Review: RENT, Festival Theatre, Edinburgh

With a tour celebrating its 20th anniversary, RENT follows a group of artists and musicians in New York City in the early 90's before gentrification had started and the area was badly affected by drug abuse, homelessness and AIDS. A group of artists have been living rent free as their ex roommate bought the building but then he demands payment for the year which they have no way to pay.

Roger is a tortured musician whose girlfriend committed suicide after leaving him a note to say that they had AIDS. He falls for club dancer Mimi (beautifully played by Philippa Stefani) but tries to distance himself from her so that neither of them are hurt by the others baggage. There are lots of plot lines running alongside but the story never feels overcrowded. The characters are for the most part likeable and I became emotionally invested very quickly.

The music in RENT has always been outstanding and the vocal performances really did them justice. The songs take you on one hell of a journey, "La Vie Boheme" was pure joy while the reprise of "I'll Cover You" in Act 2 prompts full-on snotty crying.

While I have seen the role "stunt cast" in the past, Lucie Jones was exceptional as Maureen. "Over The Moon" is her main number which is always a bit bizarre but Jones really played up the comedic element whilst nailing those notes. I've always viewed Mark Cohen as a bit of a weak character but Billy Cullum brought something special to the part and avoided becoming a bit whiny.

In some places RENT feels a little unfinished. Creator Jonathan Larson passed away the day of the first preview in 1996. The ending of the show is a little too cheesy, having someone brought back from the brink of death by the power of song- and a fairly terrible song at that. "Your Eyes" is definitely the weakest of the bunch and I can't help but wonder whether that would have been tweaked or rewritten further down the line.

Overall this is a stunning production of a wonderful musical. While accessible to a wide audience, it has lost none of the raw edge which made it so brilliant 20 years ago.

RENT is at Edinburgh's Festival Theatre until Saturday 18th February.

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