Olympus Records describes itself as a “90's Rock Greek Tragicomedy Musical,” and stuffing that much into a Fringe show is an ambitious undertaking—not to say hubristic. The story begins with the breakup of a '90s rock band called Sophocles, whose five members—siblings Ajax, Antigone, Electra, Philoctetes and Odysseus—pursue solo careers; the show's roots in tragedy give license for outrageous plot twists involving suicide and incest. But Alex Prather’s book is short on wit, and director Nikki Rothenberg’s emphasis on yelling as a means of depicting family dysfunction makes the characters tiring. Morgan Clarke's 20 songs (too many!) sometimes draw inspiration from the 1990s and sometimes just sound like generic show tunes—when you can hear them through the spotty sound. The actors stomp and shove one another around the stage a lot, with mixed results: A boy-band number, intended to be performed in tight synch, instead calls attention to disparities of the dance talent and experience within the cast. Olympus Records as a whole is a similarly mixed bag. This Fringe Icarus doesn't fly.—Scott Wooledge
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