Musicals inspired by Greek mythology aren’t new. Productions like “Hades Town” and “The Lightning Thief” have taken Broadway by storm over the past few years, and now a new production of “Hercules” is coming to London’s West End.
When Jorge Rivera-Herrans began writing “Epic: The Musical” (Epic), about “The Odyssey”, the reaction was unprecedented on TikTok.
By Christmas 2023 “he managed to push Taylor Swift off the top of the US iTunes album charts” according to The Guardian. Epic now has 1.6 million monthly listeners and 119 million monthly plays.
“I was terrified at first,” Rivera-Herrans expressed to The Guardian. “The first time I put a video on TikTok I was so nervous I did not sleep that night. But it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done because what’s so cool about getting to show the process online is that we’re all on an odyssey together. You get to see in real-time what works and what doesn’t.”
Rivera-Herran posted videos with snippets of music from the musical and held online auditions for roles on TikTok, where people would post videos of themselves singing along to clips from songs Rivera-Herran had shared.
“I thought we were going to get maybe 30 auditions, but we had 1,000 video submissions by the end of the month,” he continued.
“Epic” follows Odysseus’ 10-year voyage home after the Trojan War. From monsters, gods, and the betrayal of friends, it’s no easy journey. Just when he thinks things can’t get any worse, trouble is brewing in his kingdom. A recurring question is asked as the musical plays out, “At what point does a man become a monster?”
The cast for the concept album includes Rivera-Herrans voicing Odysseus, Anna Lea voicing Odysseus’ loyal wife, Penelope, and Odysseus’ son, Telemachus voiced by Miguel (Mico) Veloso. There are more people in the cast including Teagan Early (Athena), Talya Sindel (Circe), Troy Doherty (Hermes), Steven Rodriguez (Posiden), and many other talented artists.
“Epic” is composed of 40 songs divided among 9 sagas: “Troy” (5 songs), “Cyclops” (4 songs), “Ocean” (4 songs), “Circe” (4 songs), “Underworld” (3 songs), “Thunder” (5 songs), “Wisdom” (5 songs), “Vengeance” (5 songs), and “Ithaca” (5 songs).
These sagas, like chapters, come together to tell a complete story.
The musical doesn’t have an age rating yet, but the final saga has a content warning for graphic violence and allusions to sexual assault.
All over social media fans of the musical can be seen being brought to tears by the final song. The story plays out as a cinematic masterpiece. It’s no surprise fans have compared Rivera-Herrans to Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the hit musicals “Hamilton,” “Moana,” “Encanto,” and many more.
“The songs were wonderfully written and he conveyed each character’s emotions so well. His portrayal of Odysseus was phenomenal,” Kiara Camacho, ’25, commented, “When Odysseus wondered if Penelope could take him back after so long I was overcome by emotion. It was beautiful.”
While many artists are hesitant to share their creative process, Rivera-Herrans is more than willing to explain the motifs and symbolism in his music. From explanations to melodies and instruments that pertain to certain characters, such as how the viola is symbolic of Penelope, to specific compositions he enjoyed writing.
“I find it very interesting how Jorge uses musical instruments and matches them up with specific characters. I think it gives a whole new breath to lyrical writing and I think the instruments he chooses fit the characters and it’s really fun to ear references to characters in songs where they aren’t singing or directly mentioned,” expressed Norah McCabe, 25′.
In his talks with The Guardian, Rivera-Herrans also said, “If I tried dropping a hint of something happening in an earlier song – I do a lot of clues through musical motifs – will people pick up on it? When they do, it’s so rewarding.”
The musical focuses on the central theme of corruption with the transition of a man becoming a monster. At what point does this transition happen and if bad things are done in the name of love, are they excusable? This theme is spread through different motifs and songs.
“Just A Man” is the first song to touch upon this concept. When told he has to kill a baby because it will grow older and bring the fall of Greece, Odysseus is forced to think about the greater good of his family. This action haunts the narrative as Odysseus attempts to greet the world with “open arms” and choose life over death ultimately resulting in him being abandoned by Athena who wants him to abandon mercy.
At first, Odysseus attempts to use his wits and heart to return home, but every step of the way something goes wrong. As this story progresses and Odysseus is shown that mercy leads to destruction, he becomes ruthless, learning the only way to reach his wife again is by leaving behind his morality.
Meanwhile, Athena starts to rethink her mindset and feels guilty for abandoning Odysseus. She begins to mentor Telemachus and teaches him how to become a “warrior of the mind” with empathy and compassion.
By the end of “The Vengeance saga,” Odysseus metaphorically dies and is reborn as a monster adopting all the motifs of monsters he’s fought through the musical. He returns home changes and struggles with his past. As he reunites with Telemachus and Penelope, Odysseus is reminded he’s still human and is loved no matter what he’s done.
It leaves the question, “at what point does a man become a monster” and is he really a monster or just a man who wanted to get home after being forced to accept brutality to survive? Is he a loving husband and father or a selfish killer? Maybe he’s all those things at once.
Though the plot is based on Homer’s “Odyssey,” Rivera-Herrans takes creative liberties with the classic, drawing influence from anime and video games; turning a tale as old as time into a new hit.
This is seen in many different ways including epic battle scenes, character designs, animation, and much more. Each god has a “power move” of sorts that acts like a superpower. Athena can use “Quick Thought” which speeds the thoughts of whoever is under the power’s effect. It allows the person under the influence to speak to Athena while getting a step ahead of their opponent.
All of this brings a modern spin to an old classic making it more appealing to broader audiences as it stands bold against many “Odyssey” adaptations.
The musical is a concept album, not a stage production. According to The Guardian, “Rivera-Herrans and his team are in talks with what they describe as a ‘very high-level company’ to make an animated movie, and with another to create a live-action stage show”. There are also plans for up to three video games inspired by the musical.
The musical can be found on Spotify, iTunes, and other streaming services. While the whole musical hasn’t been made into a movie yet, fans can find the whole musical “movie” on YouTube where Rivera-Herrans live streamed the release of “Epic”. While some parts of the video are lyrics and descriptions of what the characters are doing, much of it is animated.
“I didn’t know anything about ‘The Odyssey’ before I watched this, but watching the story play out was like a roller coaster. He really brought the story to life and the animations really helped bring these stories to life as well,” Camacho commented.
To find live stream video you can press here.
Limited edition merchandise has also been released on The Gilded Teafling including an official “Epic: The Musical” sweater and tea inspired by the musical.
With “Epic” beginning as a musical on TikTok, its success is astonishing. It is not the only musical to come from the popular app, but it is by far the only one that looks to be getting a real production.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, people across TikTok made a musical entitled “Ratatousical” inspired by the Disney movie “Ratatouille” which had “emerged from the online meme culture” as The Guardian put it. It was on Broadway for one show as a charity event and quickly lost popularity afterward.
After the “Unofficial Bridgerton Musical” based on the hit show and book series “Bridgerton” was made. When the creators Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear won a Grammy for best musical theatre album and attempted to make it into a real musical they were sued by Netflix. Nothing ever came of the album afterward
“What is the next version of ‘Epic’ that we put out into the world? I’m so open for all of the options because, in each different version, we can convey different aspects of the story,” Rivera-Herrans expressed.
With the success of “Epic: The Musical” fans are excited to see what Rivers-Herrans chooses to do next and are looking forward to a screen adaptation of the musical in the future.
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