Dec. 28 - Jan. 15 -
American Idiot at Toronto, ON @ Toronto Centre for the Arts
Jan. 17 - Jan. 22 -
American Idiot at Detroit, MI @ Opera House
Jan. 24 - Jan. 29 -
American Idiot at Boston, MA @ Opera House
Jan. 31 - Feb. 5 -
American Idiot at Raleigh, NC @ Memorial Auditorium
Feb. 21 - Feb. 26 -
American Idiot at Minneapolis, MN @ Orpheum Theatre
Feb. 28 - Feb. 29 -
American Idiot at State College, PA @ Eisenhower Auditorium
Mar. 2 - Mar. 4 -
American Idiot at St. Louis, MO @ Peabody Opera House
Mar. 13 - Apr. 22 -
American Idiot at Los Angeles, CA @ Ahmanson Theatre
Apr. 24 - Apr. 29 -
American Idiot at Tempe, AZ @ ASU Gammage
May. 8 - May. 20 -
American Idiot at Dallas, TX @ AT&T PAC
May. 29 - Jun. 3 -
American Idiot at Costa Mesa, CA @ Segerstrom Center
Jun. 5 - Jun. 10 -
American Idiot at Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
June 12- July 8 -
American Idiot at San Francisco @ Orpheum Theatre
5-16 - BROADWAY CARES CHARITY AUCTION
The smash-hit, Tony Award®-winning AMERICAN IDIOT is Broadway's most exciting new musical. The New York Times calls it, "thrilling and emotionally charged, as moving as anything on Broadway!" Based on Green Day's Grammy® Award-winning multi-platinum album and featuring the smash hits "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", "Holiday" and "21 Guns", AMERICAN IDIOT is the story of three lifelong friends, forced to choose between their dreams and the safety of suburbia. Their search for meaning in a post 9-11 world leads them on the most exhilarating journey of the Broadway season. This amazing show just closed on April 24. The cast and crew has generously donated some one-of-a-kind items to Broadway Cares.. The cast and crew has generously donated some one-of-a-kind items to Broadway Cares. These white size 7 Creepers were part of the original costume design and were worn onstage by Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong during technical rehearsals for his original run as "St. Jimmy" in January 2011. They were not worn in performances as the soles of the shoes were too heavy for all the running up and down stairs that Billie Joe did in the show. As you can see Billie Joe has signed one side of the shoes for Broadway Cares. Don't wanna be an American Idiot? Bid now:
HERE
5-16 - BROADWAY.COM AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS
Broadway fans have had their say, picking their favorites of the 2010-2011 season at the Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards. The winners were announced live at the Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center in a swanky, funny ceremony hosted by Vanessa Williams.
The revival of
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying picked up four trophies including Favorite Musical Revival. Stars Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette each won two, including the shared Favorite Onstage Pair award.
Sister Act was named Favorite Musical, with War Horse being named the fans' Favorite Play. Acting awards were also awarded to Sutton Foster (
Anything Goes), Robin Williams (
Bengal Tiger at the Baghad Zoo), Judith Light (
Lombardi), Billie Joe Armstrong (
American Idiot) and Nick Adams, who triumphed in two categories for his role as Felicia in
Priscilla Queen of the Desert.
[Full article at Broadway.com]
4-25 - ROLLING STONE
Billie Joe Armstrong Bids Farewell to Broadway With Hour-Long Concert
Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong gave his final performance as St. Jimmy in the Broadway production of American Idiot yesterday – the closing night of the show – and then gave more. After the final curtain, the cast's nightly encore sing-along of "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" and a round of congratulatory speeches by director Michael Mayer and producers Tom Hulce and Ira Pittelman, Armstrong and his Green Day bandmates – bassist Mike Dirnt and drummer Tré Cool, with guitarist Jason White and keyboard player Jason Freese – took the stage for a full hour of additional music and mayhem. The band played a 10-song set with the cast dancing behind them and drinking beer. At one point, two cast members raced past Armstrong and stage-dived into the crowd.
Green Day's set included two songs from their 1994 breakout album, Dookie – "Burnout" and "Welcome to Paradise" – as well as "Murder City" from 2009's 21st Century Breakdown. There were two covers: "Walking Out on Love," a power-pop obscurity by the late-Seventies band the Nerves, and a high-speed tease of the theme song from the TV-cartoon series Spider-Man, minus any mention of the U2-related musical under reconstruction two blocks away.
Green Day also reprised "Holiday" and "Letterbomb" from the American Idiot score; Armstrong noted that the latter was a special request from actor John Gallagher, who originated the role of Johnny, the Jesus of Suburbia, in the show and was in the audience for the closing. (Melissa Etheridge, who played St. Jimmy for a couple of weeks this year while Armstrong was on a break, was also in the house.) For the final number, Armstrong led the band into a full-length blast of the mini-opera "Jesus of Suburbia."
