The Green Day musical aiming to 'make American Idiot great again'

Sam Lavery (Whatsername) and Tom Milner (Johnny) in American Idiot for the 10th Anniversary Tour. Photo / Mark Dawson Photography

As far as concept albums go, Green Day's American Idiot was one for the ages.

The Grammy Award-winning album told the tale of a young Billie Joe Armstrong, a self-proclaimed "Jesus of Suburbia", hell-bent on seeing the world and making an impact, whatever the cost.

The album was widely reviewed as one of the greatest of all time and, five years after its release, got the musical treatment, seeing one of the biggest pop-punk bands of the era hit Broadway in a move no one saw coming.

Speaking in the documentary Broadway Idiot, Armstrong said of the move: "I'm open to big, crazy ideas but this album is my baby – I wanna make sure nobody f***s it up!

"When people think of Broadway they think of everyone singin' and dancin' and ... my fear was that it was just gonna be absurd and not relatable - and corny."

It was a very real fear, because American Idiot wasn't like any other album - it was largely autobiographical.

Green Day. Photo / Marina Chavez

"I just wanted to get the hell out of my town. I wanted to leave with reckless abandon. I didn't care where I ended up as long as I saw it as much as humanly possible. The story is all about the character, Jesus of Suburbia, wanting to figure things out and step up and stand for something he believes in. It's about learning the hard lessons."

As a result, Armstrong says, "I've never put so much emotion into any record like I have on American Idiot. There are times where I feel like I get choked-up, like it's hard to sing the next line."

However, he says the show's director Michael Mayer "knocked it out of the park", having stuck to the heart of the album and created characters who spoke to the story - and to Armstrong ("they remind me of my friends and they remind me of myself").

He wasn't the only one who was won over. The show won two Tony Awards for scenic and lighting design and was nominated for best musical. Ten years later, the show has moved off Broadway and on tour, with the UK production headed to New Zealand's shores next week.

UK X-Factor star Sam Lavery has landed her first theatre role ever in the hit show, as a lead and main character Johnny's love interest, Whatsername - named for the final song on American Idiot, about a woman whose name Armstrong has long forgotten.

For Lavery, it's not only the career opportunity of a lifetime but one that's close to her heart.

"I've always loved rock music, I've always wanted to get involved in theatre and when I found out this show was going on tour, it was kind of perfect. I really loved the show and the music and everything Green Day," she says.

Also, Whatsername had a story arc Lavery couldn't resist. In the show, Johnny and Whatsername fall in love but he treats her "awfully" and winds up "going down a dark path". All the while, Whatsername tries to help and protect him but after continuously being rejected, she gives up.

"Something snaps and she becomes this powerful, independent woman who doesn't need him and is not gonna take that from him anymore," says Lavery.

Sam Lavery as Whatsername in American Idiot. Photo / Mark Dawson Photography

The show has also kept the political commentary from the album which, at the time, honed in on the Bush administration and Iraq war. Now, the show is opened by the voice of Trump and features small details such as the slogan: "Make American Idiot Great Again."

"The way the show is, I think is really clever because there's not a lot of dialogue but still comments on everything that's going on, even in the way the stage looks. There's a very strong message, which is present but in a way that is accessible for people of all ages," says Lavery.

With the album celebrating its15th anniversary and the stage show celebrating its 10th, Lavery says there's a "lot of pressure" on the current cast and crew, not just to keep the show's standards but in delivering Armstrong's messages.

"We need to make sure things are coming across the way they should be, because these stories aren't light-hearted at all.

Tom Milner as Johnny in American Idiot. Photo / Mark Dawson Photography

"The storyline has a lot of drugs and there's one scene which is a five-minute scene of Johnny taking heroin. We researched it so much and it's so intricate and detailed, you really do come away from the show feeling like [you've] just been involved in that - it really hits home," she says.

"It's an emotional roller coaster. I always say to anyone coming to the show that you will go away from it having felt every emotion, from love to loss ... it's so intense. Everyone I spoke to said, 'I just felt every single thing that was happening.'"

LOWDOWN:
Who: Sam Lavery
What: Green Day's American Idiot: The musical
Where: Playing at The Civic, October 10-20
Also: 15th anniversary of the album and 10th anniversary of the musical