke comforts Percy, and tells him if there's any chance to save Sally, she'll be in the Underworld. This is the deciding factor for Percy: he decides to travel to the Underworld to find his mom, and Grover and Annabeth volunteer to come with him. Annabeth wants to prove to her mom, Athena, that she's a great warrior and daughter. Luke gives Percy shoes with wings as a parting gift, and the trio take off on the quest to save the word from a massive war (Killer Quest!). 

    Act II opens with the trio in a state of panic, having accidentally blown up their bus to Los Angeles. They're now stranded in the woods in New Jersey. They meet a squirrel in the forest whom Grover can communicate with, but it refuses to help them after Percy insults it. With nothing else to do, Percy picks a direction to walk, and they end up meeting a creepy lady named Auntie M (Lost!). Auntie M's house is filled with statues and a strange hissing noise. They realize the "M" stands for Medusa, and the mysterious lady uncovers her eyes in an attempt to turn the demigods into stone statues. A fight ensues, with the trio closing their eyes to avoid being petrified, and Percy cuts off Medusa's head. Annabeth is extremely agitated, because Athena and Medusa are enemies. Percy starts to judge Athena for having punished Medusa so harshly, and Annabeth tries to defend her mom's wisdom, but reflects the conversation onto herself and her own life. Percy asks Annabeth if she hates him because Athena and Poseidon don't get along, and Annabeth says she doesn't hate him, only that he makes everything look easy and she's been training her whole life. She tells him that no matter what challenges she faces, all she wants to to do in her life create a name for herself and make Athena proud of her (My Grand Plan). 

    Percy decides to send the decapitated head of Medusa to the gods on Mount Olympus, to show them his own strength and disregard for the gods. Grover returns and announces that the squirrel from earlier gave him 3 tickets to the Amtrak. Rejuvenated, the trio sets back out on the road, stopping in St. Louis and the Hoover Dam. At the Hoover Dam, they encounter Ares, the god of war and father of Clarisse. They're wary to trust him, but he drives them to Las Vegas on his motorcycle. As he leaves them, he gives Percy a new backpack with supplies. The trio takes a bus the rest of the way to Los Angeles (Drive). Percy falls asleep on the bus, and has a strange dream. He witnesses a conversation between the true lightning thief and a voice in a huge, deep and dark pit. The voice is scolding the thief for incompetence, and reminds them of the failure of the gods regarding a person named Thalia. The voice becomes aware that Percy is listening in his sleep, and scares Percy awake (The Weirdest Dream (Reprise)). Percy tells Grover about his dream, and asks who Thalia is. Grover tells him that years ago, he was sent to bring Annabeth, Luke and Thalia, daughter of Zeus, safely to camp, but that he failed. Monsters found them, and Thalia stayed behind to fight them off so the other three could get to camp safely. As Thalia died, Zeus turned her spirit into a tree, which is the tree that guards Camp Half-Blood. Grover is ashamed of his failure and is using this quest as a way to make up for his past (The Tree on the Hill). The trio question if they're really the best option to take on this quest, but with no other options, they push on. 

    They arrive at D.O.A. Records in Hollywood, the lobby of the Underworld. They are greeted by Charon, the ferryman of the Underworld, who takes them across the River Styx, telling them they have no chance of completing their quest, because they're "dead on arrival" (D.O.A). Across the river, Percy's winged shoes start to pull him away from the others. Grover rips them off of Percy's feet, and the shoes are sucked into the pit from Percy's dream. Annabeth tells them that the pit is the entrance to Tartarus, where the remains of Kronos are kept. Percy wonders why the shoes were pulling him towards the pit, but Annabeth realizes Kronos wanted something else. She digs in Percy's backpack and discovers Zeus's master lightning bolt. They freak out, and blame each other for stealing it, but realize they have to leave before they fight. Hades stops them and demands that they give him the lightning bolt in exchange for Percy's mom. Hades rants about Poseidon, and Percy realizes the strange man in the Hawaiian shirt who gave him a seashell was his father. He promises his mother he'll come back for her, then blows in the seashell, creating a portal to the sea for him, Grover, and Annabeth. Percy realizes that Ares must have set them up, reasoning that, as the god of war, he would want to start one. He recalls that the Oracle said he would meet a treacherous lord in the West, who turned out to be Ares and not Hades. He remembers that Ares gave him the new backpack, which contained the bolt the whole time. Ares shows up, and Percy asks which demigod stole the bolt for him, knowing that the gods can't steal from other gods, but Ares refuses to tell him. Percy uses his powers of the sea to control the waves and defeat Ares in a fight for the bolt (Son of Poseidon).

