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  • 1.  Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 7 days ago

    My students are lobbying hard for The Lightning Thief (The Percy Jackson Musical). I do not know the show and am curious if there are any tricky technical and/or design elements to it. Would greatly appreciate hearing from anyone who has recently produced it. Thank you. 



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    Sarah Coleman
    Morse High School
    ME
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  • 2.  RE: Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 6 days ago

    I am in the same boat and would be interested in the same advice!  



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    Karin Neal
    Theatre Director
    Trinity Catholic High School
    KS
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  • 3.  RE: Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 6 days ago

    Hey!

    We just did it in February and its one of our favorite shows to date. There are a few tricky things, the minotaur (we built him based on a backpack frame), the sword that's a pen (we used hidden places and choreo to make it 'appear') We did use some lighting tricks to hide some appearances and disappearances of characters (light bars from Amazon that would flash forward). We used scaffolding as the basis of the set and that worked really well for levels and hiding places. The centaur attachment was interesting. We went with a weight belt attached to his hind legs for a quick swap behind the scaffolding. We used Blue China silk for the waves and the beach when he was by the water. For setting changes we relied on lighting mostly. The only set carts we had that came in and out were the Apartment and Mr Dr's desk. We had a Baker's scaffold (from Lowes) that was handy to move around and be the bus or make the Mrs Dodds attack scene 'fly'. 

    I'm happy to talk you through the show and send pics It was our best selling show to date. These are just a few of the things I remember offhand. 



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    Carmen Teague
    Drama Teacher
    Visual and Performing Arts Magnet
    Jonesboro, AR
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  • 4.  RE: Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 5 days ago

    I saw the original off-Broadway production at the Lucille Lortel theatre. The design was what I call a "cheap aesthetic", it was looked thrown together but of course it wasn't. The basic set was Greek columns with graffiti and one that had fallen. The upright columns had LED light tape on them and could change colors and be programmed for different effects. The Hades scene had red light going up the columns that would vary in intensity as it traveled up and down the column. The water effect was done with a leaf blower and toilet tissue (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RScdxQgWmXY). Percy backed Ares to the downstage edge of the stage and other cast members came out with the leaf blowers and covered Ares with "water", shooting into the audience. Same effect but with one blower for the toilet scene. I'd suggest electric leaf blowers and maybe cordless ones, maybe 4 or 5. What are you going to do with that many leaf blowers when the show is over? I'd get faculty members to pledge the cost of the blower and they get it when the show is over.  The song "Drive" was done using a small scaffolding unit and LED work lights as headlights. Worked really well and easy to move. AND the scaffolding is great for other uses down the road! There's some nice videos of Minotaur costumes.  I love this show but unfortunately I never got to do it before I retired.



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    John Perry
    Retired Theatre Teacher
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  • 5.  RE: Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 5 days ago
      |   view attached

    Sorry, in reviewing some notes, there wasn't a column that had fallen in the set design. 



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    John Perry
    Retired Theatre Teacher
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  • 6.  RE: Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 4 days ago
    Hello! I did this show in 2024! We loved it! Our concept was a black and white comic book. We made everything out of cardboard. It does have a lot of scene changes, however as long as you keep that in mind you can make it what you want! 
    You need 3 very strong actor/singers for the trio. It also provides a lot of opportunities for growing your ensemble. 
    I highly recommend it! 





  • 7.  RE: Percy Jackson/Lighting Thief Tips?

    Posted 4 days ago

    We did it last spring and had a blast. Percy is onstage almost the entire show and needs to be a strong performer. The Minotaur was a good challenge for our props crew. Our troupe enjoyed staging the production and our community supported it. 



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    Kristy (Kris) Lilley
    Education
    Lewis-Palmer High School
    CO
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