Percy Jackson will be starring in an off-Broadway musical this spring.
The Lightning Thief, a musical based on the first book in Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, will be playing at the Lucille Lortel Theatre starting in March. Previews will begin on March 24, with the musical opening on April 4 and running through May 6. More information can be found on their website.
The Lightning Thief tells the story of demigod Percy Jackson, who gets involved in some drama between the Greek gods when Zeus’s master lightning bolt goes missing. He goes on a quest across the United States with his friends to retrieve the bolt and prevent war among the gods.
I have seen the musical in its prior (shorter) incarnation two years ago, and I can absolutely assure fans of Rick Riordan that they will love it. It perfectly captures both the humor of the books, and the genuine emotion underneath that. It was written by Joe Tracz and Rob Rokicki, who are self-professed fans of the material, and won’t let the fans down. Eagle-eyed fans will be glad to see it multiple times in an attempt to catch all the Easter eggs.
Rick Riordan himself, though he refuses to see adaptations of his own work (and do you blame him, after those movies?), wrote on his website, “I can heartily endorse it based on feedback from the people I care about most — my readers. They have found it to be a fun, faithful, hilarious adaptation of Percy’s story.”
The musical has been expanded from a one-hour show into a two-hour show, allowing for much more of the book to be seen on the stage. In the one-hour version, much of Percy’s travels to Los Angeles was told via musical montage. We can assume they will be fleshed out in the new version.
Cast in the lead role of Percy is Chris McCarrell (known for playing Marius in the recent revival of Les Miserables). McCarrell said in the press release, “Can’t wait to pour all I got into Percy Jackson. He’s going to be quick, bold, and sharp. Young messy demigod finding his way? I’m in.”
The rest of the cast is yet to be announced, though we hope at least some of the cast from the last incarnation will stay with the production.