For a guy who had just done two shows that day (there was an afternoon matinee as well), Armstrong had no shortage of momentum during Green Day's set, leading sing-alongs and doing Pete Townshend-style leaps. "Ladies and gentlemen, this isn't a fucking party – this is a fucking celebration!" he yelled before jumping into "Welcome to Paradise." He took a potshot at the president who partly inspired the 2004 American Idiot album, George W. Bush, and another at the guy who replaced him, noting that we are now in three wars (if you include Libya). "But I'm not going to go down in this shit storm," Armstrong crowed. "Can we fucking unite?" He pointed out later, gesturing at the stage set with its images of old punk-gig flyers on the walls, that "I never thought I'd see my bedroom on a Broadway stage."
During American Idiot's last Broadway performance – the 445th – Van Hughes, as Johnny, asked in his final monologue, "Is this the end or just the beginning?" Members of the audience shouted "The beginning!" Pittelman and Hulce confirmed that in their speeches. In December, American Idiot will start a national tour, followed by productions in Europe, Japan and Australia. A movie version of the show is also in development.
Praise and congratulations made the rounds on stage between the final bows and Green Day's set. "Billie Joe, you're a fucking poet," director Mayer told the singer-lyricist, who looked bashfully grateful. Co-producer Hulce ended his remarks – and American Idiot's two-and-a-half-year journey from development to Broadway – by giving Green Day the Great White Way's highest compliment: "Billie, Mike and Tré, welcome to the theater."
4-25 - PLAYBILL
American Idiot Tour Will Rock L.A., St. Louis, Seattle, Boston and Detroit
Additional cities have been announced for the national tour of the Tony Award-nominated Green Day musical
American Idiot, which will launch Dec. 28 in Toronto.
The rock musical that explores the lives of disenfranchised American youth post 9/11 ended its Broadway run April 24 at the St. James Theatre after 421 performances and 27 previews.
Check out Playbill.com's closing-night story.
In addition to the tour, productions of
American Idiot are being explored for England, Europe, Japan and Australia.
Based on Green Day's album of the same title, the musical has a book by director Michael Mayer and Green Day front man Billie Joe Armstrong. It features arrangements by Tony Award-winning composer Tom Kitt and choreography by Olivier Award winner Steven Hoggett.
The current tour itinerary for
American Idiot follows:
Toronto, ON (Dec. 28-Jan. 15, 2012, at the Toronto Centre for the Arts)
Detroit, MI (Jan. 17-Jan. 22, 2012, at the Opera House)
Boston, MA (Jan. 25-Jan. 29, 2012, at the Opera House)
Raleigh, NC (Jan. 31-Feb. 5, 2012, at the Memorial Auditorium)
Minneapolis, MN (Feb. 21-26, 2012, at the Orpheum Theatre)
State College, PA (Feb. 28-Feb. 29, 2012, at the Eisenhower Auditorium)
St. Louis, MO (March 2-4, 2012, at the Peabody Opera House)
Los Angeles, CA (March 13-April 22, 2012, at the Ahmanson Theatre)
Tempe, AZ (April 24-29, 2012, at ASU Gammage)
Dallas, TX (May 8-20, 2012, at AT&T PAC)
Costa Mesa, CA (May 29-June 3, 2012, at the Segerstrom Center)
Seattle, WA (June 5-10, 2012, at the Paramount Theatre)
Casting for the tour has not been announced.
American Idiot began preview performances on March 24, 2010, and opened on Broadway to solid reviews on April 20, 2010, following its world-premiere, twice-extended limited engagement at Berkeley Repertory Theatre's Roda Theatre in California.
The musical was nominated for the 2010 Tony as Best Musical, and won two Tonys for its scenic and lighting design. The show also won the 2011 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album, plus a Drama Desk Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award.
Visit
AmericanIdiotonBroadway.
4-13 - "AMERICAN IDIOT" LANDS AT UNIVERSAL
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "American Idiot," the Broadway musical based on Green Day's acclaimed album of the same name, is getting another life on the big screen.
Universal is in negotiations to pick up the screen rights and has hired Michael Mayer, the director of the stage production, to shoot the movie version.
Dustin Lance Black, the Oscar-winning writer of "Milk," is in discussions to write the screenplay. Tom Hanks will serve as a producer, along with the members of the punk rock trio.
A concept album tackling the ideas of love vs. rage, "American Idiot" follows three characters: the aimless Jesus of Suburbia, punk rock freedom fighter St. Jimmy, and Whatsername. It was released in 2004 and quickly became one of the band's biggest albums. It also spawned Grammy Awards, as did the Broadway version.
Hanks and business partner Gary Goetzman were producers on the mega-smash "Mamma Mia!," the adaptation of the musical based on the ABBA songs. Universal was behind that musical, which got it on the hunt for other musical projects.