    Poseidon arrives, carrying the box with Medusa's head that Percy sent him, and thanks Percy for recovering the bolt, handing him the box. He tells Percy that Sally married Smelly Gabe to cover Percy's half-blood scent and protect him from monsters growing up. Percy laments that the Oracle was right: he returned what was stolen but failed to save his mom, what mattered most to him. Poseidon tells him that she's on her way: the gods are grateful for the prevention of the war, and Hades has released her from the Underworld in thanks. He also gives Percy the option to stay at camp year-round or return home to his mother. Sally arrives, and she reunites with both Percy and Poseidon. Poseidon takes the bolt from Percy and leaves to return it to Zeus. Percy tells Sally that if Gabe gives her any more problems, she can use what's in Medusa's box to take care of him.

    Having completed the quest, Percy allows Grover to escort him and Annabeth back to camp. Percy and Annabeth contemplate whether or not they should stay at camp for the year or return to their homes. Percy finds Luke, and they talk about his quest. Luke speaks with rage about the negligence of the gods as parents, and his desire to overthrow the gods. Percy realizes Luke is the lightning thief; the Oracle was right about being betrayed by a friend. Luke declares he will do whatever it takes to overthrow the gods and free Kronos from Tartarus (The Last Day of Summer). The two fight, and Luke is about to kill Percy when Annabeth intervenes. Luke tells her he's doing this for Thalia, to make the gods pay. Luke attacks Percy again and escapes. All of the campers vow to prepare for a fight, and to not let Luke succeed. They look to the future and embrace whatever may come (Bring on the Monsters). 

    

Thoughts

    First, I'd like to praise this musical for it's accuracy to the book. I've read the book, seen the movie, and watched the musical, and in my opinion, the musical certainly does the book justice. The movie completely missed the mark, but the musical managed to incorporated a lot of details while still squeezing into a two-hour time slot (something the movie failed to do). 

    I would like to say that the musical would probably make more sense to those who have read The Lightning Thief and are familiar with the story. The production does a good job of explaining the events to the audience, but it can still be a little challenging if you go in with no prior knowledge. There is a lot of information crammed into the book, so I understand how hard it can be to compress that into a musical. 

    Overall, it was a decent musical. At times it felt a little flimsy, and not like a Broadway-level production, but it was a little endearing in that sense, considering how the main characters are 12 years old. Still, it wasn't quite up to par with what a Broadway musical should be. However, the acting was great, and each person played their roles exceptionally well. And you have to give them credit for putting on such a complex show with only 7 total cast members. 

    One character that stood out in particular to me was Jorrel Javier's portrayal of Mr. D. I think he absolutely CRUSHED that role, and although Javier spent most of his time playing Grover, I think he was even stronger in the role of Mr. D. He was a perfect representation of the angry god of wine, and was able to build an entire personality in a limited amount of time. And Sarah Beth Pfeiffer's portrayal of Clarisse La Rue was unmatched. Her vocals were insane, and she put on a paw-some performance. Again, as she played multiple roles, she did not spend a lot of time performing as Clarisse, yet she was able to put a lot of power and attitude into her character, which is a sign of an accomplished actor. 

    My favorite part of the production was definitely the music. The vocals that all of the actors possess are fantastic, and the songs in general are phenomenal. Different styles of music are used for each character, and I think the songs truly tell more of the story, perhaps on a subconscious level. Check out the album if you can! 

    If you're a Percy Jackson fan, I definitely recommend checking out the musical. If you're not a fan, it's never too late to pick up the book and read! I would suggest you read the book before attending the musical, but you certainly don't have to. I would also say that this musical expands to most age ranges, but is more suited for teenagers and young adults. If you wanted to take your kids or kittens to the show, it's not inappropriate, I'm just not sure how much they would be able to understand. 

    There weren't any cats in the show, unfortunately. There was a squirrel, however, and I'm thinking they could have swapped that role for a cat. I mean, come on, a squirrel? Really? Sigh. The next time they produce this show, maybe I'll audition and show them what they're missing. 

Ratings

Find the rating scale here.

Soundtrack          ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Acting                  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Lighting               ⭐⭐⭐

Set                        ⭐⭐⭐

Overall                 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cat rating             ⭐

Best song: Good Kid

Best actor: Jorrel Javier

Best set: Camp Half-Blood

Fun Facts!

• On the album, you can hear the talented voices of George Salazar as Grover/Mr. D, Carrie Compere as Sally Jackson/Silena Beauregard/the Oracle/Charon, and Jonathan Reviv as Mr. Brunner/Chiron/Poseidon/Hades/Kronos. 
•  A Deluxe Edition of the album was released in December 2019, featuring 5 new songs sung by the Broadway cast.
• It is heavily implied that a girl the trio encounters in Las Vegas is Bianca di Angelo, a character that appears later in the book series.

Works Cited

“The Lightning Thief (Musical).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lightning_Thief_(musical).

“The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical.” Riordan Wiki, riordan.fandom.com/wiki/The_Lightning_Thief:_The_Percy_Jackson_Musical.