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More great reviews for American Idiot

posted by Chad Jones on Thu, Oct 15, 2009
in At the theatre

Last weekend, we received another round of fantastic reviews for American Idiot, this time from the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times.

Here's a sampling of what Charles Isherwood wrote in the New York Times:

“American Idiot is that rare creature, a true rock opera... directed with polish and precision by Michael Mayer, on a spectacular set by Christine Jones... Green Day's potent gift for irresistible tunes delivers the emotional contours of the story... their lushly melodic music is played with impressive raw power... American Idiot possesses a stimulating energy and a vision of wasted youth that holds us in its grip.” 

Read the full review.

Here's a sampling of the Los Angeles Times review by Charles McNulty:

"IRRESISTIBLE... visually mesmerizing... aesthetically dazzling and socio-politically stark... Attention, everyone. We have a theatrical bulletin coming in: Music videos have just made an artistic breakthrough. And the form has gone live. The site of this unexpected and, yes, rather loud development is Berkeley Rep, where 'American Idiot,' the show based on Green Day's multi-platinum 2004 concept album, is having its world premiere... Kinetically entertaining in a way that intentionally reflects the shallow, media-saturated culture the album rails against, American Idiot (the musical)

does what rock bands have set out to do from the beginning -- lay down a style that defines a new zeitgeist... American Idiot translates Green Day's generational angst into a moody theatrical fantasia... Gallagher has the slacker charm and seductive snarl of a rock god [and] Mayer does an astonishing job of keeping everything in fluid motion."

Read the full review.

And in case you haven't seen it, here's the official American Idiot trailer:

Above photo: The cast of American Idiot. Photo by mellopix.com