American Idiot Musical (Theatrical Production)

[packers182]

i cant wait to read the reviews.

[norcalgreendayfan]

i cant wait to read the reviews.

me too I really hope they are mainly positive

[elanorelle72]

Can't wait to hear the reviews

went to a lecture tonight at Orinda Library about they play...

I think Ritch and I alone convinced at least 20 people LOL..Sally nodded towards us to make sure her GD data was correct! LOL

a girl is even doing a school project on it! very exciting:)

[Guest Shangri-La]

Is it on Channel 7 on the East Coast?

nope. it's local.

EDIT: found it!

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=n...&id=7018679

[Brandon R.]

nope. it's local.

EDIT: found it!

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=n...&id=7018679

This is going to be something great.

[misslyssx]

of course they spell Billie wrong :down:

[GDM]

nope. it's local.

EDIT: found it!

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=n...&id=7018679

Thanks for finding that, Zoe! Very nice interview. Also great that the interviewer seems to have liked the musical, too! WOOT!

[MassHysteria]

First Review.... Not Good

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2009/09/1...american-idiot/

[Brandon R.]

First Review.... Not Good

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2009/09/1...american-idiot/

what.

the.

FUCK?

[farley drexel hatcher]

Some more photos

Also regarding bad reviews ... you kind of have to expect a fair amount of them. This is just the territory they're in now, and it's a critic's job to say if they do and don't like it. I'm hoping there are enough people out there that enjoyed it to cancel out the bad reviews, but there will still be ones out there who hate the show.

[GDM]

First Review.... Not Good

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2009/09/1...american-idiot/

woah. that... is... woah.

ugh... rereading this review... he's actually rehashing the "sold out" meme, even if he's a fan of their music. This paragraph was the most telling:

"It’s not punk rock. It’s barely rock ‘n’ roll. It’s just big, loud, bland and intended for mass consumption. It’s the equivalent of Green Day night on TV’s “American Idol.” Where once there was fine Gouda, now there’s only pre-packaged Velveeta. In other words, it should do big business once it finally reaches Broadway."

and I'm so sick of people talking about either Rent or Spring Awakening when it comes to rock musicals. Can't reviewers be a bit more original? probably not.

Too bad. Let's hope for better things from the other reviews.

[jenni]

First Review.... Not Good

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2009/09/1...american-idiot/

woo...

Disney movie...

just 3 words: fuck you, man!!!!!!

[MassHysteria]

Not a review, but an interesting pre-show article:

http://www.dailycal.org/article/106651/ant..._rep_s_american

Just now watched that ABC news segment, has some good shots from the play.

[farley drexel hatcher]

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_13356800

Good review

[MassHysteria]

Good Review! (From the same paper oddly)

http://www.mercurynews.com/twitter/ci_13356800?source=rss

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_13356800

Good review

woops repost

[Tripe]

Can't get too bent out of shape from the bad reviews. That first one actually makes some valid points with regard to story development, etc.

I'm just hoping there are plenty of good ones too!

Loving the photos, thanks!

[MassHysteria]

Love this:

"Based on the 2004 album of the same name, this genre-bending 95-minute show runs through Nov. 1. And if there's any justice in the world it will head east shortly thereafter."

[GDM]

Can't get too bent out of shape from the bad reviews. That first one actually makes some valid points with regard to story development, etc.

Very true, and it's stuff I've heard other people say, but his review makes it seem that there are no redeeming qualities to the show at all. That was a bit bothersome.

The other review is great, but it's bothersome, too... there are no critical assessments of the show. I think a balance of the two would be more beneficial or enlightening.

[MassHysteria]

The other review is great, but it's bothersome, too... there are no critical assessments of the show. I think a balance of the two would be more beneficial or enlightening.

"The one false note may be the aerial sequence in "Extraordinary Girl," which falls a little short of the dream-like fantasia it aspires to be."

"In fact, the brief narration is the only clunky part of the piece, because it doesn't stand up against the lyrics"

[GDM]

"The one false note may be the aerial sequence in "Extraordinary Girl," which falls a little short of the dream-like fantasia it aspires to be."

"In fact, the brief narration is the only clunky part of the piece, because it doesn't stand up against the lyrics"

Thanks. I was on the phone reading it and having an argument with my rental management company. I skimmed and didn't read it fully. so I'll revised my opinion, great review!

Edited September 17, 2009 by t ann

[Abbey.]

You are a picture-finding goddess. Thank you for providing me with my fix of new GD photos for the day.

And a review is only one person's opinion. May we all get the chance to see AI and form our own!

[MassHysteria]

Here's some more of those photos:

http://www.wireimage.com/SearchResults.asp...ld=C&vwmd=e

[GDM]

Was this posted here? So many links this morning! You can record your thoughts on the show:

http://www.mercurynews.com/music/ci_13350343/

[simone18]

Here's some more of those photos:

http://www.wireimage.com/SearchResults.asp...ld=C&vwmd=e

i hate wireimage, i can´t enlarge the pictures.

