Interview: RENT's KATIE LaMARK is 'Living The Dream'

It becomes very clear, just moments into a phone conversation with actress Katie LaMark that she's tremendously charming, amazingly sharp and intuitive and, quite frankly, intelligent and quick-witted. So it comes as absolutely no surprise that the young woman - a Boston native now on the road, playing the role of Maureen in the 20th Anniversary Production of Rent, which makes its way to Nashville's Tennessee Performing Arts Center next week - considers herself to be "living the dream" as she criss-crosses the United States, bringing Jonathan Larson's character to life in an acclaimed revival.

For those neophytes among the theaterati, it should be noted that Rent - which might be considered the Hamilton of its generation - has a storied history, claiming a revered spot on the list of the most influential musical theater offerings of the late 20th Century. Fans of the musical, which focuses on the lives of a group of friends in New York City dealing with AIDS, homelessness, finding themselves amid a cultural landscape filled with challenges, claimed the show's story as their own, the music as their anthemic representation and the electrifying production as their emblematic musical reckoning.

"I was in high school when the movie came out," LaMark recalls, explaining that she and her high school drama club cohorts went to the theater to watch the movie together, to see for themselves what all the talk had been about since the show's legend was born in 1996. "I got the album and listened to it straight for three months - there was nothing else like it!"

But the impact of Rent became so much more apparent when she first saw the tale play out on the silver screen and the gravitas of Larson's work was proven to her and her friends.

When the casting process came about for the current 20th anniversary tour, she was urged to go out for the show by her agents: "I considered calling and making an appointment to be seen for the show, but I wanted to show just how important this was for me, so I asked my friend and audition partner to join me...at the cattle call auditions."

Thus began her months-long and circuitous route to the role that she now plays on the national tour - Maureen, a role previously played by Idina Menzel, Eden Espinosa, Nicole Scherzinger and Annaleigh Ashford, among others - as part of the Rent family that has emerged from a rehearsal hall filled with people who, for the most part, met at the beginning of the process of putting together the 2016 revival as strangers. In the script, Maureen is a performance artist who is the ex-girlfriend of protagonist/narrator Mark, and the current girlfriend of lawyer Joanne; she is perhaps most notable due to her performance of "Over the Moon," her performance art piece that's a highlight of Rent's first act.

The current tour is not LaMark's first time in a production of Rent - rather, her first time came in a college production, although she admits that both the role and the show resonate more deeply with her now because she's actually lived the life of the fictional characters.

"I feel so close to the show because now I know what it's like to be living in New York City and experiencing things that the characters do," she says. "Being on your own and everything that means...I now have a new attachment to these characters and their situation."

As epoch-shifting as shows like Rent and Hamilton are, LaMark suggests that the impact of such contemporary musicals may lie in the fact that characters use modern musical idioms to express their emotions: "The people in these shows sing their kind of music," she muses. "Traditional musical theater is written with a more classical flair, which I love just as much, but what makes shows like Rent and Hamilton so popular, I think, is that you're seeing a story that takes place in a specific time: it hits people differently than a classic musical, because it's more raw, less apologetic, there's more anger expressed and it's more in the moment."

"Classic musicals do it in a different way. I think that sets it apart. The subject matter is about the confusing feelings of the AIDS epidemic, when people were told they wouldn't have a full, complete life span [fuels the characters' emotions and provides conflict for the show's plot]..."

The relatively short journey from initial casting and the first steps during rehearsal was made easier and more fulfilling, LaMark explains, because the cast was able to bond during the process.

"For the most part, we didn't know one another," she says. "I went to college with the guy who plays Mark (Danny Harris Kornfeld), so I knew him, but we had to build a real family. You spend the first few days just understanding the characters, the story and the time period. We realized really quickly that every single person is celebrated in Rent, regardless of their walk of life. There's someone like Angel, whose sexual orientation is so central to the story, sure, but all of these people share so many of the same characteristics. The show isn't about those things, however, it's about what brings all these different people together, what makes them the same and what allows them to hold together with love.

"As a result, we formed our Rent family almost immediately...no matter where we were from or our backgrounds, we became a family and that's why people respond to this show the way they do: It's all about connecting."

The result has been, thus far, a "great tour experience," according to LaMark: "Audiences respond to the show with all their heart and they have such emotional experience to what happens onstage."

About the show: Rent, the Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony Award-winning landmark rock musical written by Jonathan Larson, is a re-imagining of Puccini's La Bohème and follows an unforgettable year in the lives of seven artists struggling to follow their dreams without selling out. With its inspiring message of joy and hope in the face of fear, this timeless celebration of friendship and creativity reminds us to measure our lives with the only thing that truly matters - love.

The original production made its world premiere off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop on February 13, 1996, to ecstatic reviews and transferred to Broadway on April 29, 1996. Rent is winner of the 1996 Tony Award for Best Musical as well as the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It is one of only six musicals to win both awards.

"For the past 20 years, Rent has touched the lives of audiences around the world from Broadway to regional productions to high school auditoriums," said producer Stephen Gabriel. "We're thrilled to introduce a new generation to this timeless story of love, friendship and community."

"Twenty years ago, Jonathan Larson's Rent changed Broadway forever. Ground-breaking in its debut, it continues to resonate with people today," said Kathleen O'Brien, TPAC's president and chief executive officer. "Bringing back this unforgettable story of family and community is our way of both celebrating it as a powerful piece of art and allowing it to connect with contemporary audiences through its diverse characters, powerful lyrics, and anthems such as 'Seasons of Love.' We are excited to revisit this transformational production with an updated cast and staging for new audiences to discover and for loyal fans to enjoy."

Based on the original direction by Michael Greif (Tony and Drama Desk Nominations, Rent), Rent - 20th Anniversary Tour is restaged by Evan Ensign. Marlies Yearby (Tony Nomination, Rent) will serve as choreographer.

Rent - 20th Anniversary Tour is produced by Work Light Productions, whose other touring productions include Mamma Mia!, Irving Berlin's White Christmas, Vocalosity and Crazy For You.

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