The OBC was stunning, and will always hold a special place in my heart. They initiated the characters and built their stories. They brought fresh emotion every night based on their strength as actors and love and attachment to the character. I am a die hard Michael Esper fan and his Will tore me to pieces repeatedly. I identify with his character the most as my emotions with my pregnancy and subsequent single parenthood mirrored Will's lonliness and desperate hopelessness. That is not to say that my Little Will is not the best and brightest thing to ever be a part of my life. But the feelings surrounding my situation led me to spend many a night on the couch with tears streasming down my face wondering why I was alone and drowning in the feeling that nobody cares. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" is usually when the tears start for me. The other characters have always been sidenotes to me for the story of Will.
That all changed with the First National Tour. My friend, and fellow Idiot road tripper, looked at me after we saw the show in Detroit this past weekend in shock and said, you've never cried for Tunny before! And it is true. Tunny was always a character that I found upsetting but I never really felt the emotion involved in his story. I won't blame that on anyone but myself. The actors that I have seen portray Tunny are all talented individuals with wonderful voices and believable emotion, yet I never really connected with the story line. But when Scott J. Campbell desperately threw out Tunny's "You saved my fucking life" I knew I was in for a rough ride.
This time I could see that Johnny was Tunny's only hope for escaping his life and he went to this new city and Johnny was yet another lie in his life. The sheer emotion in "We Are the Waiting" when he states that "the Jesus of suburbia is a lie" gave me this sense of soul deep loss. Scott gave Tunny a desperation and hope that I could identify with, as a viewer. He wore well Tunny's pain and anger and gave new life to a character that I had never understood before. I think one of the most intense moments of the entire show, for me, was at the end of "Before the Lobotomy-reprise" when Tunny is getting pulled offstage on his gurney and he is screaming in pain. The melodic agony was filled with not only the pain of his injury but seemed to be a primal scream filled with the loss and disappointment of a lifetime.
After the show, I was lucky enough to get a chance to say hello to Scott, I tried to tell him how affected I was by his performance. However, I was still so overwhelmed by it that I fear my words were insufficient, even this is only a portion of what I felt and a miniscule sample of the pure talent that Scott leaves on the stage every show.
 |
| Scott J. Campbell |
I truly enjoy seeing every cast member's performance, it is difficult because oftentimes there is so much going on at once it is hard to catch it all. Some highlights of Detroit included Talia Cantoo NAILING "Too Much Too Soon". (This is one of Little Will's favorite parts of the show and he likes to do the tongue stick out, I am so excited that he gets to see it soon, we are already practicing the fact that he will have to tell people at Idiot that he is 5 ;) so he can get in.) I also LOVED watching Kelvin dance he is funny and exciting, and just a sweet charming individual, and the president of the taco club (inside joke :P). Jake Epstein was fabulous as Will, he was sort of ADHD Will, but funny. I wish I was cool enough to hang out on the couch with him during "Favorite Son", their look of fear when Favorite Son smiles made me laugh so hard I snorted. Although I was so disappointed to find I had not gotten a picture with him at stagedoor. :(
 |
| Kelvin and his fan club love fest |
Over the course of time I have learned a few things about going to see American Idiot.
#1 Stop drinking liquids 2 hours before the show starts and pee immediately before it starts as it is a 90 minute show w/ no intermission (that was a difficult/painful lesson to learn)
#2 Bring tissues...lots and lots of tissues
#3 Makeup is a joke and I will look like a dead hooker when the show is over if I wear it
#4 There is no "house left and right" there is "couch side" and "Stark side" (which I am amending to Scott side)
#5 Cast members like glitter and get jealous of other cast members who receive things covered in it.
#6 American Idiot is like crack, as soon as it is done, you will be trying to scheme on ways to get to see it again as soon as possible...of course I guess that kind of makes it like sex too...
SO we have scrounged our money, and we are going to North Carolina in 10 days. Little Will will see his first live performance of Idiot and is WAY more excited than any sane 3 and a half year old should be "We go see 'mer'can didiot today?!". We will be driving up 6 hours seeing the show, napping in the car, attempting to rush to see it again, Hopefully seeing it again, then driving 6 hours home that night. Crazy, you may say...lets just say last weekend we drove through a blizzard/ice storm to Detroit (9 hours) for it. This should be a piece of cake! Well readers, as we say in the world of American Idiot...Rage and Love, Lola