[Full article at Reuters]
3-31 - BROADWAY WORLD
Dancap Productions held an open casting call for the Broadway smash-hit American Idiot this Saturday, March 26th in Toronto. The Canadian talent came out in droves to show the New York casting agent what they had to offer! The Tony Award Winning American Idiot is based on the Green Day album of the same name, and it will rock the Toronto Centre for the Arts from December 28th, 2011 to January 15th, 2012.
Toronto is one of only four cities casting for the upcoming tour, and the only Canadian stop. The casting directors from Roundabout Theatre Company in NYC are looking for male and female rock singers in their early to mid 20s.
The auditions were scheduled to start at 11AM at Roy Thomson Hall, but the first people arrived in line as early as 3:30AM to make sure they got their chance to shine. They camped out in the cold with their sheet music, guitars, rock ballads and coffee! Some even came from as far as Buffalo to be seen.
BWW was on hand to experience the excitement of the open call, and is thrilled to bring you photographs of many of the hopefuls as well as a brief interview with casting agent Carrie Gardner, who told us a little bit about what she was looking for in the next group of "Idiots":
Do people auditioning have to be able to play the guitar?
Our three male leads have to, but no one else in the show has to play. Everyone plays at the end in the encore but we teach that. For the leads however, they must be adept enough to accompany themselves while singing.
What are you looking for when you listen to someone sing?
It's really a combination of everything. This is a musical so obviously people have to be technically proficient. We want people to be great actors, but they have to be singers first. In terms of vocal range, we are casting the entire company so we are looking for everything. Personality is also huge, so people coming in should try and show a bit of who they are when they are singing. I can really notice a difference between people who are just singing at me and people who are really putting emotion and personality behind it.
Are you more likely to choose someone with experience over someone coming out for their very first audition?
Not necessarily. To me it doesn't really matter how many times you have auditioned, it is whether or not you can handle the role. If you are so green that you might not be able to perform eight times a week that would be a problem. I'm looking for people to have a certain level of professionalism and confidence.
How many callbacks would you get out of a day like today?
I would suspect between about 30-50.
For those getting a callback, what really stood out to you?
They have to have a bit of edge. Musical theatre performers who come in and try and be in this "American Idiot" world sometimes struggle because they are a bit too polished. For this show they have to be able to convince the audience they are people who spend their days sitting on their couch in middle America. Sometimes you might be a bit "too Broadway" for that. The people getting callbacks had something which grabbed me, and so I want to see them do a whole song. Some of them might crash and burn when given the material, it is always interesting to see the difference between what someone will do with 16 bars and what they will do with an entire song.
When and Where?
American Idiot
Toronto Centre for the Performing Arts
December 28th, 2011 - January 15th, 2012
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased via phone at 416.644.3665
( toll-free 1.866.950.7469) or online at www.dancaptickets.com
All Photos by Racheal McCaig Photography
[Full article at Broadway World]
3-10 - BILLIE JOE RETURNS TO BROAWAY
GREEN DAY’S AMERICAN IDIOT
BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG RETURNS APRIL 5 FOR FINAL THREE WEEKS ON BROADWAY!
Green Day’s frontman and composer/co-author, Billie Joe Armstrong is returning to send AMERICAN IDIOT out with a bang. This limited return engagement will include the one year anniversary on Wednesday, April 20, as well as the groundbreaking musical’s final Broadway performance on Sunday, April 24. Don’t miss your last chance to see Billie Joe as St. Jimmy, in a performance The New York Times raves "brings a jolt of authentic rock-god electricity to an already electrifying musical!"
3 ways to get tickets:
· ONLINE Click Here
· BY PHONE Call Telecharge at (212) 239-6200
· IN PERSON St. James Theatre, 246 W. 44th St., New York NY 10036
For more information visit http://www.AmericanIdiotonBroadway.com
3-09 - GIBSON
Green Day have announced a new open casting call for a touring version of their Broadway hit, American Idiot. The auditions, held by Dancap Productions in various cities in America and Canada, began this past Saturday in Los Angeles. Now, a Toronto audition has been added to the audition schedule. An ad on the musical’s Facebook page says that the production is “seeking male and female rock singers early-late 20s for the upcoming national tour of American Idiot.”
The Tony Award-winning American Idiot has been a hit on Broadway since it opened last April. The play includes such Green Day hits as “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” and “Wake Me Up When September Ends.”
Open casting dates:
Toronto Open Call – Saturday, March 26 (location/time TBD)
Boston Open Call – Saturday, April 9 (location/time TBD)
Chicago Open Call – Saturday, April 23 (location/time TBD)
Full article at Gibson.com:
HERE.
3-06 - AOL
3-02 - PLAY BILL
Rock On: Davey Havok Is St. Jimmy in American Idiot; Justin Guarini Is Will, Van Hughes Is Jesus of Suburbia
Davey Havok, the lead singer of the rock band AFI, steps into the role of St. Jimmy in Broadway's
American Idiot starting March 1. He's one of several new leads at the St. James Theatre.
