Berkeley Rep Blog
Category archive: Our shows
Big screen Idiot?
posted by Chad Jones on Sat, Mar 27, 2010
in News , Our shows
It was a big week for Green Day's American Idiot on Broadway, what with the first previews and the eager audiences blowing the roof of the St. James Theatre.
To top things off, there was also news that Tom Hanks' Playtone movie production company is expressing some serious interest in turning the musical into a movie.
Here's what Green Day front man Billie Joe Armstrong told the Wall Street Journal: “It’s like, writing the song ‘American Idiot,’ and then next thing you know Tom Hanks is talking about it — it’s kind of mind-blowing."
Of course it's premature to say for sure that we'll be seeing the show on the silver screen, but the mind boggles at the thought, right?
In other Idiot news, Playbill reports that the original cast album — slated for a spring release but no exact date just yet — will feature a bonus track by none other than Green Day.
In case that's not enough to satisfy you, here's footage of the opening number, "American Idiot," filmed March 23, just prior to the start of previews. The number is followed by an onstage interview with director Michael Mayer and with Billie Joe Armstrong.
Above photo: (from left) Michael Esper is Will; John Gallagher, Jr. is Johnny; and Stark Sands is Tunny in the Broadway production of American Idiot.
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Fugard directs at his own South African theatre
posted by Chad Jones on Wed, Feb 17, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
Athol Fugard is in the midst of a creative burst. The legendary 77-year-old playwright, director, and actor has written several new plays, including Coming Home (continuing through February 28 on the Thrust Stage) and Have You Seen Us?, which had its world premiere at the Long Wharf Theatre.
Fugard is even directing his most recent play, The Train Driver, which has its world premiere at the Athol Fugard Theatre in Capetown's District 6, a formerly all-white district.
Last fall, Fugard discussed The Train Driver with the Hartford Courant. "This may be the most important one I've ever written as far as I'm concerned for personal reasons," Fugard said. "I know The Train Driver will resonate for all South Africans when they see it as something that deals with themselves. This is about us, as South Africans."
The BBC has been covering Fugard's return to Capetown and his work on The Train Driver.
Watch the television coverage.
In the radio piece, the actor Alan Rickman praises Fugard. "Everyone of my generation remembers the first time they saw his work in England, " Rickman says, "and it's life changing."
Fugard is far from done. He reports that he's at work on yet another new play, this one called The Blue Iris.
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Idiot marquee goes up on Broadway
posted by Chad Jones on Tue, Feb 16, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
Welcome to Broadway, American Idiot.
Managing Director Susie Medak snapped that photo of the spiffy new marquee at the St. James Theatre on West 44th Street. Out with the old — goodbye and thank you, Finian's Rainbow — and in with the new. Hello, American Idiot!
Susie was in New York to visit a rehearsal, where she ran into director Michael Mayer and orchestrator/arranger/musical supervisor Tom Kitt.
The Idiot crew has been incredibly busy. Everyone's back in rehearsal preparing for the first preview on March 24, and the cast spent much of the weekend at New York's Electric Lady Studios recording the cast album.
Tickets went on sale to the general public on Valentine's Day. Visit the show's official website for information.
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Sing song, sell tickets
posted by Chad Jones on Fri, Feb 12, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
Tickets to the Broadway production of Green Day's American Idiot go on sale at midnight, Sunday, February 14 (what a sweet way to celebrate Valentine's Day!), and to commemorate this auspicious event, we'd like to share Michael Riedel's column from the New York Post.
After describing the Tony Awards as the "Toyota of awards shows," Michael points out that the most lucrative awards show on television is turning out to be the Grammy Awards. On this year's broadcast, Green Day was joined by the Broadway cast of American Idiot to perform the Grammy-nominated song "21 Guns."
Apparently the 26.6 million viewers liked what they saw. Michael reports:
"By the end of the night, American Idiot had sold nearly $1 million worth of tickets. Sales have been strong through the week, sources say, and the musical is beginning to show real hit potential."
We could have told him that. Read the column in its entirety .
For tickets to American Idiot at the St. James Theatre, visit the show's official site .
