chthonic ˈthä-nik adjective
: dwelling beneath the surface of the earth
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The word chthonic has appeared in two articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on Dec. 3 in “Best Theater of 2019” by Elisabeth Vincentelli:
“The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” is not a great show, or even a very good one, but it does harbor a hilarious gem — or rather many, all courtesy of Ryan Knowles. Perched on long, angular legs, Knowles handles several parts in grand Looney Tunes style. What’s most striking is his vocal versatility: He can go down to chthonic depths when playing a centaur, for instance, yet for Hades, he models his grandiosely arch line readings after Paul Lynde’s.
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