If you have taken an English class at any point in your life, then you are probably familiar with the story of Odysseus. Maybe you read one of the many translated versions of the original epic poem – written by Homer and divided into 24 books. Or the graphic novel by acclaimed author Gareth Hinds. Or one of the 33 movie adaptations.
Now, the story of Odysseus is being told in a new medium: animation. More specifically, an animated musical. The music aspect is a roundabout, probably unintentional homage to The Odyssey being originally concocted with the intention to be spoken orally rather than read on paper.
Created by Jorge Rivera-Herrans, EPIC: The Musical is a modern retelling of Odysseus’ story. The musical is divided into nine Sagas spread throughout two Acts – each covering a different part of the Greek hero Odysseus’ journey home to Ithaca.
The first saga – aptly named the Troy Saga – begins in the thick of the Trojan War.
Do not be fooled by this beginning, because The Odyssey is not the story of an ingenious war hero helping lead the Greeks to victory against the Trojans. It is the story of a man rediscovering himself after spending ten years immersed in battle.
The opening song, “The Horse and the Infant,” begins as a hype speech from Odysseus to his men. He shouts commands and reminds the soldiers of what they are fighting for. For Odysseus, his priorities are clear: his wife Penelope and son Telemachus.
The second half of the song deals with Zeus – king of the Greek Gods – commanding Odysseus to kill Prince Hector’s son Astyanax, as he is prophesied to later seek revenge on Odysseus and his family for the Trojan War. The powerful, rhythmic, unyielding beat of “The Horse and the Infant” continues until Odysseus realizes he was sent to kill a baby. Instead of fighting the Trojans, Odysseus turns to Zeus – begging him to provide an alternate option.
After Odysseus’ argument with Zeus, the opening beats of “Just A Man” play – a soft and sweet melody. Since Odysseus last remembers Telemachus as an infant similar to Astyanax now, he feels a sense of empathy for the child. Ultimately, he chooses to prioritize his own family’s safety and kills Astyanax. After doing so, Odysseus asks himself if he has gone too far, how does he know when he has gone too far.
When heading back to Ithaca (the protagonist’s homeland), Odysseus and his crew make a pit stop at the island of Lotus Eaters. Polites, Odysseus’ crew member and beloved friend, and Odysseus go onto the island first to scout ahead for the crew. During their time alone, Polites tries to convince Odysseus that he should overcome the distrustful nature he developed over the course of the Trojan War. The song, “Open Arms,” has a light and joyful tone that compliments the explorative nature of the animation.
After coming across the Lotus Eaters, Odysseus and Polites nearly get tricked into eating the monsters’ mind-controlling food. Luckily, Odysseus’ suspicious eye catches how the fruit seems off and stops Polites from eating them. For a moment, it seems that Polites’ point about how Odysseus should be trusting is proven null. But, a moment later, Polites is able to convince the Lotus Eaters to tell them where to find safe food. This would have never been possible without Polites’ trusting and kind nature towards the Lotus Eaters.
It seems that Odysseus is starting to believe what Polites is saying about being more open when Athena, goddess of strategy and wisdom, appears. The goddess is featured more prominently in Epic: The Musical in comparison to other The Odyssey adaptations. “Athena’s role in Epic is to be Odysseus’ foothold into the world of the divine,” said Kai Barclay ’26. “She is the plot device to talk further about Odysseus.”
In “Warrior of the Mind,” Athena reminds Odysseus that he is a logical being not an emotional one. However, Odysseus seems uncertain about whether he should continue holding the role. This battle between Odysseus’ heart and survival is reignited once again in the next saga: The Cyclops Saga.
Polyphemus, the barbaric cyclops, is arguably Odysseus’ most iconic foe. Thus, it is not surprising that he got his own four-song-long saga.
For those unfamiliar with the story, Odysseus’ and his crew stop on an island inhabited by cyclops in search of food. Oblivious to the cyclops, the crew slaughtered and feasted on Polyphemus’ flock. When Polyphemus discovers the crews’ actions, he traps them in his cave and threatens to eat the humans. Before the cyclops attacks him, Odysseus bargains with Polyphemus: some wine (secretly spiked with Lotus Fruit) in exchange for the freedom of the remaining men. Polyphemus agrees, thanking Odysseus and asking for his name. Odysseus responds ‘Nobody.’ After drinking the wine, Polyphemus shockingly breaks his deal with Odysseus and attacks the crew. However, the Lotus Fruit weakened Polyphemus, allowing Odysseus and his crew to stab out the mighty cyclops’ eye and escape.
