“American Idiot” – Heanor Musical Theatre Company
To mark the 20th anniversary of Green Day’s concept album “American Idiot”, Heanor Musical Theatre Company bring the musical adaptation to the Mansfield Palace Theatre. The show expands on the story of the album, complete with a live band and adrenaline-pumping dance numbers. Squeezing 23 songs into a 90-minute show is no mean feat, but HMTC make this seem effortless, with each song swiftly merging into the next and moving the story along.
The musical tells the tale of three young men – Johnny (Andrew Bould), Tunny (Curtis Salmon) and Will (Arden-Caspar Jennison) – who plan to flee their restrictive suburban lifestyles and seek new adventures in the city. Will’s plans change quickly when his girlfriend Heather (Katy Gaskin) discovers she is pregnant, and he decides to stay at home to support her. Will’s story quickly becomes much darker – struggling with parenthood, Will seeks solace in alcohol and drugs, and Jennison’s superb vocals in “Give Me Novacaine” make this a particularly moving number.
Johnny and Tunny’s city adventure does not go to plan. Radicalised by the American media, Tunny decides to sign up to the army in the song “Are We The Waiting”, performed by ‘The Recruiter’ (Candice Curnow-Newland). Tunny’s story mirrors Will’s story, however, as life in the army doesn’t turn out how he planned. The set for the show is incredibly impressive, with multiple locations brought to life thanks to incredible projected backdrops, designed by Paul Young. These backdrops make the warzone that Tunny finds himself in feel more dangerous, with explosions happening all around. Truly remarkable for an amateur company.
The musical was originally set in the early 2000s, but director Kheenan Jones successfully updates the show for the 20s, with commentary on social media weaved seamlessly into the story, as city dwellers walk around glued to their phones and being rude to each other. One of the most interesting aspects of the play comes as Johnny, abandoned by his friends, turns to heroin. His heroin-fuelled alter-ego, referred to as St Jimmy (Jack Readyhoof), takes over for some of the songs, and manages to coerce Johnny’s partner, who is unceremoniously referred to as “Whatsername” (Alana Moran), into taking drugs as well. The switch between Johnny and St Jimmy is very slick, and very easy to follow. When Johnny decides to fight St Jimmy and reclaim control over his life, he brings an entirely new meaning to the phrase “kicking the habit”!
The nature of the show, with so many songs in a relatively short runtime, does make the story difficult to understand at points, and a little more context between scenes would have been helpful. The three main characters are not particularly likeable, but thankfully Bould, Salmon and Jennison infuse their portrayals with such charisma and energy that makes the show incredibly fun to watch. The live band (directed by Tom Bond and Tim Yeardsley), choreography (from Shannon O’Donnell) and talented ensemble will leave you feeling breathless by the end of the night. There is clearly a lot of love behind this show, and it is a joy to see.
This show is undoubtedly written for fans of the original album, but even if you are unfamiliar with Green Day’s music, this adrenaline-fuelled musical is not to be missed. The band, the set and the cast work seamlessly together to create a fun-filled show that explores some very serious ideas in very exciting ways.
