The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical

Smile Musical Youth Theatre under the leadership of their redoubtable champion of courageous projects for young people, Joe Logan, took on the challenge of a not particularly well known, fast paced and theatrically demanding piece head on and came out Smile-ing (apologies for the awful phraseology!) 

The Percy Jackson phenomenon has gone from strength to strength and an inevitable stage adaptation does nothing but enhance the popularity of the genre, especially with excited and enthralled younger audience members, eager to see their heroes depicted on stage – and this was demonstrably in evidence at Dormston Mill Theatre for ‘The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical’.

There is a lot going on in this musical – much of it rather unsurprisingly being music and all credit to Musical Director, Ella Daire, as every offering had an energy and sense of utter enjoyment of their own. ‘Percy Jackson’ of the title, played with supreme confidence and immense talent by Sam Broomhall-Tighe has rock voice perfect for this personable character who through expert characterisation and his superb laid back approach had us on his side from the off. This was epitomised in a beautiful rendition of “Strong” by ‘Percy’ and ‘Sally’, Percy’s Mom, played impeccably by Ruby Blount . This is a show full of different characters all of whom adopted their characters with great confidence and humour as well as some amazing songs. Notable musical highlights include ‘Clarisse’, played by Lauren Slater, ‘Annabeth’, very confidently played by Tiffany Steventon, ‘Grover’, humorously played by Thomas Bastable, ‘Luke’, played for all he was worth by Freddie Perry, ‘Percy’ and the Ensemble singing  “Put You in Your Place”,  ‘Percy’ and ‘Luke’s’ “The Last Day of Summer” and an almost show stopping rendition of “Good Kid” by Sam. Some great cameos too – Josh Mills as ‘Mr D’, Noa Bailey Cartwright as ‘Mr Bruner’ and Hannah Allsop as ‘Aunty Em’ all deserve a mention

Being a person of a certain age, I got a bit tied up with the school memories of Greek Gods – as it happened, totally unnecessarily as in the hands of these very capable actors and singers, they presented fully rounded characters in their own right and there was no reason to have any preconception as all that was needed was expertly laid out in front of you.

‘Percy’ discovers that he is a demigod (the offspring of a mortal, ‘Sally’, and Poseidon, (Greek God of the Sea) played by Taylor Simner and is sent to Camp Half-Blood where he is accused of stealing Zeus’ lightning bolt and is sent on a mission with his fellow school ne’er do wells, ‘Grover’ a satyr, and Athena’s daughter, ‘Annabeth’ to not only restore his uncle’s property but prevent a war between the gods. 

The whole company, far too many to name individually but all as deserving, should be applauded long and loudly for their tremendous effort, amazing talent and untiring enthusiasm for a project that they obviously were enjoying immensely. Many, many congratulations.

There has long been a comparison between the merits and popularity of Percy Jackson versus Harry Potter, this vibrant and charmingly endearing show portrays more real-life scenarios despite the Greek mythological background, for example Percy’s ADHD and Dyslexia are seen as strengths and integral to the telling and solution of the story and were sensitively handled in Joe’s production. There is also an overwhelming feeling of inclusion and involvement in this production, many named characters, each with a vital role to play in the progression of the plot.  

The overwhelming impression from this talented company is that everyone wants it to be the best that it can possibly be – a dedicated and supportive creative team  Joe Logan’s enviable vision and commitment as Director and Choreographer, Ella Daire’s Musical Direction, Sarah Jennings as Production Assistant, Stage Manager and Vocal Coach and Olivia Jefferson, Rehearsal Assistant, a gifted plus an indefatigable technical team  with an enthusiastic and polished cast of performers all combine to provide a truly memorable and enjoyable night at the theatre which gives you faith that the future of theatre in the Black Country is in good hands.

My thanks to everyone at SMILE MYT for their kind invitation and warm welcome. Many congratulations.

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