A two-part theatre piece retelling of Theseus, The Minotaur and the legend of Icarus, Half Man Half Bull is a sometimes powerful blend of spoken word and live music. While its creators clearly loved both Hamilton and Percy Jackson, this immersive and innovative show imagines the Greek myths through a modern cultural lens (including laddish soldiers, absent fathers and girlboss princesses).

The cast of four surround their audience, and throughout the performance they flow and ebb around a crowd whose heads flit back and forth to find the source of singing (or Lin-Manuel Miranda style rapping). This whole room is their stage, as cast members are positioned in the middle, at each corner or behind the audience. A minimal set-up (no props bar a little toy boat and wooden pterodactyl hung from the ceiling, and no costumes) casts more focus on words and music, allowing each story to come more alive. One cast member wears a tracksuit and appears to take a swig from a beer bottle, seemingly to let us know they’re going to make Greek mythology cool.

Each story is well put together with a focus on father-son relationships. It’s nice to see some emotional depth in stories about the mighty Greek heroes, particularly in the show’s first part, Theseus. Performances are powerful, and a few of its songs stay locked in the head. But other moments fare less well, with some of the lyrics coming across without much imagination (there’s a lot of ‘one, two, three’-ing going on). Still, the immersive elements combined with the finer sequences of poetry and lyrics make for a great double-header. 

Half Man Half Bull, Summerhall, until 26 August, 6.40pm (Part One), 7.50pm (Part Two); main picture: Iona McLeod.