The Lightning Thief The Percy Jackson Musical Festival Theatre Edinburgh 23rd September 2025 Review
“The Lightning Thief -The Percy Jackson Musical” is at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh this week (23-27 September), and the many fans of the book series were obviously here tonight to enjoy this show which is based firmly on the first book which was published in 2005.
A generation of many readers have grown up over the last 20 years or so either reading the Percy Jackson books, or perhaps even had them read to them by their parents before they were able to do so on their own. Originally these stories were simply oral ones from author Rick Riordan to his young son, and the idea to make the stories’ young hero a bit of an outcast to the world around him and set him into a story line that updates the ancient Greek myths of Gods and mortals has obviously struck a chord with many people, old and young. Importantly, in these stories Rick takes what all too many people see as something different, even a weakness in them, and turn that into a strength, an individuality, even a super-power.
Watching tonight’s show was, for me, a bit of an odd experience as I have never read any of the Percy Jackson books or, truth be told, any of Rick Riordan’s books that expanded upon this and other mythological stories of old. Re-working and updating the stories of Greek, Roman, Norse and other mythologies in an updated format is nothing new – Marvel comics have been doing it now for decades - but there is something unique about Percy Jackson and it was obvious that so many people in the audience tonight knew this character, his friends, foes and his world very well. Here I was that person on the fringes of something looking into a world that was a little strange to me at times.
This show obviously had several core objectives for writer Joe Tracz and composer/lyricist Rob Rokicki to meet, and adapting this work to stage whilst staying as true to the original book as possible was one of them. Making something that the fans of these stories would accept as being a part of their cultural landscape was obviously important too. From the applause that this show was getting, Joe Tracz has met his goals with bringing Percy Jackson and his world to the stage. Likewise, Rob Rokicki has used many different genres of music to create this show’s songs, and also given it an almost grunge feel which was reflected in the choreography by Lizzi Gee.
“The Lightning Thief -The Percy Jackson Musical” has for the most part a young cast and this show was always going to be a hit or a miss depending upon the musical and performance abilities of whoever was going to be in the lead role of Percy Jackson. Here Vasco Emauz is a great fit for the show. He not only has the required skills to do this role justice, but he also has an easy going, likeability factor to him. Percy is not an over the top hero, just a 16 year old who finds himself doing things that he never imagined would or could happen to him, and Vasco Emauz brings that character to life on stage. Every “hero” needs a close team around them, and here Annabeth (Kayna Montecillo) and Grover (Cahir O’Neill) are both very good in these support roles.
At first glance the set for this show looks fairly basic, but good, but that simplicity hides what is later to become a very technical set with some impressive visual projections. The plot is a fairly simple one, but well written as it not only introduces exactly who everyone is fairly quickly, but also always keeps the story moving forward at a fast pace. There are no dull moments in this story, something is always happening or about to happen, and there is more than enough information here to make it easy for someone like myself who is new to the wold of Percy Jackson to quickly get up to speed with everything that is taking place on stage.
Just as important as the book’s message of everyone having their own unique identity and their own unique abilities is the fact that this show is bringing a new, young generation of people into the theatres.
Review by Tom King © 2025
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
A generation of many readers have grown up over the last 20 years or so either reading the Percy Jackson books, or perhaps even had them read to them by their parents before they were able to do so on their own. Originally these stories were simply oral ones from author Rick Riordan to his young son, and the idea to make the stories’ young hero a bit of an outcast to the world around him and set him into a story line that updates the ancient Greek myths of Gods and mortals has obviously struck a chord with many people, old and young. Importantly, in these stories Rick takes what all too many people see as something different, even a weakness in them, and turn that into a strength, an individuality, even a super-power.
Watching tonight’s show was, for me, a bit of an odd experience as I have never read any of the Percy Jackson books or, truth be told, any of Rick Riordan’s books that expanded upon this and other mythological stories of old. Re-working and updating the stories of Greek, Roman, Norse and other mythologies in an updated format is nothing new – Marvel comics have been doing it now for decades - but there is something unique about Percy Jackson and it was obvious that so many people in the audience tonight knew this character, his friends, foes and his world very well. Here I was that person on the fringes of something looking into a world that was a little strange to me at times.
This show obviously had several core objectives for writer Joe Tracz and composer/lyricist Rob Rokicki to meet, and adapting this work to stage whilst staying as true to the original book as possible was one of them. Making something that the fans of these stories would accept as being a part of their cultural landscape was obviously important too. From the applause that this show was getting, Joe Tracz has met his goals with bringing Percy Jackson and his world to the stage. Likewise, Rob Rokicki has used many different genres of music to create this show’s songs, and also given it an almost grunge feel which was reflected in the choreography by Lizzi Gee.
“The Lightning Thief -The Percy Jackson Musical” has for the most part a young cast and this show was always going to be a hit or a miss depending upon the musical and performance abilities of whoever was going to be in the lead role of Percy Jackson. Here Vasco Emauz is a great fit for the show. He not only has the required skills to do this role justice, but he also has an easy going, likeability factor to him. Percy is not an over the top hero, just a 16 year old who finds himself doing things that he never imagined would or could happen to him, and Vasco Emauz brings that character to life on stage. Every “hero” needs a close team around them, and here Annabeth (Kayna Montecillo) and Grover (Cahir O’Neill) are both very good in these support roles.
At first glance the set for this show looks fairly basic, but good, but that simplicity hides what is later to become a very technical set with some impressive visual projections. The plot is a fairly simple one, but well written as it not only introduces exactly who everyone is fairly quickly, but also always keeps the story moving forward at a fast pace. There are no dull moments in this story, something is always happening or about to happen, and there is more than enough information here to make it easy for someone like myself who is new to the wold of Percy Jackson to quickly get up to speed with everything that is taking place on stage.
Just as important as the book’s message of everyone having their own unique identity and their own unique abilities is the fact that this show is bringing a new, young generation of people into the theatres.
Review by Tom King © 2025
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com