BUT they look great

thx for sharing

[MassHysteria]

Another positive article from the same source as these last two, and by the same other as the positive one... different content though:

http://www.mercurynews.com/topstories/ci_13338357

Musical theater gets punk'd by 'American Idiot'

Move over, show tunes. Here comes headbanging.

The once-staid Broadway musical gets punk'd when the hotly anticipated Green Day show, "American Idiot," dawns Wednesday at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Just as "Rent" introduced a whole new generation to Broadway in the '90s, this gutsy mashup of social protest and punk rock is bound to lure the iPod crowd into the theater big time.

Not only is the post-9/11 coming-of-age tale smashing box office records (ticket demand is so intense the show has already been extended through Nov. 1), the world premiere production is infusing the old-fashioned musical theater genre with a bold new attitude.

"Punk is about taking chances, taking risks — and that is what we're trying to do with this project," says the Oakland-based band's frontman, Billie Joe Armstrong.

Of course, rock licks have been seeping onto Broadway since the '60s. The Elvis Presley homage "Bye Bye Birdie" first introduced the sound of electric guitar in 1960, and "Hair," eight years later, qualifies as the first full-fledged rock musical. Recent hits such as the 2006 alternative rock groundbreaker "Spring Awakening" have cranked up the volume even higher. But hard-core punk turns up the dial another notch. Punk puts a snarl (instead of a song) into your heart. It speaks to the generation more familiar with "I Wanna Be Sedated" than "Wonderful Town."

"People who think of the theater as not something for their generationare going to have to rethink that stance," says Susie Medak, managing director of Berkeley Rep. "Rock music is so much a part of the contemporary lexicon that you have to respect that."

Having the stamp of approval of rock star Armstrong gives "American Idiot" the street cred to qualify as a pop culture nirvana not just to the die-hard theater buffs but also to folks who don't know "Billy Elliot" from Billy Idol.

"People are ready for new blood on Broadway," says star John Gallagher Jr. who won a Tony for his turn as Moritz in the emo-rock "Spring Awakening." "There's a shift happening where people realize that rock music is not lesser."

No doubt, expanding the boundaries of Broadway is also a smart way to expand the ticket base.

"The target audience today is the under-40," notes Ruth Pangilinan, general manager of Broadway San Jose. "We've got to get those people into the theater if we want to keep moving forward."

Certainly the exuberant energy level in rehearsals, where many in the fresh-faced 19-person cast brandished tattoos and black-lacquered nails, bespeaks the amped-up pulse of youth. Director Michael Mayer of "Spring Awakening" fame runs through the insanely catchy anthem "Know Your Enemy" over and over. With the band, it's a hard-charging rant; without it, the song is transformed into an angelic chorus.

Armstrong, who has been bonding with the cast over beers, praises the ensemble for nailing the punk zeitgeist. "This is as close to a rock concert as you can get," he said. "I get choked up every time I see it. This is the greatest thing that has ever happened in my career, you know — me, a kid from Rodeo."

Originally conceived as a rock opera charting the life of the anti-hero Jesus of Suburbia, the Grammy-winning 2004 album sold more than 12 million copies. The sung-through musical distills the punk band's wailing guitar riffs into an 85-minute sonic blast. Drugs, war and discontent confront three rebels known as Johnny, Whatsername and St. Jimmy on their journey from the 'burbs to the big city.

"Johnny feels trapped in the suburban wasteland," Gallagher Jr. says. "He's got a lot of anger and frustration and he has nothing to do but hang out in the parking lot of the 7-Eleven and get stoned."

Youthful alienation fuels the pulverize-the-rafters score, which includes 20 hits such as "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," "Holiday" and "Wake Me Up When September Ends," as well as tunes from the band's latest CD, "21st Century Breakdown," such as "21 Guns" and "Know Your Enemy."

Although the album was intended as a scathing indictment of Bush America, Armstrong says the anti-establishment themes will hit home just as hard today. "We're stuck with all the same problems we had then and, if anything, things have gotten worse — being at war with yourself, at war with your government, and all the corruption of the powers that be."

Mayer, who thought the album belonged onstage the first time he heard it, says it's high time that musicals embraced an edgier aesthetic. (While there are no plans for the musical after its Berkeley run, expectations are high for a New York outing.)

"I have a deep and abiding love for the Broadway musical, but at the end of the day there is something missing a lot of the time and that's imagination, something that can take your breath away, something that takes a huge step forward," the director says. "This piece is so unconventional we don't even know what to call it. It's not a musical, it's not a punk opera, it's not a rock opera. We're just calling it a show."

At a time when Broadway is dominated by recycled movie plots and revivals, "American Idiot" scoffs at formula. There is no linear narrative but there is a live rock band thrashing on stage, high-octane choreography, 38 video screens and blaring vocals. "Oklahoma," it ain't. But as the band's iconic hit song goes, it's something unpredictable but in the end is right.