Prologue: The Origins of Epic
From The Song of Achilles to Hadestown, to the upcoming Odyssey film by Christopher Nolan, there are many retellings of Greek Myths, in various forms of media types.
Contemporary plays, musicals, books, and movies all portray, interpret, and expand on the Greek myths written so long ago. In 2022, a new retelling of Homer’s The Odyssey came to be.
‘Epic’, a concept album of 40 songs and nine sagas (a collection of songs related to a specific event or location) created by Jorge Rivera-Herrans, tells the story of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, and he and his crews’ journey to get back home after the events of the Trojan war (told in Homer’s The Iliad, which happens before the events of the Odyssey).
Listening to Epic Is an Odyssey on Its Own
Through the incorporation of genius and witty lyrics, beautiful and beautifully haunting music and musical motifs, and well thought out storytelling (among many other aspects), Epic is easily one of the best musicals I have listened to.
The musical starts off with the Troy Saga, where Odysseus and his crew are successful in the battle of Troy, and begin able to make their way home to Ithaca. The first song, ‘The Horse and the Infant,’ begins the tale by introducing Odysseus (and his moral dilemmas), while also establishing him as a strong and greatly respected leader.
The Troy Saga, while not my personal absolute favorite, is still amazing nonetheless. The establishment of his character is incredibly important due to how much his crew, among others, rely on Odysseus.
Seeing this part of his character change and evolve over the course of Epic is definitely a journey- and it’s an emotional one, at that.
An Homage to Homer
While still staying true to Homer’s tale in majority of the aspects of Epic, Herrans takes the original story of the Odyssey and changes it up here and there to produce an even more captivating story.
While Homer’s Odysseus seems in not much of a rush to get home to his loyal and waiting wife, Epic’s version of Odysseus would trade the world to see his beloved wife Penelope and son, Telemachus, whom he hasn’t seen in 20 years.
This explicit yearning and longing for his family creates even more of a beautiful tragedy that the Greek myths are known for, and makes for more than a few heart-wrenching songs in the albums. Making Odysseus’s family a driving force for the decisions he makes creates more impactful decisions, and sometimes even painful ones.
Arianna Gonzalez notes, “So because this is such a long living myth there are going to be details lost in translation so that’s where using your own creative freedom comes into play. Originally Ody (Odysseus) does cheat on Penelope but Jorge really seemed to want to [show Ody’s] undying love for his wife and shows he does whatever it takes to get home.”
Aside from this enhancement of Odysseus’s motives, there are other aspects Herrans interpreted that made Epic as beautiful as it was.
Ahmed Lugo comments, “I enjoyed the way Jorge puts everything together into small sagas that are catchy and easy to listen to. His interpretation of the characters, such as the gods in “god games” is great.”
“I don’t feel like his creative freedom takes away from the story, I believe it’s actually necessary in order to tell it the way he has.”
Epic: It Takes a Crew
Because Epic is only a concept album, there is no stage play, or any performance that can be viewed in a theatre.
However, Herrans has hinted that he would be interested in a stage play, along with creating more projects similar to Epic.
There is an incredibly high demand for a stage play of Epic.
Travis Leal strongly comments, “I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THIS AS A REAL MUSICAL AND STAGE PLAY!”
Vivian Elliott notes that she would absolutely love to see an Epic stage play, “…they could take all my money!”
The closest that the tale has to a “play” or show is the animatics (animated scenes of the songs, in this case) that Jorge himself has worked with animators and artists to create.
Animators and illustrators alike work incredibly hard to bring Herrans’ visions to life. Where they tell the story visually, and Herrans and his team tell it audibly.
Is Knowledge of The Odyssey Necessary?
Due to the altering and changing of the story to a degree, it is debated on whether knowledge or context of The Odyssey and/or The Iliad, or even having read it, is necessary to enjoy Epic.
Lugo states, “I would absolutely recommend familiarizing yourself with the story so you can fully appreciate all the nuances.”
Casper Eidelburg comments, “I think not knowing the source wouldn’t affect your listening since Epic’s version is very different than what the Odyssey is like.”
Gonzalez also notes that prior knowledge is not necessary, as, “…The creator does a really good job expressing the story through his music and the art he commissioned from other artists to help him tell the story of his version of the [Odyssey].”
Despite the changes to the story, I do believe that some knowledge of the original source material is necessary to be able to fully understand and appreciate what Herrans has created. If anything, it will help you appreciate Epic’s Odysseus much more.
Epic: Is the Journey Worth It?
To those who are fans of musicals, Greek mythology, or both, I would (very) emphatically recommend Epic the Musical.
Every saga is absolutely beautifu and well written. The whole musical also takes little over two hours to fully listen to.
Wouldn’t you like to experience a musical like this?
