Utah State grad looking forward to bringing Star-Lord to life for a home crowd in Marvel live show

Getting to dress up in a leather jacket and run around a stage filled with motorcycle stunt actors, martial artists and warring superheroes is a delight for Logan native Isaac Spooner.

Spooner, 25, plays Star-Lord in the “Marvel Universe Live! Age of Heroes” show coming to the Maverik Center from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1. While it’s a pretty big departure from the Shakespearean plays that hooked him on acting while in high school, he enjoys exploring the role.

“As somebody who started in acting, Star-Lord is more of a challenge and less of a challenge than Captain America or Black Panther,” Spooner said. “He’s not some supersoldier. He’s just a dude who learned how to be a space pirate.”

The show brings together several Marvel characters, including Spider-Man, the Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy (the group Star-Lord, aka Peter Quill, leads), Wasp, Iron Fist and Doctor Strange, to battle enemies such as Green Goblin, Loki and Nebula for control of the Wand of Watoomb.

It’s a storyline perfectly suited for a comic book, with the threat of massive destruction spurring the heroes to action.

“Star-Lord’s perspective on all of this universe-ending nonsense is that he just wants to cruise around his spaceship and maybe get rich,” Spooner said. “It’s fun in that way because for someone who lives in space, it’s a very down-to-earth perspective.”

The entire show is on a recorded track, including the actors’ lines, so it becomes a somewhat out-of-body experience for Spooner.

“It’s like when you’re singing along to the radio when you’re in the car,” he said. “You shut one part of your mind off, but that allows your body to fill lines that are being said for you. It’s really pretty interesting.”

He loves seeing the joy the show brings to kids in the audience, who are often thrilled at seeing their favorite superheroes and supervillains come to life accompanied by trick motorcyclists and flashy pyrotechnics.

“We’ve all seen superhero movies, but there’s something unique about seeing that right in front of your face,” Spooner said. “And we’re bringing in characters like Thor and Loki and Drax and Groot who are from a totally different part of the universe. It’s really exciting to see that in person.”

Since the show officially started in June, Spooner has performed anywhere from six to nine shows in a weekend. Each stadium tends to look like every other as the set is the same and his entrance spot is the same each time. But playing at home adds some extra pressure.

“I know my mom will be watching through her fingers and saying ‘Oh god, my baby is coming down from the ceiling!’” Spooner joked.

But he is excited to have friends he grew up acting in front of in high-school plays see him on such a big stage.

“It’s hard to pin down a feeling, but it’s going to be a lot of fun,” Spooner said.