Havok succeeds Green Day front man Armstrong and plays a two-week run in the rock musical inspired by the Green Day punk album of the same name. (Grammy and Academy Award Award-winning singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge also recently played a week-long stint as the dark alter ego known as St. Jimmy. The role was created by Tony Vincent, who is heard on the cast album.)
Also on March 1, the
Idiot cast welcomes "American Idol" finalist and recent
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown star Justin Guarini to the role of Will (succeeding Michael Esper); Van Hughes (
9 to 5, Hairspray) to the role of Johnny (succeeding Tony winner John Gallagher Jr.); and Libby Winters, who made her Broadway debut in the ensemble of
American Idiot, to the role of the Extraordinary Girl (succeeding Christina Sajous, who left Feb. 26).
(Armstrong and original cast members Gallagher and Esper exited the show after the Feb. 27 evening performance.)
[Full article at Playbill.com]
The Broadway rock musical "American Idiot" -- which features hit songs by the punk band Green Day -- will be making its Los Angeles debut at the Ahmanson Theatre in March 2012. Organizers said the national tour will touch down at the Ahmanson from March 14 through April 22, 2012, with the official opening set for March 16.
"American Idiot" tells the story of three friends contending with war, religion, and other cataclysmic events. The musical had its world premiere in September 2009 at Berkeley Repertory and opened the following April at the St. James Theatre in New York, where it is still playing.
Directed by Michael Mayer, the show uses songs from the Green Day albums "American Idiot" and "21st Century Breakdown" and features a book by Mayer and Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong. The Broadway production received a Tony nomination for best musical, and won Tonys in the categories of scenic and lighting design.
Mayer previously directed the musical "Spring Awakening," which ran at the Ahmanson in 2008.
No casting information has been announced for the national tour, which kicks off in the fall, but producers are holding open casting calls for all roles in L.A., Chicago, Toronto and Boston. (The L.A. audition will take place Saturday at the Debbie Reynolds Studio in North Hollywood.) Tom Hulce, the "Amadeus" actor who serves as a producer on "American Idiot," said in a phone interview from New York that the open auditions are a reflection of the show's punk-music roots. "It is as connected to contemporary pop music as it is to Broadway," he said. "We are extremely interested in anyone who would like to come to us from the rock, pop and punk end of it."
Hulce said that it's too early to say how much of the national tour will be cast from the open calls, but he added that Armstrong will be involved with the final casting decisions. "We're excited to see what we find. It will be a fairly national and involved process," said Hulce.
In addition to the national tour, producers are have conversations about foreign territories as well, though nothing has been finalized.
"American Idiot" will be part of the Ahmanson's upcoming 2011-12 season, which also includes the new musical "Bring It On."
[Full article at LA Times]
"American Idiot," the jukebox rock musical featuring songs by Green Day, is now a Grammy winner.
Billie Joe Armstrong and Green Day won the 2010 Grammy Award for musical show album for the musical, which opened in April at the St. James Theatre in New York.
The other nominees in the category were "Sondheim on Sondheim," "A Little Night Music," "Fela!" and "Promises, Promises."
Armstrong wasn't in Los Angeles to accept the award since he is currently playing the role of St. Jimmy in "American Idiot" on Broadway.
The "American Idiot" album was released by Reprise. The musical uses songs from Green Day's albums "American Idiot" and "21st Century Breakdown," both of which won Grammy awards in 2005 and 2010, respectively.
Armstrong will be performing in the Broadway production through Feb. 27. A national tour of "American Idiot" is in the works, with a start date expected in the fall.
[Full article at LA Times]
2-12 - PLAYBILL
National Tour of 'American Idiot' in the Works
Green Day fans around the country who cannot get to New York City won't have to ask, "Are we the waiting?," starting this fall. American Idiot, the Green Day-scored Broadway musical fantasia about three suburban pals taking different paths in a post-9/11 world, will journey to a city near you.
According to an Equity casting/audition notice, a touring production of the Michael Mayer-directed musical, with a score by Green Day, lyrics by front man Billie Joe Armstrong and libretto co-written by Mayer and Armstrong, will rehearse in the summer for an autumn launch.
No casting or dates have been announced for the tour, produced by Broadway producers Tom Hulce, Ira Pittelman and partners.
American Idiot, now at Broadway's St. James Theatre and starring Armstrong as St. Jimmy (through Feb. 27, followed by Davey Havok in the role), has choreography by Steven Hoggett and musical supervision by Tom Kitt. Kevin Adams and Christine Jones won Tony Awards for their scenic and lighting design, respectively.
The musical had its world premiere in fall 2009 in Green Day's old stomping ground: Berkeley, CA, at Berkeley Rep.
Mayer (a previous Tony winner for Spring Awakening) won the 2010 Drama Desk Award for Best Direction of a Musical for American Idiot. The musical was nominated for a 2010 Tony Award for Best Musical.
See the recent Playbill.com article about the new Broadway casting.
For more information, visit americanidiotonbroadway.com.
