Will Chase will join the Broadway cast of Rentfor a brief stint as Roger. The star will start performances on December 26th and perform in the musical through January 29th, 2006.
British actor Tim Howar (Peggy Sue Got Married) will succeed Chase on January 30th; he will star in Rent through July 29th.Rent currently features Joshua Kobak as Roger, Antonique Smith as Mimi, Justin Johnston as Angel, Destan Owens as Tom Collins, Ava Gaudet as Maureen, Kenna Ramsey as Joanne, D'Monroe as Benny and Frenchie Davis as the "Seasons of Love" soloist.
Chase, who was most recently seen on Broadway in Lennon, has performed in Rentin the past--he understudied the role of Roger in the late '90s and was a member of the Rent ensemble. His other Broadway credits include Miss Saigon, Aida and The Full Monty, while he has appeared regionally in Mame, Son of Fire, Assassins and in the world premiere of Andrew Lippa's A Little Princess.
With its groundbreaking rock score by Larson and a story that captured the current of its generation, Rentis
set in New York's East Village, where a group of artists
love and live La Vie Boheme even under the shadow of poverty, failure,
illness and death. The La Boheme-based
show, which has been running at the Nederlander Theatre since its
opening in 1996, won the Pultizer and the 1996 Tony Award for
Best Musical, as well as 3 others. Tragically, Larson died a few months
before the show opened. It has since run for almost 4,000 performances.