Displaying items by tag: Percy Jackson & the Olympians

We all can do with a little more magic in our lives. Myths and Gods, magic and fantasy, these are the foundations of the stories we’re drawn to. They have a way of pulling us in, making us believe, and letting us escape the world around us, even if it is for only a few short hours. Magic can be found all over Chicago, take it from any die-hard Cubs fan; though it may not happen often, when we see magic, it stays with us. A little bit of that same magic is alive and well on the North Shore as the Skokie Theatre takes on The Lightning Thief: a Percy Jackson Musical.

The Lightning Thief: a Percy Jackson Musical is based on the popular novel of the same name by Rick Riodan. The musical follows Percy Jackson, a 12-year-old boy who newly discovers that he is a demigod and goes on a quest to find Zeus' missing lightning bolt and prevent a war between the Greek gods. With the musical’s book written by Joe Tracz and music by Rob Rokicki, this production has something for people of all ages. The musical first premiered on Broadway in 2014 with a rewrite and expansion run in 2017 though it hasn’t been widely performed in Chicagoland and it’s a shame. The musical is funny, witty, and simply magical.

Skokie Theatre only added to the charm of The Lightning Thief, the intimate vintage theatre lending itself to the production. Do not be deceived. This was no local community or high school production. The talent that brought this mythical story to life could grace any musical stage in Chicago and hold their own. Chicagoans will no doubt know the name P-Jay Adams who portrayed Percy Jackson, their pitch and vocal prowess a slice of magic in plot-moving musical numbers like “The Day I Got Expelled,” “The Campfire Song,” and “Killer Quest!” Adams led the plucky, youthful, and inclusive ensemble cast from the East coast to Los Angeles where the underworld resides. Delivering witty one-liners, embodying the characters of Gods and their angsty half-blood children, The Lightning Thief ensemble cast brought the mystical story to life and made us believe in the magic of the theatre.

While a Chicago theatre goer might not put Skokie or the North Shore on the map by comparison to so many powerhouses within the city, there is some kind of nostalgic magic at Skokie Theatre. Given the opportunity, Adams and many members of the ensemble cast could easily step onto any Broadway in Chicago stage. If given the production budget of a show like Death Becomes Her, The Lightning Thief: A Percy Jackson Musical would have the potential to make a spectacular run in Chicago.

The Lightning Thief: a Percy Jackson Musical is now playing on select dates at the Skokie Theatre located at 7924 Lincoln Ave in Skokie, IL through July 28th. Tickets are now available for purchase here. Lightning might not strike twice so don’t miss your chance to add a little magic to your evening and mock The Gods with your favorite demi-godlike hero.

Despite being both a writer and a fanboy of books aimed at readers much younger than I’ve been for what seems like millennia, I never got around to Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. Maybe I thought it was a knockoff of the, at the time, immensely popular Harry Potter books. Or maybe I’d had enough of Greek mythology from my own junior high days.

Either way, I came into the Oriental Theatre to see the touring production of The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical with no advanced knowledge, no preconceptions, and no great expectations. But then a thunderbolt hit, the show began, and I ended up very pleasantly surprised by the cast of gods, demi-gods, and enthusiastic actors and musicians who took the stage.

As luck would have it, the titular character’s played by Chris McCarrell, a Broadway vet who actually originated this very role Off-Broadway. So from start to finish, the production’s in good hands, as McCarrell is youthful, confident, and has a Hades of a voice. My date for the evening — my six-year-old daughter, only slightly younger than the audience’s average age, I’d wager — whispered to me after one of Percy’s songs, “Daddy, I think I love that boy who’s singing.” Judging by the applause and squeals, much of the crowd agreed with her.

The cast for this show is a small one, with most members playing multiple parts, and playing them well. Jorrel Javier features as both a trusty young sidekick and crotchety old god of the vine who’s traded in drunkenness, debauchery, and drama to be a camp counselor. Kristin Stokes’ voice filled the theater whenever her Annabeth (type-A daughter of Athena) sang. Like Stokes and McCarrell, James Hayden Rodriguez has been part of this show for a long time, and his experience showed as he played both an adolescent counselor and an ancient deity with charisma and charm.

But the two cast members who had me applauding and near squeals were Ryan Knowles and Jalynn Steele. Knowles is first seen as a stuffy, wheelchair-bound teacher of the classics, but quickly proves his verve and versatility, playing a centaur and a beach bum among many others. But his best moment was as a snaky, strutting, devilish diva of yore. Steele then one-ups Knowles’ diva with her own, bringing the house down to an underworld full of shimmy, shake, and some shoutouts to long-dead musical heroes that the audience’s older members recognized.

And that brings me to the thing about The Lightning Thief that stood out the most to me. While there were bits here and there meant to appease the oldsters — pop-culture references, old-school mugging — this production felt young. It could’ve been the thrown-together (I mean that in a good way) but thoughtful set and costumes designed by Lee Savage and Sydney Maresca. Or it could’ve been the clubby lighting by David Lander. All of those things were fresh.

But I think what made The Lightning Thief seem so new and fresh to me is that it is new and fresh. It’s got the feel of the kids these days (again, meant in a good way). It’s not trying to be cool. It just is cool. It’s not trying to shoehorn ancient stuff like gods and monsters into today’s world. It just does so. I found it fun and inspiring and I’ve gotta say, it proved to be the gateway drug that’ll find my daughter and me checking out the book series on which the stage show is based.