KALAMAZOO, MI -- Jenna Rubaii didn't need to do much homework for her role as The Extraordinary Girl in the touring production of "American Idiot."
The two-time Tony Award winning musical is based on the Grammy Award-winning album of the same name from Green Day and frontman Billie Joe Armstrong. "American Idiot" will come through Kalamazoo at 7:30 p.m. on March 26 at Miller Auditorium.
It features popular songs from the punk band. The 23-year-old Rubaii, who graduated last spring from the University of Miami's Department of Theatre Arts, said she knew the band well.
"I grew up listening to punk rock in middle school and loved going to the Warped Tour and going to gigs all the time. I was definitely a Green Day fan before the show. I find it really exciting to be part of this and sing their music," she said.
The rock opera originally opened at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2009 before moving to Broadway, where it premiered in the spring of 2010. It ran for more than 400 performances, including some where Armstrong played the character St. Jimmy, a wild drug peddler who is a manifestation of the main character, Johnny.
The story from the concept album is about three childhood friends -- Johnny, Will and Tunny -- who are anxious to leave their California suburb shortly after