[Full article at Playbill.com]
NEW CAST MEMBERS ANNOUNCED
LEAD SINGER OF ROCK BAND AFI IN HIS BROADWAY DEBUT
DAVEY HAVOK AS “ST. JIMMY”
SINGER/ SONG WRITER
JUSTIN GUARINI AS “WILL”
ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST MEMBER
VAN HUGHES AS “JOHNNY”
ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST MEMBER
LIBBY WINTERS AS “THE EXTRAORDINARY GIRL”
TO BEGIN PERFORMANCES MARCH 1, 2011
(New York, NY- February 10, 2011) The producers of the critically acclaimed AMERICAN IDIOT announced today that Davey Havok (lead vocalist of the American rock band AFI) is set to join the cast for a limited two week engagement as “St. Jimmy” on March 1, 2011. In addition, Justin Guarini (Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) will play the role of “Will,” and current and original Broadway cast members Van Hughes and Libby Winters will take over the roles of “Johnny” and “The Extraordinary Girl,” respectively on March 1, 2011 at The St. James Theatre, 246 W 44th Street.
"I couldn't be more excited that Davey is joining the American Idiot cast to play St. Jimmy. Not only is he a good friend of mine, but I feel that he also brings the perfect energy and air of menace to the part,” says composer/co-author and lead singer of Green Day Billie Joe Armstrong. “The audience is going to freak out.”
“Justin blew us away in his audition and I am thrilled to have him join the company of American Idiot,” says director and co-book writer Michael Mayer. “And, of course, I’m proud and excited to have Van and Libby, original Broadway cast members who have poured their blood, sweat and tears into the show over the past year, move into these lead roles.”
Original Broadway cast members John Gallagher Jr. (Johnny), Michael Esper (Will), Christina Sajous (The Extraordinary Girl) and, after a triumphant 50 performance engagement Green Day frontman and the musical’s composer and co-author, Billie Joe Armstrong (St. Jimmy) will play their final performances February 27, 2011 (Gallagher, Esper and Armstrong) and February 26, 2011 (Sajous).
Called “the first great musical of the 21st century” by The Toronto Star, AMERICAN IDIOT tells the story of three lifelong friends, forced to choose between their dreams and the safety of suburbia. Their quest for meaning in a post 9-11 world leads them on an exhilarating journey.
Based on Green Day’s groundbreaking rock opera American Idiot, Billie Joe Armstrong and the band collaborate with one of the theatre's most acclaimed creative teams, led by the Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer, Pulitzer Prize and two-time Tony Award-winning composer and orchestrator Tom Kitt, and Olivier Award-winning choreographer Steven Hoggett, to bring this explosive, iconic album to the stage.
AMERICAN IDIOT currently stars Tony Award winner John Gallagher Jr. (Spring Awakening), Tony Award Nominee Stark Sands (Journey’s End), Michael Esper (A Man For All Seasons), Rebecca Naomi Jones (Passing Strange), Christina Sajous (The Wild Party), and Jeanna de Waal (We Will Rock You – West End). The cast also features Declan Bennett, Jennifer Bowles, Andrew Call, Gerard Canonico, Miguel Cervantes, Van Hughes, Brian Charles Johnson, Jason Kappus, Lorin Latarro, Omar Lopez-Cepero, Leslie McDonel, Chase Peacock, Wallace Smith, Ben Thompson, Alysha Umphress, Aspen Vincent, Mikey Winslow and Libby Winters.
The show features Tony Award winning scenic design by Christine Jones (Spring Awakening), costume design by Baryshnikov fellow Andrea Lauer (The Butcher of Baraboo), Tony Award winning lighting design by Kevin Adams (Hair), Sound design by Olivier and Obie Award-winner Brian Ronan (Cabaret), as well as video design by Darrel Maloney. The Music Director is Carmel Dean and Lorin Latarro is the Associate Choreographer.
Reprise Records released The Original Broadway Cast Recording of AMERICAN IDIOT on April 20, 2010, the same day as the show opened. The official album features the original 24-member cast accompanied by Green Day, marking another incredible collaboration between the band and the musical. The Original Broadway Cast Recording of AMERICAN IDIOT is nominated for a 2011 GRAMMY® Award for Best Musical Show Album. The 53rd Annual GRAMMY® Awards will air on February 13, 2011, 8pmET/PT on CBS.