Above photo: Rebecca Naomi Jones and Billie Joe Armstrong perform "21 Guns" at the Grammy Awards. Photo courtesy of greenday.com
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Green Day, American Idiot cast rock the Grammys
posted by Chad Jones on Mon, Feb 1, 2010
in News , Our shows
Congratulations to Green Day, winners of the Best Rock Album trophy at Sunday's Grammy Awards!
The broadcast was full of, shall we say, memorable performances (Pink turned into a sprinkler, Lady Gaga played with fire and Elton John), but the best — and we're biased here — came from Green Day and the Broadway cast of American Idiot performing "21 Guns."
If you missed the outstanding performance, check it out.
Here's a clip from CNN that takes us to a Grammys rehearsal. Dave Matthews is up first, but then Green Day is interviewed at the 1:46 mark.
And if that wasn't enough to satisfy you, there's a video of Green Day and the American Idiot cast recording "21 Guns" in Oakland just a few days after the show closed at Berkeley Rep.
Top photo: Rebecca Naomi Jones performs "21 Guns" on the CBS broadcast of the Grammys.
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In the next Room wins the Glickman Award!
posted by Chad Jones on Fri, Jan 29, 2010
in News , Our shows
Congratulations to Sarah Ruhl! Her In the Next Room (or the vibrator play) has been selected as the winner of the annual Will Glickman Award, which is chosen by a panel of top Bay Area theatre critics and given to the author of the best play to have its world premiere in the Bay Area.
“I'm very honored,” Sarah remarked. “And I'm thrilled to have a home like Berkeley Rep in the Bay Area. I was extremely proud of In the Next Room's premiere.”
“I’m pleased that Sarah and I had another opportunity to collaborate, and delighted that her scripts continue to receive the recognition they so richly deserve,” added Associate Artistic Director Les Waters, who staged the show in Berkeley and on Broadway. “I’ve devoted my career to developing and directing new plays, so I’m particularly proud of In the Next Room and the other work coming out of Berkeley Rep’s commissioning program.”
The Will Glickman Award has been given annually since 1984. Created to honor playwright and screenwriter Will Glickman, the goal of the award is to encourage new plays and their production as invaluable investments in American theatre. Theatre Bay Area, the nation’s largest regional theatre service organization, has administered the award since 2004.
Berkeley Rep debuted three previous winners: Hurricane / Mauvais Temps by Anne Galjour; The People’s Temple by Leigh Fondakowski with Greg Pierotti, Stephen Wangh, and Margo Hall; and Yankee Dawg You Die by Philip Kan Gotanda. Before becoming artistic director of Berkeley Rep, Tony Taccone also worked on another winning script at the Eureka Theatre: Tony Kushner’s legendary Angels in America: Millennium Approaches. Other playwrights who have been honored include Liz Duffy Adams, Adam Bock, John Fisher, Brian Freeman, Doug Holsclaw, Dan Hoyle, Denis Johnson, Cherrie Moraga, Brighde Mullins, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, Octavio Solis, Charlie Varon, and Erin Cressida Wilson.
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American Idiot cast announced, Grammy appearance set
posted by Chad Jones on Thu, Jan 28, 2010
in Backstage buzz , News , Our shows
Lots of news in the world of American Idiot on Broadway!
The cast has been announced, and in addition to the folks we saw last fall at Berkeley Rep — John Gallagher, Jr., Michael Esper, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Christina Sajous, Mary Faber, Tony Vincent, Declan Bennett, Andrew Call, Gerard Canonico, Miguel Cervantes, Joshua Henry, Brian Charles Johnson, Lorin Latarro, Omar Lopez-Cepero, Chase Peacock, Theo Stockman, Ben Thompson, Alysha Umphress, and Libby Winter — the Broadway company is welcoming Tony Award-nominee Stark Sands, Van Hughes, Joshua Kobak, Leslie McDonel, and Aspen Vincent.
"This wildly gifted company takes my breath away," director Michael Mayer said in a statement. "They bring such depth and passion to the material. It is a rare honor to be blessed with such spectacularly imaginative performers."
Green Day, along with the entire cast of American Idiot will perform the two-time Grammy-nominated song "21 Guns" at the 52nd annual Grammy Awards this Sunday, January 31. The awards are broadcast on CBS beginning at 8pm.
