Green Day In Rehearsal at Berkeley Rep

"When I first heard American Idiot, I was struck by its innate theatricality," Mayer remarks. "Here was a new musical drama begging to be staged. Who would have thought that one of the most brutally honest, eloquent, passionate, funny, and poetic theatrical responses to the post 9-11 world would be a Green Day record?"

On September 4, the new musical "American Idiot" will open for audiences at the celebrated Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Based on the tremendously successful Green Day album, "American Idiot" boasts a team of veteran Broadway innovators including Michael Mayer and producer Tom Hulce and Ira Pittelman.

"We are really excited to be working with Michael Mayer on this project," says Green Day's frontman Billie Joe Armstrong. "We'd been thinking of bringing American Idiot to the stage, but knew we needed to find the right partners. After meeting with Michael to discuss the possibility, he invited us to see "Spring Awakening." We were so impressed with that production, as well as his vision for American Idiot, that we knew we'd found the perfect collaborator.

According to a press release, "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 performers with what Newsweek calls "a soundtrack for anyone disillusioned by millennial America." Yet, Time Magazine concludes, "For an album that bemoans the state of the union, it is irresistibly buoyant."

To celebrate the upcoming production, check out these pictures of the band and director Michael Mayer at rehearsal. Photos by Carole Litwan © Berkeley Repertory Theatre. All rights reserved.