Manipulators
Earlier this year, the Berkeley Repertory Theater announced the production of a Green Day musical – a take on their magnum opus “American Idiot”, and the collective world shrugged. When the band themselves confirmed participation, brows raised a little, and when it turned out that the director and producer of Broadway’s 2007 Best Musical “Spring Awakening” were at the helm, interest was officially lodged.
A week ago we took the plunge on a fantastic Berkeley weekend that could hardly be ruined by a low-Rent bit of musical theater, and what do you know… it was a solid experience. We planned to hit the Thai Buddhist Temple, a wonderful place to enjoy mango sticky rice and yellow curry on a Sunday morning (our advice, arrive before 10am and find parking – it’s residential, after all), and looked forward to the excellent Cheese Board Collective for vegetarian pizza and corn cherry scones (nothing to say but yum). To ruin the weekend, Green Day would have to sorely disappoint.
Thankfully, Billie Joe fans, they did not. The Berkeley Rep is a nice venue, and they featured some Green Day-themed adult beverages (Cara preferred the “Jesus of Suburbia”, a mixed drink that features Midori). Unlike many off-Broadway locations, the Rep allows beverages in the theater, so expect a decent concessions bill. Fans of the band will be frustrated by the lack of theme merchandise (the only Green Day items for sale were their studio CDs), but a giant board for Green Day fans to sign before or after the show (but not during, there is no intermission) provides a few moments of shared intimacy.
Having seen Spring Awakening twice (once on Broadway, with Glee’s Lea Michele in the female lead), and enjoyed Green Day’s tour in Las Vegas, my expectations for American Idiot were very high. Granted, I couldn’t honestly be called a Green Day “fan” – I owned a few of their CDs a decade or so ago, and while I love the theatrical Jesus of Suburbia, I considered “21 Guns” one of the sins committed in the debacled “Transformers 2″. Without spoiling too much, I’ll say “American Idiot” is far more “Rent” than “Spring Awakening”, and it contains far less emotion than either of those award-winning shows. The drama is moderate at best, there are literally no real tear-jerker moments, and the characters are nearly all slacker bums who frankly aren’t particularly interesting. Do you want to watch a production about a couple losers who opt for drinking and drugs while trying to get their band off the ground, looking for and losing love in the process? Unless you’re a Green Day fanatic, the answer is probably no.
So what does Green Day’s musical have to offer? Some inspired dance numbers (nowhere near as well choreographed as Spring Awakening, in my opinion), a very cool multimedia set design, and a whole lot of Green Day music. If you enjoyed Spring Awakening on Broadway, you may be happy to see John Gallagher, Jr. (Moritz in the original cast) at center stage as Johnny, the Jesus (of Suburbia) of the original recording. Gallagher’s more grungy than whiny as the drug-addled alpha friend, but he ably handles the Green Day standards he’s expected to rock out, somewhat recalling Awakening’s “The Bitch of Living” and “I Don’t Do Sadness”. To be honest, his nasally delivery in Awakening reminded me of Billie Joe Armstrong, so it’s probably a perfect match of styles.
As enjoyable as the musical was, there were definitely down moments. The “St. Jimmy” drug addiction character pops up a little too often for my tastes, and the inclusion of new track 21 Guns lent nothing but a ridiculous hand-dance that is immediately mock-able, while adding little to the stronger American Idiot tracks. Additionally (spoiler alert), the lack of any true game-changing emotional moments left me wondering if this was truly a “must-see”. After enduring Rent’s HIV and love stories and Awakening’s tragic endings, I felt a little… nothing… when no corresponding emotional highs and lows came across here. Granted, both of those shows were over the top and a bit melodramatic… but during a night at the theater, melodrama is often welcomed.
There were some great moments. Angelica loved the opening numbers (they jump right into the popular title track and the sprawling Jesus of Suburbia), and a raucous bus-dancing sequence provided the best match of song and theme for my money. Green Day fans will love this show, and everyone else will be entertained – much moreso than sitting through a droll retelling of Shakespearean tragedy or “Grey Gardens” style drama. And… if you’re inspired to appreciate the Berkeley punks more than ever before, make it a Green Day theme night and have late dinner at bassist Mike Dirnt’s co-owned “Rudy’s Can’t Fail Cafe“, where sweet potato fires and pie can be had.
One final note: good seats may be tough to get, with the large number of Berkeley Rep subscribers… but the theater is small enough that there are no bad seats. You can buy your tickets here. If you’re a Green Day fan and you can’t make it to the show, talk to me in the comments and I might provide you with a free program from the show!