Sing a Song, End a War: All in a Supernatural Camp Routine ‘The Lightning Thief,’ From Theaterworks, at Lucille Lortel
Ken JaworowskiJuly 25, 2014: I plan to change the subject when my 11-year-old daughter asks about The Lightning Thief, a new musical at the Lucille Lortel Theater. She was excited to attend, but a last-minute appointment prevented it. To tell her how much fun she missed might be a little cruel. The show, part of the Theatreworks free summer theater program, is adapted from Rick Riordan’s young-adult novel of the same name. In the story, Percy Jackson, a bright sixth grader, grows frustrated after being expelled from the latest school he’s attending. He’s got plenty of other concerns too — dyslexia, hyperactivity and a desire to find the father he never knew. Soon he discovers that Dad is one of the ancient Greek gods, and Percy is sent to a supernatural summer camp where the boy meets others like himself. Before long he and his friends embark on a journey, battling monsters and Medusa in a quest to end a war, rescue his mother and prove his courage. While the show imparts the expected reassuring lessons — “Normal is a myth/Everyone has issues they’re dealing with” — it’s seldom saccharine or didactic. The musical’s book, by Joe Tracz, and music and lyrics, by Rob Rokicki, strike a tone that’s sassy though not snarky, and energetic without being hectic.
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