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First appeared October 7, 2003
What could be a more wholesome way to spend a Sunday afternoon than attending a matinee performance of a musical?
The stirring love songs, perhaps a dance number or two, and you’ve got a toe-tapping good time for the whole family. However, if the dance is done by transvestites and the love song is shared between two grinding lesbians – then it’s an entirely different story.
This is what makes RENT, performed Sunday at the Maine Center for the Arts, stand out from all other musicals before it.
The stage, a complex yet dreary scene of New York City, allowed the actors’ colorful personalities and costumes to catch the eye.
The first act opens in the apartment of Mark and Roger, two unemployed artists living in an unheated industrial loft.
The play is performed almost entirely through song, and the first scene quickly explains the pasts of each character.
“I’m sorry to hear that Maureen dumped you,” Mark’s mother said on the answering machine. “So let her be a lesbian!”
Mark’s recent break-up is again rubbed in his face when ex-roomie Benny, the play’s antagonist, enters the scene.
“So what’s his name?” he sneers.
“Joanne!” exclaim the boys.
Benny has come to collect the rent, which the starving artists obviously do not have, prompting the opening number “Rent,” an explosion of dancing and song in which the entire cast floods the stage.
“I don’t own emotion, I Rent!” sang the cast.
The song started out weak, but in the end the audience was left with ringing ears. This was true for most of the characters, who didn’t seem to shine until they warmed up.
The play continues as a romance blooms between computer genius Tom Collins and Angel, a warm-hearted transvestite with a voice – and appearance – akin to Mariah Carey’s. This relationship is the center of much of the play.
Roger also meets his love interest in Mimi, a crack addict that comes to the loft looking for a light. The encounter inspires a chilling rendition of “Light My Candle.”
“They say that I have the best ass below 14th Street, is it true?” sang Mimi, whose performance included some great dance scenes and beautiful, emotional solos.
The first act ends with Maureen’s protest of the closing of a lot where homeless people live and an energetic performance of “La Vie Boheme.” The song toasts everything from marijuana to dildos and the choreography includes some same-sex couples making out.
While phrases from this fast-paced, crazy song that saluted such “bohemian” pastimes as “mucho masturbation” thrilled the younger crowd, it left some of the older attendants a bit flustered. During intermission, one older couple sat in perplexed silence until one remarked, “the, um acting is very, uh, good.”
The second act begins with the ballad-like “Seasons of Love,” which soon becomes a gospel-like plea for understanding.
“Measure your life in love,” sang the cast.
The act centers on the love shared by Angel and Collins, which is easily the most beautiful and honest portrayal of a relationship – be it straight or gay – that has ever graced the stage. This is perhaps why it is so painful when Angel loses his life to AIDS. The other couples, who are struggling to work out their baggage, try to stay together in memory of Angel.
The show ends with inspirational words on how to live life with a song that played a role throughout the performance.
“No other road, no other way. No day but today,” they sang.
The finale, as well as Roger’s “One Song Glory,” Mark and Joanne’s “Tango: Maureen” and Angel and Collins’s “I’ll cover You” evoked huge emotion from the audience and tears from their eyes, and the talented cast was rewarded with an immediate standing ovation.
Although, there was some difficulty with the lighting, this tour of RENT was remarkable and made you forget for a moment that you were not sitting in a Broadway theater.
Jennifer Gundersen, editor in chief, contributed to this article.
Bangor Daily News