so, i went to go see RENT finally.  yay!  sometime in early august, i think...whatever...my cousin got me, him, and a friend tickets to see it.  and so the wait began.  the excitement eventually died.  but then it came.  thursday, september 23rd, 1999 - my 17th birthday - we skipped school to go to chicago and see the best musical ever.  what a great day!  so far everything has paled in comparison to that wonderful, magical day.  but enough of that, let's get to the musical itself.

now, we didn't see the original broadway cast since, well, they don't tour anymore.  we saw the benny tour (picured left), and they certainly did justice to the musical.  they were great!  even with a few subs here and there (angel and roger notably), they were amazing. 

before the show, we were hanging outside the shubert theatre waiting for the doors to open, and this adorable guy walked by in pajama pants checking his watch.  then he walked by the other way and was admitted into the theatre, so i figured he must be an usher or something.  in 5 minutes or so, the doors were opened.  and we were let into the beatiful theatre. 

and there we were, sitting inside the theatre, 5th row on the right.  great seats.  the first thing i noticed was the set, which was wonderful in its simplicity.  just a few tables and chairs, a stairway, a garbage can, and a screen in the back.  very fitting.  and so it began, without warning.  mark walks out, sets up his camera, and addresses the audience while i gasp.  why?  well, that guy i mentioned before...he was mark (scott hunt)!  that's right!  there's a picture of him on the right there.  adorable like i said.  anyways, i was immeditately taken by the whole thing.  the simple white lighting.  the small, but tremendously talented pit. 

the cast was wonderful.  you could feel the electricity in the air and the excitement was overwhelming.  but for now, i'll just give you under-informed folks a quick synopsis of the story.  RENT was written by the late, great jonathan larson based on puccini's opera la boheme.  RENT is a story of artists living in nyc's east village whose lives are effected by AIDS and love and art.  mark and roger live together in an apartment owned by once roommate turned yuppie scum benny.  mark is a filmmaker trying to document the lives of those around him, and roger is a guitarist/singer out of work with AIDS.  roger's ex-girlfriends killed herself after finding out they had the disease.  roger meets mimi (also with AIDS), a dancer who used to date benny, and they immediately connect.  mark's ex-girlfriend now dates joanne and plans a protest in the lot next to the apartment.  benny has a plan to set up a cyber-arts studio where mark and roger can work, and he lets their rent slide.  but then benny decides to evict everyone from the bulding, unless they pay their rent.  collins, an ex-roommate of mark and roger, comes back to town and meets angel, a cross-dressing musician (both have AIDS).  they fall in love.  the story continues through the trials and tribulations of all the characters.  and i will stop there to avoid ruining it for anyone. 

although the story is specific, it relates to everyone.  the music is wonderful - a mix of rock with traditional musical elements.  the characters touch the lives of everyone in the audience, and in the end, you feel like you've just watched your close friends live their lives.  you smile, laugh, and cry along with them.  you share their good times along with the bad times. 

i must give the pit their credit here.  they were great!  the music isn't easy and combining it with vocalists onstage is even more difficult, but they did a wonderful job.  the drummer never missed a beat and really added so much to the original music.  the 2 guitarists (not including roger) were amazing.  the piano player seemed to really get into it and was instrumental in the direction of the vocalists.  the bass player was great.  so there you have it.  a wonderful pit all-around, and they should be!  it's a big production in a big city.

after the show, i was both energized and exhausted.  it was so exciting.  it seemed like act I should be one night, act II then next, and the after stuff another night.  as i was walking out with my friend, we happend to be right behind "angel" and other cast members.  so i got his autograph and talked to the actress who played maureen.  what a great day!

anyways, if you haven't seen it, what are you waiting for?  go!  and if you have, see it again.
for now, go back to the rest of the page.