CULTURE | DIGEST
THEATER AMERICAN IDIOT I
t’s been almost a decade since Green Day, known then by most as the snotty punk rockers behind Dookie, reinvented themselves with the sprawling, wildly popular American Idiot. The record, touted as a rock opera, was released less than two months before the reelection of George W. Bush, a time when the jingoism brought on by 9/11 was waning and young Americans were tiring of the two wars being waged on the other side of the world. Green Day tapped into that restlessness with this perfectly timed album, which would go on to become the second-biggest seller of its 26-year career. Sociopolitical inspirations aside, the record is also remarkable in that it revived the notion of the rock opera — American Idiot had characters, namely Jesus of Suburbia, who escapes his chained-down upbringing for a real world he wasn’t quite prepared for. Along the way there’s love, war and a hell of a lot of pissed-off youth energy. Some called it a punk-rock Tommy. By 2009, those two wars were still going, as was American Idiot, which was now being transformed into a major musical production, something the band had always intended. “We always thought that somehow there should be some sort of staged version, because that’s what we were thinking in our heads,” Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong has said of the album. Armstrong, who grew up a rough-and-tumble Bay Area punk, as unlikely a musical composer as you’re likely to find, penned the book along with Tony Award winner Michael Mayer, who was also hired to direct. In April 2011,
901 W E S T S P R A G U E A V E , S P O K A N E | 5 09. 227 . 7 638
CD Release Party Punk rock and musicals can co-exist. the musical ended a 400-plus-show run on Broadway, including several performances with Armstrong playing the role of drug dealer St. Jimmy. The production, touring North America through May and stopping off in Spokane for two shows this weekend, continues to cement American Idiot as one of the more impressive pieces of pop art of the early 21st century. Apparently, punk rock can leave a mark. — MIKE BOOKEY
Friday, Nov 22 7pm | $10 All Ages w/ Normal Babies SPONSORED BY
a portion of proceeds go to Women’s and Children’s Community Kitchen
American Idiot • Fri-Sat, Nov. 22-23, at 8 pm • INB Performing Arts Center • 334 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. • $30-$75 • inbpac.com • 279-7000
For Your Consideration BY EMERA L. RILEY
DAN CUMMINS
GU GRADUATE & LOCAL COMIC ICON FEATURING HIS CEREBRAL OBSERVATIONAL HUMOR
MARC YAFFEY
RIGHTFULLLY CONSIDERED ONE OF THE KINGS OF NATIVE AMERICAN
HARRY J. RILEY
COMEDY
LOCAL RISING STAR & 2 TIME WINNER OF THE VALLEYFEST PG COMEDY
CUP
Saturday, November 23 | 8pm
“Best Family Attraction” -L.A. Times
ALBUM | A decade into making music, THE 1975 has performed under several different names, honing a pop mix mildly reminiscent of the ’80s the four 20-somethings barely experienced. Filled with lusty, angsty, heavily accented, rapid-fire lyrics, their eponymous new album is perfect for the Anglophiles among us. Poppy, hip and filled with boyband essence (swooshy hair and the like), The 1975 brings back the feelings of youth, from partying too hard to chasing after girls who will never like you back.
GAME | Combining the farming aspects cherished by Harvest Moon lovers and the real-time fight-andslash that Zelda fans know and adore, RUNE FACTORY 4 is the kind of game that makes real life look lame. This Animal Crossing-esque RPG hybrid for the 3DS is kickin’ simply because there’s so much to do. After you lose your memory falling out of an airship, you’re adopted by a dragon and are free to spend your days doing whatever — farming, fighting, fishing, making friends, mining, crafting, cooking, competing in festivals, and maybe even getting married.
PLACE | For those too hipster to continue shopping at the suddenly corporate Value Village and Goodwill, GLOBAL NEIGHBORHOOD THRIFT is the place for you. Still featuring classic sales, like all shoes for — dare I say it, Macklemore? — 99 cents, and a price range from zero to $10, it’s the kind of store that keeps thrifting cool. And all of the profits go to supporting refugees, which makes it all the more tempting to max out the fun punch card they give you when you spend $15.
Stay at
Drink at For Reservations Call: 509.747.1041 or visit www.hotelrubyspokane.com
*A $2 RESTORATION FEE IS ADDED TO EACH TICKET COST.
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NOVEMBER 21, 2013 INLANDER 33