Mayer and Armstrong Talk 'AMERICAN IDIOT' To Rolling Stone

Michael Mayer, the Tony Award-winning director of Spring Awakening, will begin work on a new musical production adapted from "American Idiot," the best-selling album by the punk band Green Day. The project is scheduled to make its debut in September 2009 at the Berkeley Repertory Theater in California. The musical will be a collaboration between Green Day - the Bay Area rock trio consisting of Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool - and Mayer. Mayer and Armstrong spoke to Rolling Stone about the upcoming rock musical. Here is a sneak peek, to read the full article click here.

RS: Why American Idiot instead of another classic punk record? Why not London Calling by the Clash?

Mayer: American Idiot felt so complete to me. The version we will end up performing will have other songs in it - two B sides from the European release and four from the new album [21st Century Breakdown]. But American Idiot has a huge emotional arc. There was an amazing narrative that was, at times, perplexing and ambiguous, but also so full of possibilities with a multitude of voices. Some of the songs - I heard them as dialogue. Our biggest challenge at the moment is the central section. The "St. Jimmy"/"Jesus of Suburbia" matrix is a complicated thing. That is what we're still grappling with. Every song on the album will be played in sequence. But the sequences will be interrupted by other songs and text.

Green Day won two Grammy Awards - Best Rock Album and Record of the Year - with its multi-platinum American Idiot, which sold more than 12 million copies worldwide.

Mayer and Green Day, along with Olivier Award-winning choreographer Steven Hoggett, recently completed a workshop of American Idiot in New York, which was also produced by Berkeley Rep. The show includes every song from the album, as well as several new songs from Green Day's upcoming release, 21st Century Breakdown. American Idiot will run from September 4 through October 11, opening Berkeley Rep's 2009/10 season in the state-of-the-art Roda Theatre. A limited number of seats go on sale today at berkeleyrep.org starting at only $32. Lower prices and prime performance dates are available as part of a subscription to Berkeley Rep's bold season, which also features five other hot new shows.

American Idiot follows working-class characters from the suburbs to the city to the Middle East, as they seek redemption in a world filled with frustration - an exhilarating journey borne along by Green Day's electrifying songs. As Time described the album, "You will hear a story about Jesus of Suburbia, his dangerous friend St. Jimmy, and a heroic girl called Whatsername, who are struggling to express their individuality in a mass-media culture."

This high-octane show will blend an onstage band and an ensemble of 19 young performersTickets to American Idiot are available now for preview performances on select evenings early in the run: Friday, September 4; Saturday, September 5; Wednesday, September 9; Thursday, September 10; and Sunday, September 13.

Tickets to these shows are priced at a special rate - only $32 to $54 - and may only be purchased online at berkeleyrep.org. Get lower prices and prime performance dates as part of a subscription to Berkeley Rep's season. For more information on American Idiot, call 510.647.2949 or toll-free at 888-4-BRT-Tix - or buy tickets now at berkeleyrep.org. 

Photo Credit: Peter James Zielinski