Rocket Troupe to present musical at the Ellis
Neshoba Central High School’s theatre group, “The Rocket Troupe,” is gearing up to dazzle audiences with their performance of “The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” at the historic Ellis Theatre from Thursday, May 2, through Sunday, May 5.
This marks the 10th production for the group since they started in the Spring of 2022 and their second performance at the Ellis.
“We have only done one other show there, Disney's Descendants, back in April of 2023 and the experience was amazing,” said Dr. Angela Boatner, director. “We absolutely love working at the Ellis and cannot wait to do this show there!”
The musical, written by Rob Rokicki and Joe Tracz and based on Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series of novels, has been in rehearsal since January this year.
The story follows a group of half-blood teens, who are children of Greek gods, on a world-saving quest filled with magic, monsters, music, and more.
Boatner, who teaches theatre, chorus, and Spanish at Neshoba Central, serves as the director.
The talented student cast of “The Lightning Thief” includes Chloe Adams, Abbigail Baysinger, Brodie Ben, Anna-Kaye Bennett, Fallyn Blaine, Audree Bozeman, Ashlan Brantley, Renecia Burnside, Kalie Carroll, Laney Carroll, Cadence Clemons, Tara Cotton, Gracey Dertinger, Anslie Flake, Kaylee Fryery, Lola Mae Hallows, Jakobe Hardy, Leah Hantzis, Mia Johnson, Ethan Kidd, Anna Beth Kilgore, Nathan Killen, Laliyah Kirk, Dy’Janae McBeath, Benjamin Mcinnis, Lakynn Pickett, Emily Purvis, Juliana Rigsby, Hadley Savell, Mi’Angel Slaughter, Mollie Smith, Karri Walters, Isley Washington, Ben Weir, Jacob Winters, Jenii Young, and Madalyn Young.
“The audience can expect tons of talent on stage with this Troupe. The play is so well-written and includes monsters, magic, drama, music, and humor,” Boatner said. “I am more excited about this play than I have been about any before, because of the level of professionalism the students have risen to during their work towards the end goal of performance.”
Showtimes are scheduled on Thursday, May 2 at 6:30 p.m., Friday, May 3 at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, May 4 at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., and Sunday, May 5 at 3 p.m.
Tickets are $20 for general admission and can be purchased online at ellistheatre.org/events, at the Ellis Theatre box office, or at the door on the show dates.
This production concludes this year’s season for The Rocket Troupe, with next year’s lineup including “The Wizard of Oz,” “Frozen Jr.,” and many more plus a surprise announcement for the Spring of 2025.