Book, Music & Lyrics: Jonathan Larson
Director: Luke Sheppard
Set in a badly lit apartment in the late 90s, Rent returns to the stage 30 years after its opening, transporting us to a time of freedom and friendship shrouded by a curtain of hardship.
Jonathan Larson’s story follows a group of friends, activists and artists living in New York. Both timeless and also anchored in an era where so many were affected by HIV/ AIDS, the passage of time has transformed this tale into a legend. Unsurprisingly, perhaps, as it is loosely based on Puccini’s La Bohème (and Henri Murger’s book Scenes of Bohemian Life from over 150 years ago), or because themes of loss and love are eternal.
Directed by Luke Sheppard, the performance aesthetic is dark, grungy and almost apocalyptic, with props lowered from the ceiling, fires on stage and sparks flying. Costumes (Gabriella Slade) are either extremely layered, featuring greys, blacks, burgundy and nudes or very skimpy, and both the musicians and part of the audience are on stage as well, becoming the very walls of the building.
In it, Mark, played by Gaten Matarazzo, lives in a dilapidated flat owned by Benny (Joaquin Pedro Valdes) with Roger (Travis Ross). Mark is an aspiring filmmaker who documents the lives of his friends, while Roger, a recently sober musician, has just learned of his HIV diagnosis, revealed to him by his ex-girlfriend April before her suicide, leaving him depressed and unstable.
We quickly meet their friend Collins (Billy Nevers), who rings to say he’ll be right up, but gets mugged before he can do so, luckily saved by Angel (Jeevan Braich), a drag queen who takes him in. The rest of the group includes Maureen (Lazy Violet), Mark’s ex-girlfriend; Maureen’s new girlfriend Joanne (Danielle Fiamanya) and Roger’s love interest Mimi (Alexa Lopez). The dramatic and fast-paced storylines often told in song overlap, as we witness Joanne and Mark meeting for the first time with their song The Tango Maureen, Collins and Angel falling in love with I’ll Cover You, and eventually Roger and Mimi opening up to each other in I Should Tell You.
Yet, though the group only comes together for the first time at the end of Act 1 with La Vie Bohème, it is sometimes difficult to really feel true camaraderie between the characters. Indeed, their various storylines are quite self-absorbed, and save for a few group dances, choreographed by Tom Jackson Greaves, the focus lies on individual performances. This gives us time to appreciate the beautiful voices of Nevers and Braich, the heartbreaking angsty baggage carried so as well by Ross, notably in his classic One Song Glory, Fiamanya’s comically tumultuous telephone calls, as well as some incredible solos from ensemble member Leah Vassell.
Matarazzo, camera constantly in hand and whose footage is ingeniously projected onto the walls and on various mounted vintage televisions, often stands apart from the rest, seemingly less affected by the same burdens as his chosen family. This makes it sometimes hard to understand the character’s own motivations and difficulties, both in his body language and his songs, and Roger aptly points this out to Mark at the end of the show.
Rent is angry, sad, the band is rocking, the performers are crying, and the audience is too, as we can’t help compare our own lives and hardships to those that have come before us.
Runs until 29 May 2027
