Seasons of Rent

Jonathon Larson's multiple tony award and Pulitzer winner rock musical Rent is inspired by Giacomo Puccini's La Boheme, which follows the narrative of a group of penniless young artists struggling to survive and make a name for themselves in New York's Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of AIDS and HIV. Aspiring filmmaker Mark (Tom Oliver) narrates the plot, who lives with best friend Roger (Luigi Lucente), a heartbroken, HIV-positive rocker, who tries to retreat from his newfound feelings towards stripper and HIV positive drug addict Mimi (Stephie De Silva), in the hopes of his candle not being burnt. The pair live in an unheated warehouse loft owned by their former roommate Benny (Isaac Lindley), a budding entrepreneur determined to collect the rent which he had previously told his friends not to pay. Also central to the plot is the rapport their pal Collins (James Shaw) is a gay, anarchist college professor embarks on with the heartfelt and generous drag queen Angel (Trent Owers) who, like both Roger and Collins, has AIDS. Amongst all this, Mark is still in mourning over the self-centred performance artist Maureen (Ruby Clark), who left him for a lawyer named Joanne (Kirrah Amosa).

As a musical theatre devotee, Rent holds a very dear place in my heart. I'm not ashamed to admit that it was the soundtrack of my adolescence and that it still is one of my favourite scores of all time. What has always made me love this musical is how each character is flawed and has 'baggage' as Rodger puts it. Not only that but the fact that their baggage doesn't miraculously leave them with a flick of a finger. Instead, it stays with them and they use their love and friendship as a coping mechanism, which is why it holds such a prominent place in our modern theatrical world. We all carry our own baggage and hence, the characters and the lyrics of the song feel real. Although some theatre-goers may differ, I have a big big love for the movie adaptation of it as well and re-watch it whenever I can. Consequently, I had very high expectations of this production and it's creative body and I can safely say, that my expectations were met.

I saw Matt Ward's (producer) production of Rent last year at the Brisbane Powerhouse and didn't think that it could get any better than that, but it did. Director Tim Hill truly did choose the best of the best Brisbane based artists who not only successfully embody their roles on stage but who have genuine chemistry with their romantic counterparts. Seasons of Love was a reality on stage; even from the audience you could feel the love shared between not only the characters, but the actors, with the slogan 'love is love' beaming brightly on the back wall.

Therefore, my favourite moments were I'll Cover You, Take Me Or Leave Me and Without You, all duets in which the actors reverberated the soul of Jonathon Larson's influential masterpiece. My highlights of the show include Shaw's heartfelt, raw delivery of I'll Cover You Reprise, in which he happened to stand right in front of my seat in the second row as I watched the tears streaming down his face. However, I shed more tears in Silva's vocals in Without You, which carried her characters inner turmoil, suffering and hopelessness. Ruby Clark's hilarious rendition of Over the Moon showed her background in comedy and Trent Owner was the most adorable Angel, who my eyes couldn't stop looking at whenever he/she was on stage. Amosa blew me away as Joanne who, even though we don't delve into her life as much as the others, she, along with Owner and Clark, had the best stage presence. Musical director Ben Murray did his job right, with the harmonies in each group number not only sending chills down my spine but further creating a powerful, wholesome sound on stage in which each voice was heard.

I adored Maria-Rose Payne's minimalistic, yet elegant, set design with staircases stretching from left to right, the entire stage is a massive apartment complex in which the actors dance and run around in. My favourite set piece was Matt Godden's magnificent tree sculpture hung with gleaming lights and decorations, which I interpreted as the idea of life and how everyone has to climb the tree at their own pace to reach the top and that reaching the top, that reaching happiness and being loved is attainable to all. Unlike most productions at QPAC, the band weren't in the shadows but sitting on the stage, whom my eye lingered on numerous times throughout the performance.

There are 525600 minutes in a year, and this production is 165 minutes of your year well spent.

Where: QPAC (Queensland Performing Arts Centre)

Season: 2-20th May

Tickets: https://www.qpac.com.au/event/rent_18/

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