If Tolstoy ever attended a Broadway show he might have said: Every happy musical is alike, every unhappy musical is different in its own way.
Jonathan Larson’s Rent (1996) is perhaps the most unhappy musical ever. Not the show itself, a deft grunge riff on Puccini’s war horse opera La Bohème, which in Theatre Under the Stars’ magical version is an exuberant, life-affirming experience and an absolute gem, but the fact that young creator Larson (composer, lyricist, librettist) died of a heart attack on the eve of its Off-Broadway premiere.
Larson wasn’t a complete unknown, having written the autobiographical musical Boho Days, posthumously reworked as tick, tick…BOOM! (2001) and the revue J.P. Morgan Saves the Nation, as well as incidental music for Sesame Street and numerous scores for Books on Tape. With Stephen Sondheim’s encouragement and letters of introduction, young Larson was headed for glory.
Rent was his crowning achievement. When the musical transferred to Broadway after its cult-like run downtown, the show conquered, winning the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Drama; three Tony Awards for Larson personally (Best Musical, Original Score, Book); three Drama Desk awards (Book of a Musical, Music, Lyrics); the New York Drama Critics Circle Award (Best Musical); the Outer Critics Circle Award (Best Off-Broadway Musical); and three Obie Awards (Music, Lyrics, Book). These accolades were presented posthumously. He would have been 36 years old. There’s no telling what he could have achieved had he lived.
There is no question about Rent’s enduring legacy, a cultural icon for many and object of veneration for the rest. It is a masterpiece.
A free-form flowing ode that lauds young love among the outcast bohemians of the Millennial generation that uses rock music as its base but is clearly indebted to those ageless verities of Broadway’s past: superb plotting, inventive lyrics, ear-catching melodies, a sure sense of showbiz style and know-how, and lively characters you truly care about and root for, no matter how drug-addled and personally messed up their lives are. It’s about family and connections and “fighting the system” against all odds. These young rebels battle disease and crushing poverty and yet retain their dignity. Love is their shield, their one protection from the harsh reality of trying to claim their dream.
Larson’s genius lies in updating Puccini’s classic. He fills his Lower East Side garret with grunge musicians, filmmakers, performance artists, and self-styled philosophy teachers who live in a dilapidated walk-up without heat. They can’t pay their rent. These young turks will con the system with righteous indignation while under the haze of heroin, their health compromised by the contemporary scourge of AIDS. But whatever befalls, they are family. Selling out is beneath contempt. Larson fills the stage with a stirring “vie de bohème” that would make Puccini proud.
The current TUTS cast is stunning in its diversity and talent. Adrian Lopez, as musician Roger who dreams of moving to Santa Fe to start a restaurant and falls hard for the seductive blast from Isabella De Souza Moore’s smack-addicted Mimi, belts his anthems with a rocker’s gruff wail; Scott Redmond, as filmmaker Mark who keeps life at bay while hiding behind his camera is agile of person as well as voice; Teresa Zimmermann and Simone Gundy duel comically as warring sexed-up couple Maureen and Joanne; Will Mann, as the community’s solid core Tom Collins, possesses a melting baritone and smooth stage presence; Jamall Houston manages to make sell-out bohemian Benjamin sympathetic.
And then there is Tomás Matos, as the group’s and the show’s beating heart, trans Angel. That star turn in the garish Christmas dress (Colleen Grady’s off-the-street costumes hurl you back to the ’70s) earns hearty applause from the many audience Rent-heads. Matos does not disappoint, as sparkling as the disco boots, as Angel prances, preens, acts up, and ultimately teaches the Bohemian friends to live “Today 4 U,” one of Larson’s pristine ballads, one of many that pepper this show.
The sets and projections from Ryan McGettigan and Katherine Freer move and glide swiftly with grace like the cast, a wondrous gritty panorama of the lower east side. Director Ty Defoe lets Monica Josette’s spirited choreography keep up the life force in which this show abounds.
Larson’s evergreen musical is a hymn to life and love in all its forms. It’s a glorious work, full of youthful smartass attitude, promise, crushed hope, and abiding faith in family in whatever form that takes. TUTS weaves a most glorious tapestry. A musical dream classic not to be missed.
Rent continues through May 28 at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and Sundays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays at TUTS at the Hobby, 800 Bagby. For more information, call 713-558-8887 or visit tuts.com. $40-$135.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
