Green Day Get Theatrical With Video For “Last Of The American Girls”

Green Day must have been inspired by turning their Grammy-winning American Idiot into a Broadway musical, because the video for their newest single from 21st Century Breakdown, the mid-tempo rock ditty “Last of the American Girls,” is all jazz hands and box steps. Okay, not “all”—there’s still a hefty amount of Generation Y angst and a few explosions to boot. Gloria (aka actress Lisa Stelly) from the video for “21st Century Breakdown” is back, but all by her lonesome, save for a few (imaginary?) back-up dancers, as well as Billie Joe Armstrong and the gang providing the score to her boredom. Check it out below.

Green Day – “Last Of The American Girls”

It makes sense that Marc Webb directed the clip—not only is he a longtime Green Day collaborator (he shot the band’s videos for “21 Guns,” “21st Century Breakdown” and 2001’s “Waiting”), he directed last year’s music-loving 500 Days of Summer, which included a bouncy, choreographed dance break (set to Hall and Oates!) in the middle of the film. We also see tinges of other over-the-top theatrical Webb-directed video, My Chemical Romance’s “Helena,” which turned a goth funeral into a modern dance recital.

What can we say, the man loves a good dance number, and “Last of the American Girls” is the perfect vid to showcase one—Green Day’s musical is about to premiere on Broadway, and proving to the masses that there’s an artistic, non-cheesey way of combining the band’s punk-rock tunes with dramatic flair is a great way to get them to buy tickets. (Not like we think they would have much convincing to do with their die-hard fans.)

[MTV]