It made me question the way that songs are interpreted by every listener and how they can be visually represented. Were it not for the choreography, beautiful visuals and vocals that unfolded on the stage, I would have never pulled so much emotion from this song. Regardless, I don’t think I have ever read into the lyrics of “21 Guns” as much as I have in the days following the show. Perhaps the reason I connected to this song on a personal level was because of the meaning behind the lyrics or simply because I have known the song from years of being driven towards alternative music. As Jeff’s character collapses to his knees in defeat, Chris’s hand is lowered to cover his face before he his carried away by the cast and a further internal struggle ensues. This is where the true revelation that the characters are one in the same occurs. However, near the end Jeff and Chris stand side-by-side at attention, saluting in the direction of the audience. Because of the contrast, for the first few moments of the number you would believe that the show is going to remain about two individuals. on the other, really brought the piece to life. The constant contrast in choreography, with Jeff on one side of the stage and Chris S. Jeff Rowden’s version of this song beautifully portrays the internal conflict of a single individual–something that separates it from the original meaning and performance by Green Day (which serves more as an ode to a fallen comrade than to an internal conflict).

“21 Guns” (American Idiot)-Directed by Jeff Rowden While all are incredible, these drew me into the music, into the moment and left me humming their tunes for the next several days. It’s incredibly difficult to narrow down the show to a few favorites, but looking back there are a couple that I carried with me long after the show was over.

Curtain call song 2016