So my dear friends, allow me to introduce you to the most perfect piece of musical theater ever created. An absolute killer 11’Oclock number to absolutely knock your socks off with some of the best storytelling and craft evert to reach a stage. I’m talking about Drive from The Lightning Thief.
Now, I assume some of you are thinking “Wait, isn’t that the name of that kids book with all the Greek Gods?”. And you would be right! The Lightning Thief, also known as The Percy Jackson Musical, is a rock solid adaptation of Rick Riordan’s books.
In the show, the children of greek gods and humans (halfbloods) attend a summer camp to master their godly gifts. While there our main character Percy, his Satyr friend Grover, and his new friend Annabeth, go on a Killer Quest to retrieve Zeus’ stolen lightning bolt. After they hit the lowest point in their journey Grover begins Drive by telling the trio to buck up soldier on.
Drive has 3 major strong points, it’s adaptational prowess, the lyrical expertise, and thematic strength.
The whole show is a rock solid adaptation, but this song is the highlight. A large chunk of the book is dedicated to the road trip from Camp Halfblood in Long Island to the entrance to Hades, a record company in LA. It uses the stage to its advantage, and maintains the integrity of the story through conventions of the medium. While I don’t want to focus on it, the show really is a dam near perfect adaptation of its source material, and the song itself is microcosm of that.
Most of the aforementioned Killer Quest is covered in the course of this song even though it took more than 15 chapters in the book. Not only that, but many of the lyrics are namechecks of chapter names. Instead of long scenes, an encounter with a chimera, a gorgon, Zeus’ storm, the Hoover Dam, Ares, and a Lotus Bed, all occur in 4 and a half minutes. The set pieces are all minimalist, matching the rest of the show, and make the montage feel organic and cohesive with the rest of the show.
Every lyric single lyric and note is packed with information. The pseudo folk sound is absolutely perfect for the unconventional rhyme scheme. I cannot overestimate the how utterly amazing the lyrics are. For instance, let’s just look at just two lines.
“Guys we got this, you ain’t shocked this, yo I know you’re train of thought is that there ain’t no way in Hades that we’ll win.
All your worries come in flurries but we bested freaking furys! Look how far we’ve come we can’t give in.”
The rhyme scheme is so different compared to any of its contemporaries. The internal rhyme of the individual lines is so so catchy, but the more traditional couplets that bracket the lines don’t alienate more experienced listeners. It uses an alternating Daytcal/Anapest rhythm, basically unheard of in the theater scene. The complex scheme of each verse is only augmented by the quickfire topics covered. Each of the other verses (modeled on the same rhyme scheme) all reference relevant pieces of Greek Mythology. Percy, Grover, and Annabeth get to riff off one another with engagain and witty rapport.
It’s also worth noting that this is a very complex rhyme scheme for a show aimed primarily at children. Very little children’s media has anything but couplets and iambic pentameter, and this level of rhyme encourages critical thought on language, whether the audience realizes it or not.
This song is fun. So many 11 O’clock numbers from other shows focus on a negative emotional experience. From the destroyed mother/son relationship in Dear Evan Hansen (Good for you), to a extra sad™ I want song from Cats (Memory) almost all of these show stopping numbers rely on making an audience cry rather than making them feel good for the main characters. Getting to this point in a show and not wanting to cry is so refreshing.
Drive is also one of the most inspirational songs to hit the stage in recent years. The upbeat guitar and stellar poetic elements are part of that, but a large part comes from its specificity. Generic inspirational songs may reach a wider audience, but the level of hope and determination conveyed through these characters has a lasting impact. While Memory may be meaningful outside the show, Drive is the perfect culmination of emotional arcs.
I love this song. It exemplifies everything that can me done with the medium and cares deeply about it’s audience. So pedal to the metal and drive!
Cold Critical 