Green Day's American Idiot
When you hear Phil Jamieson’s name, it’s not often associated with musical theatre. But the Grinspoon front man has proven he’s got the chops playing the role of St Jimmy in the theatrical production Green Day’s American Idiot.
“I was offered the role over email and it seemed a bit different and something out of the box, so I immediately said yes,” he says.
“I didn’t think about the consequences until I got into rehearsals and realised it was going to be quite tricky.”
The Darwin gig on May 3 is the last chance to see Jamieson as St Jimmy as he wraps up his time with the show after 80 performances.
Sarah McLeod from The Superjesus will take over the reigns of the hedonistic character for the rest of the Darwin shows and shares the role with former Magic Dirt rocker Adalita for the rest of the tour.
The show Jamieson describes as a “gateway musical” follows three young men who live in Jingletown, a small town in the US.
“They’re isolated, disenfranchised young men that are fed up with living in a small place, being bombarded by social media and they’re disillusioned with their political leaders,” Jamieson says.
“Two of them move to the city and one of them crosses paths with me.
“I live in the alleyways and prey on the insecurities and encourage him to explore a hedonistic way of life.
“I represent the dark side.”
“Some would say I’m a villain, but I see myself as a hero,” he says with a laugh.
Jamieson has been a Green Day fan since their album Dookie was released, but discovered a new appreciation for the punk band’s musicianship when American Idiot came out in 2004, particularly for the track ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’.
“I heard 'Boulevard' and it stopped me in my tracks,” he says.
“I didn't realise Billie (Joe Armstrong) had that song in him.
"'Boulevard really struck me as a massive leap forward as far as songwriting goes – it was a rock opera, which was sprawling, intense and ambitious to the extreme when other bands were recording these short, fast 1.5 minute songs.”
THU 3 – SUN 6 MAY | 8PM | DARWIN ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE | $79-$139 | $49 STUDENT | yourcentre.com.au
Image credit Dylan Evans
