Sheffield Lyceum – until Saturday 30th March 2019
Reviewed by Charleigh Christmas
5*****
Having listened to Green Day’s songs and albums, and already being a fan, I was particularly excited to go see this show. I can tell you it didn’t disappoint.
Built around Green Day’s American Idiot album, the story follows 3 men on a journey of self-discovery, while changing dreams, life, and a lot of drugs get in the way.
The bulk of the story was told through song and this drove the story forward, with a few scenes being dialogue only.
I thought the cast were brilliant. The commitment from each and every one of them was superb, there was no embarrassment or holding back, you felt like they put 110% into the performance.
I really felt an emotional connection to the characters. The cast are too many to name every one of them, but a couple of stand outs for me were Tom Milner, who played “Johnny”, Luke Friend “St Jimmy” and Samuel Pope “Will”. Tom Milner’s commitment to the show was evident, as he had to perform some gruelling scenes and did so with what seemed like ease. I feel Samuel Pope added some lightness to the scenes, and had really good comic timing. Luke Friend brought the raw energy and animalism to the role of “St Jimmy” that was equally disturbing and brilliant.
The choreography was amazing, and again the cast put 100% into the dance routines. Obviously I thought the songs were amazing, and I think that having the band on stage through the play was also a really great decision. They were as much part of the production as the rest of the cast.
I think the set was extraordinary, it drew me in from the start and I love how the story was able to progress across three different locations on one stage.
The ending for me was the climax to a brilliant show, the cast received a very much deserved standing ovation as they came on for their final song.
Brilliantly cast and superbly directed, I would definitely recommend this show!