With the recent surge in popularity of Percy Jackson in the UK, as well as the simultaneous success of Greek myth inspired counterpart Hadestown, it feels pertinent that the stage show is finally given its long awaited London premiere; and though several of the characters are the same, the ride we’re taken on could not be more different.
Set to Rob Rokicki’s heavily rock influenced score, and based on the 2005 Rick Riordan novel of the same name, The Lightning Thief follows half-god, half-human Percy Jackson, son of the sea god Poseidon, in a journey of self discovery, soon coming to learn about his family history being far more unconventional that he could ever have fathomed, after being sent to a summer camp for half breeds following his expulsion from a sixth school in six years.
Though it takes a while to really get going, and kind of fizzles out at the end, the overall story is still a thundering great time, daft, campy, and slightly wacky. It’s a particular joy for those of us with an affinity towards Greek mythology, as there is a plethora of brilliant subtle nods utilised. My favourite of these was “you can’t just walk out of hell”, referencing the story of Orpheus and Eurydice, and additionally we get appearances from Cerberus, Medusa, a centaur, a faun, and a whole host of your favourite Greek gods.
This is a show that knows exactly how silly it is, and plays heavily into it, never taking itself too seriously; set and costumes by Ryan Dawson Laight are loveably low-budget, and that’s a huge part of the appeal, that the story can still be told without excess, by letting the characters and their often eccentric natures take centre stage to be our main focus. Max Harwood as our titular hero is adorably awkward, understandably nervy in his professional stage musical debut, but he used this very much to his advantage, which has to be applauded.
Very much worthy of major praise though are lighting and projection designers Charlie Morgan Jones and Duncan McLean respectively, these are particularly potent, especially during travel scenes and transitions; Lizzi Gee has managed to balance all of these creative elements remarkably well. And Rokicki’s score has everyone fully engaged throughout, with songs like Good Kid and DOA whipping the audience into a frenzy, and quite rightly so.
Whilst performances across the board were excellent, with the majority of the company portraying multiple roles, there were several major standouts. Jessica Lee is a real superstar, her energy and swagger hugely endear the character of Annabeth to us, and her vocals are world class. Paisley Billings gave a versatile, multifaceted performance that comprised some massively impressive multi-roling, and Greg Barnett didn’t miss a beat in what was a hilarious portrayal of a variety of Greek gods, including Hades and Poseidon.
Also worth mentioning is Scott Folan’s performance of “The Tree On The Hill”, this was a beautifully measured, emotionally complex performance. Joaquin Pedro Valdes, though his role was sadly limited, always made his presence known with his dominant command of the stage and polished vocals.
Ancient Greece has never seemed so much fun, it wasn’t always plain sailing, however the choppy seas we as an audience traverse are tonally consistent, making for a delightfully bizarre experience!
The Lightning Thief runs at The Other Palace Theatre until 2nd March - for tickets and more information, you can follow the link here.
★★★★☆ (4*)
Gifted tickets in return for an honest review | Photography by Manuel Harlan
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