Telling Polyphemus that his name is ‘Nobody’ is an ingenious move on Odysseus’ part. When other cyclops ask Polyphemus who attacked him, his only response is ‘Nobody.’ This frees Odysseus from being punished for his actions. Unfortunately, as he sails away, Odysseus calls out his true identity to Polyphemus – the glory of felling a cyclops was too rewarding to resist. Now, Polyphemus can spread the word about who attacked him and seek revenge.
But that is the original myth.
Epic: The Musical adds an extra layer to Odysseus’ tragic mistake. During “Remember Them,” Athena tells Odysseus to kill Polyphemus before leaving the cave. However, Odysseus refuses – he feels that it would be more unnecessary bloodshed. So not once but twice did Odysseus avoid the opportunity to avoid repercussions for attacking Polyphemus.
The second saga ends with “My Goodbye,” in which Athena disowns Odysseus as her warrior of the mind. She claims that he no longer fits the role because he is becoming too soft and compassionate. Odysseus gladly agrees to their split but not before throwing a couple jabs at Athena about her lack of companionship.
The consequences of Odysseus’ newfound trust – and resulting reliance – on those around him comes to fruition in the Ocean Saga of EPIC: The Musical.
When Odysseus and his men get stuck in a storm at sea, Odysseus seeks the aid of the wind god Aeolus. Aeolus gives Odysseus a bag of air and tells him that if he can keep this bag closed he will reach home safely. Easy, right?
Unfortunately, Aeolus planted rumors among Odysseus’ crew – urging them to open the bag in hopes of it having treasure. Odysseus realizes this and personally guards the bag, driven by his memory of Penelope and Telemachus. But when Odysseus fell asleep on day nine, the crew fell prey to these rumors and opened the bag.
The air in the bag blows Odysseus and his crew away from Ithaca. This marks the end of the song “Keep Your Friends Close.” The animation transitions from a soft blue to gray tones once Odysseus realizes what his crew has done, mirroring his loss of hope about getting back home to Ithaca.
“I feel as if Epic’s interpretation of The Odyssey is one of understanding the nuance of people and exploring how trauma changes a person. Before the Ocean Saga we see how the crew immediately differs to Odysseus for orders, but during and after the Ocean Saga we see that change with Luck Runs Out, Keep Your Friends Close, Scylla, and Mutiny, the crew distrusts their captain,” said Barclay. Aeolus’ rumors, when mixed with the crew’s pre-existing PTSD, is the perfect recipe for the paranoia and backstabbing that follow.
After shutting the bag of air, Odysseus and his crew come face to face with Poseidon and the song “Ruthlessness” begins. Remember what I said about Odysseus leaving Polyphemus alive and telling him his true identity being a mistake? Yeah. It turns out that Poseidon is Polyphemus’ father. And boy is he mad. Steven Rodriguez, the voice actor for Poseidon, captures the fury of the sea god perfectly with a big, booming voice.
But Posideon is not just mad about Odysseus blinding his son. He is mad that Odysseus left Polyphemus blinded instead of killing him outright because, now, Posideon has to take revenge on Odysseus. Ruthlessness, ironically, becomes a mercy. After all, would you rather live your life driven by vengeance or die at peace?
The confrontation ends with Poseidon killing many of Odysseus’ men and Odysseus using the rest of the air in Aeolus’ bag to escape the god’s wrath. The crew ends up crashing into Circe’s Island, which is where the fourth saga takes place.
Odysseus sends his lead crewmate Eurylochus and a scouting crew onto Circe’s island to check for danger but only Eurylochus returns. Concerned for his men, Odysseus decides to go search for them.
On his way to Circe, Odysseus runs into Hermes who gives him a flower called the Holy Moly to aid him. During Odysseus’ fight against Circe, she summons the Chimera but the Holy Moly protects Odysseus against the creature. Odysseus, in return, summons a Cyclops using the Holy Moly.
Upon her defeat, Circe attempts to seduce Odysseus but Odysseus refuses her advances because he is loyal to his wife Penelope. “There Are Other Ways” really hammers in that Odysseus’ love for his wife and son is the driving motivator behind all of his decisions. Odysseus’ love for his wife moves Circe, leading her to release Odysseus’ crew. Circe also shares with Odysseus that he can get home by visiting a prophet in the Underworld and sends him on his way. It turns out that sometimes Odysseus’ vulnerability can lead to positive outcomes.
In the final saga of Act 1 – the Underworld Saga – Odysseus and his crew traverse towards the prophet Tiresias. This journey is told through the song “The Underworld,” in which Odysseus and his crew are confronted by those who have died during their journey home.