Tickets range from $127.00 - $49.00 and can be purchased at The St. James Box Office or via telecharge.com (212-239-6200). The performance schedule for AMERICAN IDIOT is Tuesday at 7pm, Wednesday 8pm, Thursday at 8pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm & 8pm and Sunday at 3pm and 7:30pm.
www.AmericanIdiotonBroadway.com
1-18 - PRESS RELEASE
OSCAR® AND GRAMMY® AWARD WINNING
ROCK STAR
MELISSA ETHERIDGE
TO PLAY “ST. JIMMY”
ONE WEEK ONLY
FEBRUARY 1 – 6, 2011
BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG
CURRENTLY STARRING AS “ST. JIMMY”
RETURNS FEBRUARY 10, 2011 TO COMPLETE
HIS 50 PERFORMANCE ENGAGEMENT
THROUGH FEBRUARY 27, 2011
(New York, NY- January 18, 2011) The producers of the critically acclaimed AMERICAN IDIOT announced today that OSCAR® and GRAMMY®Award winning rock star Melissa Etheridge will play the role of “St. Jimmy” for a one-week engagement, February 1 – 6, 2011. Ms. Etheridge is one of the most iconic recording artists in the music industry. For the rest of the month, Green Day frontman and the musical’s composer and co-author Billie Joe Armstrong will return to the role of “St. Jimmy” and complete his 50 performance, limited engagement from February 10-27, 2011 at the St. James Theatre, 246 West 44 Street.
ST. JIMMY 2011 Performance Schedule:
BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG: January 18 - 30
MELISSA ETHERIDGE: February 1 - 6
BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG: February 10 - 27
“Billie Joe and I always believed that it would be incredible to have a woman take on the role of St. Jimmy. This character is seductive, thrilling and dangerous. Melissa Etheridge is all that and so much more. She's a rock icon and we couldn't be more thrilled that she's bringing her immense talent to American Idiot,” says Michael Mayer.
The performance schedule for AMERICAN IDIOT is Tuesday at 7pm, Wednesday 8pm, Thursday at 8pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm & 8pm and Sunday at 3pm and 7:30pm.
Called “the first great musical of the 21st century” by The Toronto Star, AMERICAN IDIOT tells the story of three lifelong friends, forced to choose between their dreams and the safety of suburbia. Their quest for meaning in a post 9-11 world leads them on an exhilarating journey.
Based on Green Day’s groundbreaking rock opera American Idiot, Billie Joe Armstrong and the band collaborate with one of the theatre's most acclaimed creative teams, led by the Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer, Pulitzer Prize and two-time Tony Award-winning composer and orchestrator Tom Kitt, and Olivier Award-winning choreographer Steven Hoggett, to bring this explosive, iconic album to the stage.
In addition to either Armstrong or Etheridge, AMERICAN IDIOT stars Tony Award winner John Gallagher Jr. (Spring Awakening), Tony Award Nominee Stark Sands (Journey’s End), Michael Esper (A Man For All Seasons), Rebecca Naomi Jones (Passing Strange), Christina Sajous (The Wild Party), and Jeanna de Waal (We Will Rock You – West End). The cast also features Declan Bennett, Jennifer Bowles, Andrew Call,Gerard Canonico, Miguel Cervantes, Van Hughes, Brian Charles Johnson, Lorin Latarro, Omar Lopez-Cepero, Leslie McDonel, Chase Peacock, Wallace Smith, Theo Stockman, Ben Thompson, Alysha Umphress, Aspen Vincent, Mikey Winslow and Libby Winters.
The show features Tony Award winning scenic design by Christine Jones (Spring Awakening), costume design by Baryshnikov fellow Andrea Lauer (The Butcher of Baraboo), Tony Award winning lighting design by Kevin Adams (Hair), Sound design by Olivier and Obie Award-winnerBrian Ronan (Cabaret), as well as video design by Darrel Maloney. The Music Director is Carmel Dean and Lorin Latarro is the Associate Choreographer.
Reprise Records released The Original Broadway Cast Recording of AMERICAN IDIOT on April 20, 2010, the same day as the show opened. The official album features the original 24-member cast accompanied by Green Day, marking another incredible collaboration between the band and the musical. The Original Broadway Cast Recording of AMERICAN IDIOT is nominated for a 2011 GRAMMY® Award for Best Musical Show Album. The 53rd Annual GRAMMY® Awards will air on February 13, 2011, 8pmET/PT on CBS.
1-10 - PLAYBILL
PHOTO CALL: American Idiot and Billie Joe Armstrong Celebrate 300th Performance on Broadway
Green Day front man Billie Joe Armstrong rejoined the cast of
American Idiot for 50 performances as "St. Jimmy" on New Year's Day, arriving just in time to celebrate the musical's 300th performance on Broadway. The cast, crew and producers celebrated the Jan. 8 milestone onstage.
American Idiot is inspired by Green Day's punk album of the same name, and also uses the disc's B-side tracks and numbers from the album "21st Century Breakdown." A fresh, post-9/11 story has been attached to the songs. Three suburban buddies (John Gallagher Jr., Stark Sands, Michael Esper) take separate paths and encounter love, loss, violence, temptation and understanding along the way. St. Jimmy is a dark force that speaks to Gallagher's Johnny, aka Jesus of Suburbia, who travels to the big city for a new experience.
Armstrong briefly stepped into the role of "St. Jimmy" last fall during the vacation of original cast member, Tony Vincent. Vincent played his final performance as "St. Jimmy" on Dec. 30. Armstrong's 2011 performance schedule, however, is not always in consecutive weeks: He'll appear Jan. 1-9, Jan. 18-30 and Feb. 10-27.
