Since the release of its first installment in 2005, Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” book series has captivated millions of people across the world, introducing readers to Greek mythological monsters and fictional demigods. In 2023, an adaption came to Disney+, bringing more attention to the well-known demigod protagonist Percy Jackson. A few years prior in 2019, however, Percy Jackson’s story came to Broadway in “The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” for a short four-month run.
Thursday through Sunday, Spectrum Theatre — a student-run theater group at the University — performed “The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” in the Student Activities Building daily. Directed by third-year College student Katie Chambers, the show focused on the titular Percy Jackson, played by second-year College student Lynn Ennis.
After facing attacks from Greek monsters, Jackson is taken to Camp Half-Blood where he learns of being a demigod and meets other teenage demigods as well. Soon after arrival, Percy is sent on a quest to restore Zeus’ lighting bolt, meeting various monsters and fostering friendships with Annabeth Chase, played by first-year College student Bessie Wang, and Grover Underwood, portrayed by first-year College student Lily Spann, along the way.
The show took audiences on an emotional rollercoaster, with humorous, intense and emotional narrative and musical moments. The tone of the musical performances — with songs composed and written by composer Rob Rokicki — varied throughout the musical. In Act I, for instance, Percy’s mother sang the melodic and acoustic number “Strong,” telling Percy about his estranged father. Act II included the song “D.O.A.,” where Charon, played by first-year College student Olivia Caesar, introduces Percy, Annabeth and Grover to the Underworld. Compared to “Strong,” “D.O.A.” had an upbeat, disco-tech sound, with undertones of jazz and rock.
Dynamic music and storytelling allowed cast members to experiment with their characters. With experience playing strong-willed characters in the past, such as Princess Fiona in “Shrek the Musical” and Logan in “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” Wang said she similarly hoped to portray Annabeth’s intellect coupled with competitiveness. She additionally noted that Spectrum’s environment gave her freedom to explore her character.
“Most of the time, you have total freedom on deciding your character’s movements or tonality and other aspects that can really show that it's you acting this character instead of other people telling you how to do it,” Wang said.
The Broadway production of the show included only seven cast members. However, Spectrum’s cast was made up of 14 people, giving more students the opportunity to participate while still maintaining the small cast design of the show.
Due to the intimate setting, students were also able to take on many different roles in the production, showing off their multifaceted theatrical skills. Fourth-year College student Grace Caramanis played Poseidon, was a member of the musical’s ensemble and also acted as the rehearsal pianist and a member of tech staff.
“Because it's a small production with not as many people working on it, I've been able to dedicate myself more to this show,” Caramanis said. “This production has really allowed me to showcase all of my talents, a variety of the things that I do and enjoy doing with people who also care about it.”
Another compelling aspect of “The Lightning Thief” is its use of stage combat. The show featured a number of fight scenes set in Camp Half-Blood, as well as some pitting Percy against monsters in Greek mythology, such as Medusa.
The actors battled each other with poles, swords and their bodies, leaving audience members at the edge of their seats. Wang, in her role as Annabeth Chase, participated in climactic clashes with mythical foes, which she found particularly exciting.
“I didn't do stage combat when I was in high school, and I feel like some of the scenes were really cool, especially when you have every cast member involved in one fight,” Wang said. “We also have parts where the actors are off stage and right in front of the audience when they do the fight, so I feel like that part would be really exciting as well.”
First-year College student and audience member Rebecca Weingast said she enjoyed watching the physical comedy in the show, specifically in the song “Son of Poseidon,” where ensemble members came out in blow-up shark costumes to fight Ares, Greek god of war.
“I just thought it was such a good and truthful way of showing Percy's comedic side and also just a fun way to watch the show,” Weingast said.
Spectrum’s production was a nostalgic one, reminding audiences of a beloved middle school tale of friendship, overcoming differences and finding one’s identity. Caramanis said that the tale was compelling for both longtime fans of the novel series and newcomers alike.
“I think that for fans of the original [Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief] book, there's a lot of Easter eggs,” Caramanis said. “But even if you don't know anything about the original story, then it's just a great tale of adventure and overcoming things that you didn't expect to ever have to overcome.”
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