Winner of multiple Tony’s and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1996, “Rent” is currently enjoying a revival at the Fifth Avenue. Directed by Producing Director Bill Berry, this dynamic production features a mostly local, young and energetic cast depicting a group of aspiring artists, musicians and performers living “La Vie Boheme” (one of the musical’s many familiar songs) in the unheated lofts and cold-water flats of 1980’s Alphabet City in Manhattan’s East Village.
Jonathan Larson created the music, book and lyrics for “Rent” by combining his own experiences as a starving young composer in New York with characters and plot elements from Puccini’s opera “La Boheme”. In place of the rampant consumption (tuberculosis) of 1840’s Paris, many of the characters in “Rent” are infected with AIDS which, even with the availability of the drug AZT in the 1980’s, still promised poignant and early death for many. Although categorized as a rock opera/musical, “Rent’s” musical numbers display Larson’s wide ranging musical roots from the pop beat of “Seasons of Love” to the folksy acoustic guitar of “Halloween” and the R&B influenced ”I’ll Cover You”; strains of “Musetta’s Waltz” from “La Boheme” surface occasionally. Sadly Larson never knew “Rent’s” success; he died suddenly of aortic bleeding prior to the Broadway opening.
The cast features a wealth of excellent voices. Roosevelt High and recent University of Michigan grad Daniel Berryman displays a well-articulated tenor in his role as documentary filmmaker Mark. Berryman, Aaron Finley as musician Roger and Fifth Avenue mainstay Brandon O’Neill as gay computer genius Tom Collins shine in their individual numbers and as a trio in their rendition of “What You Own”. Jerick Hoffer brings poise, genuine warmth and drumming skills to his role as transvestite busker and Collins’s lover Angel. Ryah Nixon provides comic relief as vampy performance artist Maureen; she and lover Joanne (Andi Alhadeff) obviously relish their bluesy duet “Take Me or Leave Me”. Under Music Director R.J. Tancioco, the voices blend beautifully in the choral pieces, particularly the popular “Seasons of Love” featuring an impressive gospel-tinged solo by chorus member and intern Sarah Russell. Unfortunately the Fifth Avenue’s ongoing issue with consistency of audio levels forces the softer-voiced performers such as Naomi Morgan as teenage drug addict Mimi to sometimes scream the lyrics in order to be heard above the highly competent five-piece band.
Martin Christoffel’s scenic design transforms from New York City tenement to rock concert stage and back with the help of Tom Sturge’s lighting design. The extended stage stretches over the orchestra pit and even spills into the audience with front row orchestra seating consisting of tatty couches and litter-covered floor, so that show patrons become denizens of the tent city located by the tenement. Costume design by Pete Rush provides an authentic 1980’s feel but his most creative work appears in the costumes of the homeless, especially the plastic bag man.
“Rent” plays through August 19 at the Fifth Avenue Theatre, 1308 Fifth Avenue. Info: www.5thavenue.org
[[In-content Ad]]