The three previously reviewed musicals are Off-Broadway in intimate theaters and clubs. The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical, based on Rick Riordan’s young-adult fantasy novel, began life Off-Broadway a few seasons back and, after a national tour, is now at the Longacre Theater. How does this tween-targeted family tuner settle into big, bad Broadway? If you’re a kid, the show is kinda fun with an appealing hero (played with sweet adolescent tenderness by Chris McCarrell) who deals with his new-found status as the son of a Greek god, clever direction by Stephen Brackett, an amiable score by Rob Rokicki, wild bizarre costumes by Sydney Maresca, and tons of confetti and toilet paper shot into the audience. If you’re an adult, Joe Tracz’s action-adventure book with traces of teen angst and Nickelodeon-level humor, may grow tiring.
For compensation, there are edgy performances from Ryan Knowles as a Grey Gardens-inspired Medusa and a Paul Lynde-like demon king, and Jorreal Javier as Percy’s misfit best friend and an all-tempered Dionysus, forced to run a summer camp for the kids of divine beings. The youngsters will probably have a ball, but Mom, Dad, and those without children will get more kicks Off-Broadway.
