First Stage presents THE LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL

By Mary Boyle

American author Rick Riordan has now written over 20 novels for young adults, but The Lightning Thief, the first in his Percy Jackson & the Olympians series published in 2005, is still the most well known and beloved by his fans.  Adapted into a motion picture in 2010 starring Logan Lerman, the movie did not fare nearly as well as the book; however, Disney+ recently unveiled a TV series that is more faithful to the books, which has been gaining popularity.  Even lesser known is the musical version of the novel, which was unveiled on Broadway in 2014.  Yes, a musical.  This season, First Stage brings the Greek Gods to Milwaukee with their production of THE LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL, through March 10th.

With book by Joe Tracz and music and lyrics by Rob Rokicki, this pop-rock filled musical streamlines Percy's story for the stage, while keeping the essential parts of the tale intact.  For the uninitiated, Percy (Ben Nowacek/Silver Anderson)  is a 12 year old boy with ADHD and dyslexia, struggling to fit in, but constantly finding himself in trouble at school; in fact, he's been kicked out of several.   In his newest school, Percy finally has a friend, Grover (Thatcher Jacobs/Abram Nelson), and a teacher who seems to like him. When he’s kicked out of yet another school, his single mother (Nadja Simmonds) decides it’s finally time to let Percy in on a secret she’s been keeping from him but, before she can get it all out, her and Percy are attacked by a minotaur and Percy learns that his best friend is, in fact, a satyr.  The next thing Percy knows, he’s waking up at Camp Half-Blood with an irritated Dionysus (Jamey Feshold) and his teacher who, as it turns out, is a centaur named Chiron (Matt Daniels), informing him he’s a demigod and that his mother was lost in the attack.

While at camp, Percy befriends Annabeth (Sanaiah Hibbler/Calleigh Mills) and Luke (Austin Nelson Jr.), a disgruntled son of Hermes who is angry that the gods are often absentee, uninvolved parents who often never bother to claim their half-human children.  Percy’s father, however, does claim him and, as the son of Poseidon, Percy learns that he has a way with water. Before he can absorb it all, he is suspected of stealing Zuess’s lightning bolt and sent on a hero’s quest to retrieve it before a war erupts amongst the gods.  Not wanting to leave camp, Luke reminds Percy that Hades is probably the true thief and that, by going to the underworld, he will likely be able to find his mother.  With that as his true mission, Percy is joined by Annabeth and Grover on a crazy, monster-filled adventure.

Directed by Jeff Frank, The Lightning Thief is an ideal way for younger fans of the book, movie, or TV series to experience the story in a different way that is fun, family-friendly, and less scary than its other visual counterparts.  The costumes by Yvonne Miranda and scenic design by Madelyn Yee are Broadway quality but, as always, the music suffers a bit with the sound quality in the Todd Wehr theater, though the cast (Nadja Simmonds, in particular) is vocally strong.  The young performers, who are double cast in either the Minotaur or Chimera casts, respectively, do an excellent job, but Matt Daniels and Jamey Feshold are the glue that holds this production together.  Daniels, in particular, is spectacular as the centaur Chiron, Hades, and Poseidon, as well as other characters, though his performance is so good that you may not realize that all of those characters are performed by the same actor.  Feshold shines as Dionysus and as Aries, the god of war.  Together, they make the performance a good time for all ages in the audience.

I am personally a huge fan of the Percy Jackson series, so I was skeptical about this adaptation, but it really does work – although I believe it works best if you are a fan or, at least, already familiar with the story, because a lot of detail is lost in order to fit it into a 75 minute show.  The music is not always brilliant, but it does manage to summarize large parts of text and move the story along in a fast-paced way that still remains largely true to the book.  As with the novel, the musical is still a great crash-course in Greek mythology that may inspire a deeper dive, but also serves as a great way to introduce young Percy Jackson fans to the wonder of live theatre.  Either way, you can’t really lose on this production, unless you wait too long to buy your tickets - it seems Percy Jackson is a hot commodity in any format.

THE LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL runs through March 10, 2024 at the Marcus Center’s Todd Wehr Theater, located at 929 N. Water Street in downtown Milwaukee.  Tickets start at $20 and can be purchased in person at the Marcus Center Box Office at 929 N. Water Street, by phone at (414) 273-7206 or online at firststage.org.

Special events for THE LIGHTNING THIEF: The Percy Jackson Musical
Pay What You Choose Performance: Friday, February 9, 2024 at 7:00 p.m.
Pay What You Choose tickets are available on a first come, first served basis with a minimum suggested ticket price of $10 per person. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. on the day of the performance. Patrons are encouraged to arrive early. Tickets may also be reserved in advance by phone at (414) 267-2961, weekdays 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. For more information, please visit:
firststage.org/events-tickets/tickets-offers/pay-what-you-choose/.

Sensory Friendly Performance: Saturday, February 17, 2024 at 3:30 p.m.
A Sensory Friendly Performance with accommodations for families with children on the autism spectrum will take place on Saturday, February 17, 2024 at 3:30 p.m. Sensory accommodations include a quiet area staffed by an experienced educator, adjusted sound and lighting, and more. Tickets for Sensory Friendly Performances are $10. Order online or by phone at (414) 267-2961, weekdays 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. to reserve tickets. To learn more visit: firststage.org/plan-your-visit/sensory-friendly-performances/.

ASL Interpreted Performance: Sunday, March 3, 2024 at 3:30 p.m.
This performance will be sign language interpreted for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing. Assistive listening devices are also available at the Todd Wehr Theater. To learn more, please visit: firststage.org/plan-your-visit/accessibility/sign-language-interpreted-performances/

About First Stage
Founded in 1987, First Stage is one of the nation’s leading theaters for young people and families, and a driving force behind the creation of the best and most innovative plays for family audiences, theater training programs for young people, and education initiatives for its schools and community.  First Stage produces plays that honor the young person’s point of view, include diverse and traditionally underrepresented voices, and inspire meaningful conversations. First Stage has presented more than 70 world premiere productions that address important subject matters relevant to today’s youth. The Theater Academy is one of the nation’s largest high-impact theater training programs for young people (3-18 years old). Through a challenging curriculum taught by professional teaching artists, the Academy nurtures life skills through stage skills and includes the Next Steps Program that tailors Theater Academy classes to the needs of autistic young people. As Wisconsin’s leader in arts-integrated education in schools, First Stage’s dynamic Theater in Education Programs cleverly blend theater activities with standard curriculum – allowing more than 10,000 students annually to learn traditional academic subjects through creativity and self-expression.  First Stage ensures that all programming is not only accessible to its community but that it is reflective of the community it serves. In order to do that, First Stage relies on its community of donors. With an annual operating budget of $5 million, more than half of First Stage’s revenue comes from generous contributions from individuals, corporations, foundations, government sources, and the United Performing Arts Fund. Join First Stage’s community of donors with a contribution today and transform lives through theater. 

First Stage is a member of TYA/USA, the American Alliance for Theatre and Education, the Wisconsin Alliance for Arts Education, Milwaukee Arts Partners, and is a cornerstone member of the United Performing Arts Fund (UPAF). firststage.org