Here's a look at the 300th performance celebration:
Playbill.com
Billie Joe Armstrong Considers Film and Theater Projects
By PATRICK HEALY As a follow-up to his “American Idiot” musical now on Broadway, Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong said on Sunday night that he’d like to try his hand at creating an original musical with Michael Mayer, the director of “American Idiot.” The two men, interviewed as part of The Times’s Arts & Leisure Weekend, said they had no definite plans, but Mr. Armstrong rhapsodized frequently about this first experience with theater — creating “American Idiot” with Mr. Mayer (“Spring Awakening”) and now performing in the show through late February as the malevolent character St. Jimmy.
“I think I’d be interested in the future of really getting into writing specifically for a show, that’s something I’d really love to do,” said Mr. Armstrong, the lead singer of the band Green Day, whose 2004 album “American Idiot” formed the basis of the musical. “The kind of music that I like is very immediate and very catchy, and you identify with it quickly, and I try to write that way. And in musical theater it’s the same thing: you identify with the songs immediately, the good ones anyway.”
Asked if they had any specific ideas for a show, the two men indicated that they did not, though Mr. Mayer said, “We’ve got a little Rolodex we go through.”
They are also working to create a film version of “American Idiot.” Mr. Mayer said: “We’re definitely in talks. There are people who have the ability to make it happen, who have expressed genuine interest in it, and we want to do it, so I think it could happen.” He declined to identify the potential producers, but news reports said that the Playtone partners Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman were interested.
On the matter of playing St. Jimmy in a film, Mr. Armstrong smiled and shrugged and said nothing, but Mr. Mayer chimed in: “I think that’s a no-brainer.”
[Full article at NY Times]
Welcome to a New Kind of Tension: Billie Joe Armstrong on His ‘American Idiot’ Role
Billie Joe Armstrong plays many roles in “American Idiot,” and that’s before he even takes the stage at the St. James Theater. Mr. Armstrong, the 38-year-old
Green Day front man and guitarist and a co-writer of that Broadway musical adapted from his band’s hit album of the same title, rejoined the show on Jan. 1 to resume the role of St. Jimmy, the pugnacious, drug-pushing alter ego of the protagonist, Johnny (portrayed by John Gallagher Jr.). (Charles Isherwood’s
review of Mr. Armstrong in “American Idiot” appears in Monday’s New York Times.)
But in the final minutes before showtime on Friday night, Mr. Armstrong took on other parts — from a nervous neophyte gingerly reviewing his notes from Michael Mayer, the musical’s director and co-writer, to an extroverted jester prancing around the stage in a female co-star’s sequined dress.
In his dressing room — furnished with the record albums of vintage punk acts like the Avengers and Generation X, and dried-out bouquets suspended from the ceiling by their stems — Mr. Armstrong spoke with ArtsBeat about his experience as a performer in “American Idiot” and about what the future might hold when he leaves the show after Feb. 27. These are excerpts from that conversation.
Q. So what notes does Michael have for you tonight?
A.He told me I was flat. [laughs] That’s his job.
Q. Yikes. Sounds like someone’s going to wake up tomorrow with a broken guitar in his bed.
A. He goes over it every night. I’ve got a good rapport with him, so it’s cool. In this situation I have no choice. I’m a rookie. I even have a hat that someone gave me that says “rookie” on it. When you get older, it’s good to feel like you’re getting into uncharted territory.
Q. How did the idea come up for you to perform in the show the first time?
A. We were having drinks one night. I was with Michael and that was the first time he brought it up. I was like, yeah, sure. Then I was in Buffalo [with Green Day], we were getting ready to play a show, and Michael called. He goes, “I really need to talk to you.” And I go, “Can you wait? Because I’m getting in an elevator.” He goes, “No, it can’t wait – I’m on with
Tom Hulce [an "American Idiot" producer], also.” Then they officially asked me. I was like, well, I can’t say no. Sounds like something that I have to do.
Q. Even when you were developing the show, you weren’t fantasizing about getting up on stage and joining in?
A. I was more a spectator than anything else. That was as far as it was going to go. I always liked how in the “Quadrophenia” movie, it was
the Who’s music, and it was cast with different people. That was cool. When they first asked me, I was like, am I too old?
Q. To do the show at all, or to play St. Jimmy?
A. To play that character. But since he’s sort of an alter ego, he’s sort of ageless.
Q. He’s supposed to be the embodiment of what Johnny wishes he could be, so it should be O.K. if he’s a little more, shall we say, mature.
A. Or less mature.
A. The previous run was kind of like a test drive. I didn’t want to announce it. I wanted it to be last-minute. I wanted to get into rehearsal and figure out, can I do this? Am I capable of it? I wanted to keep the pressure down as much as possible.
