A Boisterous Hit
This article originally appeared on June 18, 2015, in Compass, published by The Lakeville Journal Co.
Theater Scene: ‘American Idiot’
By Darryl Gangloff
The first thing you’ll notice when walking into the Warner Theatre’s Nancy Marine Studio Theatre for Green Day’s “American Idiot” is the booming bass that threatens to shake Torrington to the ground. Music director Meric Martin and his team pushed the venue’s sound output to the limit — they even put subwoofers under the seats. And that’s the whole point. The musical contains minimal dialogue and lets the songs from Green Day’s 2004 album “American Idiot,” as well as material from 2009’s “21st Century Breakdown,” tell the story.
The rock opera follows three friends who want to leave the boredom of suburbia. Johnny (Christopher Franci) and Tunny (Stephen Lenczewski) head to the city, while Will (Scott Murphy) stays behind with his pregnant girlfriend, Heather (Katie Brunetto). Tunny joins the military and meets the Extraordinary Girl (Lauren Jacob). Johnny turns to drugs with the help of his alter-ego, St. Jimmy (Tony Leone), and falls in love with Whatsername (Lynn D’Ambrosi).
The Warner Stage Company is the first community theater in Connecticut to present “American Idiot,” which won two Tony Awards in 2010 and a Grammy for best musical show album in 2011.
According to co-directors Katherine Ray and Sharon A. Wilcox, “this dedicated cast has put their blood (literally for a few), lots of sweat and many tears” into the production, and it shows on the stage. For 90 straight minutes without an intermission, members of the ensemble seem to be in constant motion as they nimbly dart around the theater, dancing like they’re in a mosh pit, climbing stairs, diving over sofas and jumping out of shopping carts, all while belting out Green Day tunes like “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” “21 Guns” and “Wake Me Up When September Ends.”
As it should, the music shines in this production thanks to a live band and a four-piece string section. Every member of the cast brings an intense energy to their vocal performances, and their harmonies add a new layer to these Green Day songs. The production team should also be commended; the huge set is covered with wooden pallets and static-filled TV sets, and there were hundreds of light cues to pull off in a short run time.
Fair warning: “American Idiot” contains sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll. And it’s loud. But it’s worth it.
“American Idiot” is at the Warner Theatre’s Nancy Marine Studio Theatre June 18-21. For tickets, call 860-489-7180 or go to www.warnertheatre.org.
Theater Scene: ‘American Idiot’
By Darryl Gangloff
The first thing you’ll notice when walking into the Warner Theatre’s Nancy Marine Studio Theatre for Green Day’s “American Idiot” is the booming bass that threatens to shake Torrington to the ground. Music director Meric Martin and his team pushed the venue’s sound output to the limit — they even put subwoofers under the seats. And that’s the whole point. The musical contains minimal dialogue and lets the songs from Green Day’s 2004 album “American Idiot,” as well as material from 2009’s “21st Century Breakdown,” tell the story.
The rock opera follows three friends who want to leave the boredom of suburbia. Johnny (Christopher Franci) and Tunny (Stephen Lenczewski) head to the city, while Will (Scott Murphy) stays behind with his pregnant girlfriend, Heather (Katie Brunetto). Tunny joins the military and meets the Extraordinary Girl (Lauren Jacob). Johnny turns to drugs with the help of his alter-ego, St. Jimmy (Tony Leone), and falls in love with Whatsername (Lynn D’Ambrosi).
The Warner Stage Company is the first community theater in Connecticut to present “American Idiot,” which won two Tony Awards in 2010 and a Grammy for best musical show album in 2011.
According to co-directors Katherine Ray and Sharon A. Wilcox, “this dedicated cast has put their blood (literally for a few), lots of sweat and many tears” into the production, and it shows on the stage. For 90 straight minutes without an intermission, members of the ensemble seem to be in constant motion as they nimbly dart around the theater, dancing like they’re in a mosh pit, climbing stairs, diving over sofas and jumping out of shopping carts, all while belting out Green Day tunes like “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” “21 Guns” and “Wake Me Up When September Ends.”
As it should, the music shines in this production thanks to a live band and a four-piece string section. Every member of the cast brings an intense energy to their vocal performances, and their harmonies add a new layer to these Green Day songs. The production team should also be commended; the huge set is covered with wooden pallets and static-filled TV sets, and there were hundreds of light cues to pull off in a short run time.
Fair warning: “American Idiot” contains sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll. And it’s loud. But it’s worth it.
“American Idiot” is at the Warner Theatre’s Nancy Marine Studio Theatre June 18-21. For tickets, call 860-489-7180 or go to www.warnertheatre.org.