SHOWING : March 30, 2012 - April 21, 2012
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Loosely based on Puccini's La Boheme, Rent follows a year in the life of a group of friends struggling to make it in the East Village of New York City. They include Mark, a filmmaker and the narrator of the story; his former girlfriend, Maureen, a performance artist; Maureen's lover, Joanne, a public interest lawyer; Mark's roommate Roger, a musician; Mimi, an exotic dancer, with whom Roger falls in love; Tom Collins, a computer genius; Collins' lover, Angel, a street musician and drag queen; and Benny, a former member of the group who, after marrying into a wealthy family, has become their landlord. How these young bohemians learn to survive, fall in love, find their voices and live for today. Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical.
This show features adult content! BE WARNED!
This show features seating that will be integrated into the set. Special seating is available for those with special needs. Please reserve under "Accessible Seating" if you need a special accommodation.
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An Unusual Setting for a Musical
| by notoriousdad |
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Friday, April 20, 2012 |
4.5
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Full disclosure - I have no talent. I love musicals, but RENT is not my favorite. Feeling sorry for a bunch or whiny, addicted 20-somethings just does not come naturally for me.
That said, I thoroughly enjoyed the Dramatech version of RENT. The show is in the Black Box theater behind the Ferst Center on the Tech campus. It is an unusual arrangment that calls for sets throughout the space and the audience sits on boxes, chairs, and even the floor, scattered around the venue. It works because the cast connects with the audience as they move in and around the cast from set to apparatus to stage. The audience gets pulled in and even feels a bit bohemian.
Many of the voices in the show were very strong, which really helps in a show like this. Even the weaker voices are strong enough not to get lost. The acting, especially Tom and Angel (Tamil and Ty), is outstanding when needed. I understand from the aftershow that the production experienced some early sound problems because of the unusual venue and sets, but they were resolved by the time I saw the show.
The big strength also caused the biggest weakness for the show. Because of the unusual seating, sightlines were sometimes compromised. The cast encourages the audience to move around for a better view, but that jus is not realistic. At least when I could not see well, I could sit back and enjoy the music...it was not long until the cast and the action moved to a different part of the set so no real harm was done.
Oh, and the theater encourages you to bring your own chair for this show if you wish!
Enjoy! I did! [POST A COMMENT REGARDING THIS REVIEW] |
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