The website for American Idiot (as seen above) is now live, and tickets are now available exclusively to American Express cardholders through February 13. Tickets go on sale to everyone on February 14. Performances begin March 24 at the St. James Theatre, and opening is set for April 20.
You can now follow American Idiot on Twitter at AmericanIdiotNY and on Facebook.
There's also a whole new line of American Idiot merchandise available at Green Day's web store, including work shorts (seen at right) for $75.
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Fugard, Aurelia in the news
posted by Chad Jones on Thu, Jan 21, 2010
in At the theatre , Our shows
Last night's opening of Athol Fugard's Coming Home was a thrilling experience. Audience members who battled the ongoing El Niño deluge were rewarded with deeply emotional performances by the cast and superb direction by Gordon Edelstein.
This morning's San Francisco Chronicle brought us several post-opening treats, the first of which is Robert Hurwitt's wonderful interview with Fugard, who talks about living in San Diego (surf's up!), his age and health (77 and so-so), and his recent creative spurt.
Here's Fugard talking about Veronica, the young woman we met in Valley Song whose story continues in Coming Home:
"Same woman who left the village at the end and went to Cape Town to be part of the glorious new South Africa, when so many politicians made so many promises. What's happened over the years, not just to this woman but to the nation, I think, has created a degree of disillusion and cynicism unequaled in our history. We had a president, Thabo Mbeki, for whom I had no admiration, who totally ignored the relationship between AIDS and antiretroviral drugs, and as a result, hundreds of thousands of children and adults have died who should be alive.
"Desmond Tutu, that magnificent man, has said that AIDS and its mismanagement by that government in South Africa killed more people than apartheid. That is central to the play."
For more on Fugard and South Africa, you might be interested to read a recent feature on the playwright and his considerable body of work from the Chicago Sun-Times focusing on three Fugard plays — "Master Harold”...and the Boys, The Island, and Sizwe Banzi Is Dead — being produced in the Chicago area over the next six months. Read the story.
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A taste of South Africa in Coming Home
posted by Chad Jones on Wed, Jan 13, 2010
in At the theatre , Our shows
South Africa's master playwright Athol Fugard returns to Berkeley Rep with the moving drama Coming Home, which begins previews this Friday on the Thrust Stage.
Our resident mixologists always like to create specialty drinks to complement each show. For Coming Home, they've outdone themselves by crafting two unique cocktails made with some traditional South African ingredients. Patrons will be able to immerse themselves in the world of Fugard's drama and enjoy an authentic taste of his homeland.
Here are the Coming Home cocktails:
- The Amarula Cream
Amarula Cream, a South African liqueur made from African Marula tree fruit (a favorite elephant snack), is artfully blended with Crème de Cacao, Amaretto, and milk. - The Van der Hum
Made in the Cape Winelands of South Africa, Van der Hum is a unique tangerine-flavored liqueur that mixes beautifully with Korbel brandy, orange juice, and cranberry juice.
Coming Home opens January 20 and continues through February 28. For information visit our website or call the box office at 510 647-2949.
Photo by Nora Merecicky
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The magic of Aurelia extends! And Aurelia's on the radio!
posted by Chad Jones on Fri, Jan 8, 2010
in At the theatre , News , Our shows
Aurélia's Oratorio has been such a hit with Berkeley Rep audiences that the show will extend for FIVE PERFORMANCES ONLY January 28 through 31 in the Roda Theatre.
The show that has ignited imaginations and delighted Bay Area audiences must close January 31. The final performances are:
- Thursday, January 28 at 8pm
- Friday, January 29 at 8pm
- Saturday, January 30 at 2pm
- Saturday, January 30 at 8pm
- Sunday, January 31 at 2pm
Experience this unique theatrical event or make a gift of tickets to friends and family. Tickets start at $33 (half that if you're under 30!). Visit our online box office or call the box office at 510 647-2949. Box office hours are noon to 7pm Tuesday through Sunday.
And be sure to catch Aurélia Thierrée interviewed on Sedge Thompson's West Coast Live this Saturday, January 9. The show is carried live on KALW 97.1 FM from 10am to noon. The show is also streamed live kalw.org at 10am and on jeffnet.org at 11am.
Above photo: Aurélia Thierrée in Aurélia's Oratorio. Photo by Richard Haughton