Playwright and composer Jonathan Larson’s legacy began with his untimely death the morning of the Off-Broadway premiere of his new rock musical, “Rent.” Thankfully, the fate of “Rent” did not die with him. The show made its Broadway debut April 29, 1996 at the Nederlander Theatre where it made sold-out crowds laugh, cry, and cheer for over twelve years and 5,123 performances.
Now, twenty years since opening night, Studio A in Hamilton Hall has been transformed into New York City’s East Village for the SCAD School of Entertainment Art’s annual spring musical. The show’s twenty-year anniversary was the primary reason for its selection as the spring show. Even in 2016, the material remains just as — if not even more intimate and relevant as it was when it premiered in ‘96. Its context was adapted from Giacomo Puccini’s “La bohème,” a one-hundred year old story by the time “Rent” debuted Off-Broadway.
The Film and Television department gave the Performing Arts program their blessing to use Studio A, an inspiring move for an unconventional yet obvious musical theater venue. Director Michael Wainstein conducted a spirited and energized cast and crew made up of both students and faculty from multiple disciplines including production, sound, and light designers.
“Students designed the whole show,” Wainstein said. “And it’s a very very exciting design, so we’re excited about that. It’s a hard show. Very, very demanding physically, vocally. It’s been challenging, but you know I think that we’re rising to the occasion. It’s a lot of fun to be in this space. Very intimate. We like that a lot. The audience is like part of the show.”
“Rent” centers on a destitute community of young artists in the Bohemian Alphabet City struggling not just to survive but live during the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The show, a romanticization of life in the East Village, has a very specific look to it in terms of its coarse, uncensored style. Roger Davis’s plaid pants and Mimi Márquez’s blue fishnet tights and leopard boots are staples of any adaptation, and costume designer Danielle Levengood did a superb task of fashioning these characters with the show’s feel of raw, punk grittiness.
I can’t say enough about this set, and that credit belongs to Scenic Designer Abigail Cox and Lighting Designers Anna Krutsenko and Alexandra Vasquez Dheming. Had this show been performed in a typical theater with an elevated stage barricading between audience and actor, an empathic connection and engagement involved in numbers such as “Christmas Bells” would be lacking. The backdrop of Christmas lights framing shoots and ladders provides a skeletal mirror for the “Seasons of Love” these characters experience.
Musical Director and keyboardist Kevin Wallace gracefully handled Larson’s intense score, part power ballads part rock concert. “Rent” is one of the most demanding Broadway shows for both actor and musician. Dialogue is minimum, meaning the entire show relies on the deliverance of each note in every song. Wainstein said he has many favorite moments in “Rent,” among them the final number of Act 1, “La Vie Boheme,” and the death of Angel in Act 2 during the poignant duet, “Without You.” His cast successfully delivers on those labels, because they all seem in sync with each other and the show’s rhythm.
Steve Mazzoccone’s Mark Cohen is clear, vulnerable, and strong in his ability to carry the majority of the show’s narrative. Mazzoccone has a voice fit for Broadway, and his portrayal of Mark indicates a promising path for future endeavors in musical theater.
Bradleigh Watlington is one of the show’s most consistently beautiful voices as Mimi. “Out Tonight” has several challenging key changes, notably on the “out’s,” and Watlington hit all of them better than most of the other Mimi’s I’ve heard. Xiaoqing Zhang is another exceptional talent with vocal solidity. Her Maureen Johnson is delightful to watch, and her little touch of “la-la-la-leave me” at the finish of “Take Me or Leave Me” is unexpectedly refreshing.
Philip Trossarello echoes the physical and vocal visage of Adam Pascal’s original ‘96 Roger. His range is perfectly tuned to Roger’s hard rock sound, and his chops particularly glow in “One Song Glory.” When he hits and holds those ascending notes, you sit back and think, “That’s ‘Rent’ right there.”
Though “Rent” hasn’t been performed on Broadway since 2008, it has a timeless arc and appeal. As Wainstein’s production confirmed during their Wednesday night preview, this show is not just Larson’s magnum opus; it’s his eternal eulogy. How I hope we never stop singing it.
Written by Emilie Kefalas.