Q. Were you also concerned about how your coming into the show might be received by other cast members?
A. Yeah, I was worried. When me, Mike [Dirnt] and Tré [Cool] are on stage, it’s three hams going crazy. These people have been in plays and theater their whole lives. They’ve got tons of experience, and I’ve had none. That to me was really intimidating. I also didn’t want to come in and feel like it was some kind of vanity thing. There’s a funny story about George M. Cohan: at the St. James, he wrote, directed and starred in his own production – I think it was “The Merry Malones.” And it was written up as, “George M. Cohan, who arrogantly wrote, directed and starred in his own production.” So that was going through my mind. I was like, oh, God, I don’t want to be that guy.
Q. I never thought I’d someday have a conversation with you about George M. Cohan.
A. You might want to fact-check that. I hope I got the right person. [Editor's note: Mr. Armstrong's only error was that "The Merry Malones" was performed at Erlanger's Theater, before it was renamed the St. James.]
Q. Did you have any previous experience with musical theater before you started performing in “American Idiot”?
A. I had a vocal teacher when I was really young, like 7, 8 years old, and that’s how I sang, through standards and show tunes. Stuff from “Oliver!” and “Annie Get Your Gun,” things like that. It taught me a sense of melody. I was also really into AC/DC.
Q. Was your teacher horrified that you grew up to become a punk-rock star?
A. She was a really cool lady. My mom keeps in touch with her, and she came to see “American Idiot” in Berkeley, which was really fun.
Q. So you can have one foot in the world of punk rock and other in the world of musical theater at the same time?
A. I’m old enough where I think you have to take everything you learn and put it in somehow. And you can’t escape your past. It comes in handy, no matter what.
Q. How did your band mates in Green Day feel about losing you to the show for a few weeks?
A. They were like: “Do it. We need to take a break. Get away from us for a while.” They’re totally into it.
Q. Did you do any special training in preparation for your current run?
A. No. I remember, I texted Theo [Stockman, an ensemble member], and all I wrote was, By the way, how do you act? And the response I got, was “Ha, ha, ha.” He goes: “Just be yourself. Just be honest.” The first rehearsal was really funny. Michael says to me, “O.K., I’m just going to tell you this right now, it’s something I forgot to tell you: This is going to be really awkward.” I was like, you couldn’t have told me that a month ago?
[Full interview at NY Times]
1-09 - NEW YORK TIMES
‘Idiot’ Welcomes Back a Bad Influence
Rock star impersonators are not exactly rare creatures on Broadway today. An imitation
Elvis and Jerry Lee and friends are stirring up trouble in “Million Dollar Quartet” at the Nederlander Theater. Flesh facsimiles of Paul, John, George and Ringo are running through the
Beatles’ greatest hits nightly in “Rain” at the
Neil Simon.
But if you’re looking for the actual article, there is only St. Jimmy at the St. James. Billie Joe Armstrong, the
Green Day frontman with the antic aspect of a rabid raccoon, has rejoined the cast of “American Idiot” for a few weeks, bringing a jolt of authentic rock-god electricity to a
musical that was plenty electrified — and electrifying — to start with.
The most notable, and commendable, aspect of Mr. Armstrong’s performance as the drug pusher St. Jimmy is how notable it is not, in a fundamental sense. Although ripples of excitement spread through the audience in the moments before his entrance, and the raucous cheers of fans rise when he comes slamming onto the stage, Mr. Armstrong is not merely strutting around spreading stardust. (His arrival will no doubt goose the box office considerably, as it did when he first joined the show for several performances in the fall.)
Certainly he brings his own style and charisma to bear on the role, as any actor would. But at no point does Mr. Armstrong indulge in extraneous audience pandering or self-indulgent showboating. “American Idiot” is an ensemble show, an aching portrait of disaffected youth in search of itself. Mr. Armstrong, who
wrote the songs (with Green Day) and wrote the book with the director, Michael Mayer, naturally has a stake in maintaining its integrity. He’s not here to undermine it with focus-pulling grandstanding, and he doesn’t. He plays the role, and plays it very well. (Mr. Armstrong is appearing in selected performances through Feb. 27.)
Which is not to say he fades into the background of course. On the concert stage Mr. Armstrong is a vivid, feral and animated presence, and when he’s at the center of the action in “American Idiot,” portraying the sinister vision who draws one of the show’s leading characters, Johnny (John Gallagher Jr.), into a maelstrom of drug addiction, he’s ablaze with energy, a whirling tornado of temptation.
The popping eyes, rimmed in enough eyeliner to keep the girls of “Jersey Shore” in business for a long weekend, and the jet-black, finger-in-light-socket hairdo are emblems of pop-punk rebellion that a kid from the sticks like Johnny would naturally bow down before, whether he’s under the influence or not. But if Tony Vincent, the actor who originated the role of St. Jimmy, personified the sexual seduction of seeking ecstasy in a syringe, Mr. Armstrong more powerfully embodies the heady allure of risk as an end in itself and the dark threat of self-destruction.
He has a wicked, twisted smile suggesting there will al