“My favorite [song] is ‘No Longer You’ because I love the overlap of voices and the emotions it projects. The Underworld Saga gives dark vibes and the variety of voices pulls me in,” said Sheila Ramirez ’26. In ‘No Longer You,’ Tiresias tells Odysseus as the man he is now – Odysseus has to return to the ruthless, calculating warrior he once was to make it back to the woman and son he loves.
This saga acts as a turning point in Odysseus’ character – he is no longer caring or trusting. His one, singular goal is to return to Ithaca.
The Thunder Saga – marking the beginning of Act 2 – begins with Odysseus and his remaining crew stumbling upon the sirens. A siren pretending to be Penelope tries seducing Odysseus into jumping off his boat. Odysseus plays along and tells the siren that he would come to her if she told him the best way to avoid Poseidon. After she complies, it is revealed that Odysseus and his crew stuffed their ears with beeswax to withstand the siren’s song.
But Odysseus does not simply flee from the monster this time – he viciously cuts off the sirens tails, leaving them to drown to death. Mercy is gone.
Following the siren’s directions, Odysseus steers his crew towards Scylla. Right before confronting the monster, Eurylochus confesses to being the traitor who opened the bag of wind. Odysseus appears indifferent to this revelation, simply telling Eurylochus to round up five more men to hold torches on the deck of the ship.
What Eurylochus does not know is that the price for passing through Scylla’s lair is the sacrifice of six men. Just as Scylla is about to eat him, Eurylochus passes off the torch and escapes unscathed.
That is, in the physical sense. Mentally, Eurylochus feels betrayed and has lost all trust in Odysseus. He leads a coup, successfully taking control of the ship and restraining Odysseus.
When Odysseus wakes up, he is on the island of Helios with his former crew. Knowing the danger of killing one of Helios’ sacred cows, Odysseus tries to convince Eurylochus to not kill any. Alas, his efforts were to no avail.
After Eurylochus slits the cow’s throat, Zeus comes to punish Odysseus and his crew. He gives Odysseus the choice between sacrificing himself or sacrificing his crew. Odysseus, with his new turn of leaf, opts to sacrifice his crew.
“The Thunder Saga’s songs are really good and shows the development and sheer difference of Odysseus pre and post the underworld saga,” said Dakota Lombard ’26. Throughout this saga, the music takes on a much more menacing tone that mirrors Odysseus’ actions.
The Wisdom Saga – seventh, if you are still keeping count – shifts the story’s perspective away from Odysseus. The viewer is taken to Ithaca, where Penelope is fighting off suitors and Telemachus is discovering himself.
In ‘Little Wolf,’ Telemachus fights against the suitor Antonious for Penelope’s honor. The animation is similar to 2D fighter games, with Telemachus and Antonious’ health even being shown in bars above their heads. With Athena’s help, Telemachus puts up somewhat of a battle against Antonious.
Following the fight, Athena and Telemachus have a talk through the song ‘We’ll Be Fine.’ Athena expresses her regret for treating Odysseus like a tool rather than a friend earlier, anonymously, and Telemachus encourages her to make amends.
So Athena visits Odysseus, who the viewer now finds out has been stuck alone on a witch’s island for the past seven years. ‘Love In Paradise’ is a duet between the witch Calypso and Odysseus where Calypso pines after Odysseus and he tries to remain loyal to Penelope.
“We see in the beginning of Epic Odysseus has moral qualms with killing. But after the Underworld Saga and the deaths of several of his friends, he becomes more ruthless. And after the rest of his crew dies and he is imprisoned on Ogygia for seven years, we see him willing to end his life, a stark change from his constant drive to see his family,” said Barclay. The once-hero is worn down and hopeless.
Athena, wanting to give Odysseus a second chance, appeals to Zeus to use divine intervention to get Odysseus off Calypso’s island. He gives her a choice: convince him to let Odysseus free or convince Apollo, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Ares, and Hera to let Odysseus free. Athena opts for the second option. Just as each level gets harder in video games, each god Athena has to convince puts up more resistance. But, she succeeds and Zeus – in a fit of rage that Athena beat his game – strikes her down with a bolt of lighting.
This latest saga most explicitly exemplifies how playwright, composer, actor, and lyricist Rivera-Herrans “aims to emulate the addictive sense of progression often seen in video games.” Both the ‘Little Wolf’ and ‘God Games’ animations pull from older fighting games.
Even though the concept animation for the last two sagas are not out yet, the music is. From the songs already released, it is clear that EPIC: The Musical is set to continue to push the boundaries of storytelling in exciting ways – blending myth with modern technology to bring a new depth to an ancient tale.
“I feel as if Epic’s interpretation of The Odyssey is one of understanding the nuance of people and exploring how trauma changes a person,” said Kai Barclay ’26.