Loosely based on Giacomo Puccini's 1896 opera, La bohème, Rent follows a group of impoverished young artists struggling to survive and create a life in New York City's East Village in the thriving days of Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS.
Jonathan Larson's small off-Broadway show about love and fear during the AIDS pandemic and has had a phenomenal life- Tony and Pulitzer Awards, running on Broadway for twelve years and seen worldwide in successive tours. Loosely based on Pucinni's La Bohème, the play touches a strong cord among young adults and artists in its portrayal of the incredible fear of death, the joys of new love and the loss of creative spaces. We here in San Francisco can surely empathize with Rent's messages. This spectacular touring cast was embraced heartily by a very youthful audience, who, while not born during the AID crisis, still experience its long-lasting ramifications.
For twenty-five years, Jonathan Larson’s RENT has inspired audiences to choose love over fear and to live without regret. But perhaps just as importantly, this Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning phenomenon celebrates artists and the raw courage and commitment they evince in daring to pursue their craft – almost always in a community of like-minded misfits, non-conformists and crazies. -- Linda Hodges
No matter how many times I see this show, Rent always makes me emotional. This time in particular, though, I was very in my feelings. Blame it on the spectacular cast. Blame it on the fresh feeling of theatre being back. Blame it on the show's content.
After nearly 20 months of a dark theatre, performances are finally back to the Fisher Theatre with the 25th Anniversary Farewell Tour of the 1996 Broadway musical Rent. Whether you're a newcomer to the show or a longtime fan, you can catch Rent for yourself until this Sunday, October 24th.
BroadwayWorld has a first look at the new cast of the RENT 25th Anniversary Farewell Non-Equity Tour, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning landmark rock musical written by Jonathan Larson.
The producers of the RENT 25th Anniversary Farewell Tour, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning landmark rock musical written by Jonathan Larson, have announced casting for the final year of the national tour, which kicks off in October.
In 1996, an original rock musical by a little-known composer opened on Broadway... and forever changed the landscape of American theatre. Two decades later, Jonathan Larson's Rent continues to speak loudly and defiantly to audiences across generations and all over the world. And now, this Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning masterpiece has returned to the stage in a vibrant 20th anniversary touring production. A re-imagining of Puccini's La Bohème, Rent follows an unforgettable year in the lives of seven artists struggling to follow their dreams without selling out. With its inspiring message of joy and hope in the face of fear, this timeless celebration of friendship and creativity reminds us to measure our lives with the only thing that truly matters-love.
Broadway Across Canada has finally brought the much anticipated 20th Anniversary Tour of Jonathan Larson's acclaimed rock opera, Rent, to Ottawa. Rent is loosely based on the classic Puccini opera, La Bohème but, instead of 1890s Paris, Larson's scene is set in the gritty back alleys of New York's Alphabet City at Christmastime in the early nineties. We meet the two main protagonists, who are down on their luck. Mark (Cody Jenkins) is an aspiring filmmaker and Roger (Coleman Cummings) is a former musician. They live in a slum apartment, burning items in a steel trash can for warmth. Mark's girlfriend, Maureen (Kelsee Sweigard), left him for a woman named Joanne (Samantha Mbolekwa). Roger's girlfriend, April, committed suicide after she discovered that both she and Roger had contracted AIDS. To make matters even worse, Mark and Roger are about to be evicted by their former friend and roommate, Benny (Jason Taylor Smith), who recently purchased the building with the intention of converting it into a high-tech cyber arts studio.
Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning masterpiece RENT will return to the National Theatre by popular demand with its 20th anniversary tour production. The musical will run Tuesday, November 12 through Sunday, November 17, 2019, and is the fourth production in the venue's recordbreaking 2019-2020 Broadway at the National season.
Zoom in on NAC Southam Hall as the 20th Anniversary Tour of RENT plays Oct. 22-27.
RENT tells the story of six New York artists struggling to survive at the end of the millennium. With a plot so complicated, it could be an opera (Puccini's La Bohéme), RENT is also a classic and one dear to many theatre-lovers' hearts. Book, Music, and Lyrics by Jonathan Larson, this 20th Anniversary tour is a story that speaks to audiences young and old.
Zoom in on NAC Southam Hall as the 20th Anniversary Tour of RENT plays Oct. 22-27.
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