The Musical 'Rent' is not an easy watch, and its storyline is hard to follow. I first came across this Musical in 1999 when I watched it on Broadway, and was absolutely blown away by it. Then, it was fresh, alive, daring, different, and challenging. Now, the themes and issues which the musical navigates are less shocking, but still manage to place a good gut-punch if placed correctly.
It's a Rock Opera - a genre of Musical Theatre which is through-sung, little or no dialogue, and the music is, as the name suggests, of the more edgy side of the 'pop' bracket. Due to this, the lyrics, especially those which tell the story and advance the plot, need to be crystal clear and signposted. My over-riding concern with this production of Rent, by East Cheshire Musical Theatre Company, was that there was very little evidence of this happening on stage this evening.
I am familiar with the story, having seen this show several times; however my companion this evening, and others I spoke to in the interval, were new to the show, seeing it this evening for the first time. They were confused and did not understand the storyline, and needed an interval explanation before the second half.
The story is a reworking of Puccini's 'La Boheme', set in Alphabet Village in New York in the mid 1990s. A time when HIV/AIDS was prevalent, drug addiction commonplace, and a time when homosexuality was still something you could be killed for. We see an artists' commune, where money is a scarce commodity, and their apartments are leaking, with no heat or light, and where the whole community looks out for each other. The story centres around Mark, a would-be film documentarian, and his composer room-mate Roger. In just one year things go from bad to worse, despite their optimism, as Angel, a drag artist and lover of their best friend Tom dies of AIDS, and Mimi, an exotic dancer from across the hallway, falls in and out of love with Roger, and has a dramatic near-death at the end of the show. It sounds much worse though than it is, and the songs are uplifting and in the spirit of shows like Les Mis which deal with tragedy so superbly, this show has the same ethic.
The individual performances as well as the ensemble singing were all very good, and the society had assembled a very talented cast who were all clearly enjoying themselves and their enjoyment was infectious, pervading the auditorium with their high energy and enthusiasm. The talented and extremely personable Sam Bates leading the cast in what is actually the most difficult role of Mark, a sometime narrator, sometimes slightly on the outside watching and recording, sometimes on the inside caught up in amongst the angst. It's a hard character to 'know', and Bates pitched it beautifully. Grace Stubbs's Mimi and Lucy Thornburn's Maureen were both delightful characterisations with powerful voices. I really enjoyed the chemistry between Stubbs and Wagstaff during 'Light My Candle' and Thornburn showcased her talents in the hardest song of the show 'Ovr the Moon', where the ability at appearing to be slightly 'off your head' certainly helped!
Whoever plays Angel isn't in for an easy ride either, and young Connor Wyse made a very proficient and noteworthy attempt at this, dragging-up, and struttung his stuff in high-heeled boots whilst dancing and singing. Chris Wagstaff played his role of Roger with a credible amount of vulnerability, and yet, this evening, his voice was strained and muffled, and I was having great difficulty in understanding his very poor enunciation. That was such a shame, as I have seen him perform in other shows and have never had that problem with him before.
Keisha Golden (Joanne), Jonathan Hall (Tom) and Dan Pothecary (Benny) offered sterling support in their roles, as did the ensemble. The singing and harmonies were lovely.
Director Andrew Lee managed to find a talented cast which sparked excellently off each other, working superbly as a team, as well as finding some lovely individual characterisations too. Choreography, what little there was, was nicely arranged by Sally Hilliard, and the music was in secure hands with MD Ed Nurse. Where the overall production quality dipped for me were in things techinical. The mic levels were not right all evening meaning that chorus voices could be heard above the soloists, and sometimes the music drowned out the singer. Also the lighting was not sufficient in many places. When cast stood on the table they were not lit from the front, and stage extremities were not given sufficient cover, meaning that several cast members were performing in semi-darkness or in weird shadows.
Rent is a thrilling and gripping, if gritty and urban-angst-ridden musical. Perhaps it is a little dated now, but that notwithstanding, it is a testament to the time it is set, and East Cheshire Muscial Theatre Company have assembled a stellar cast to bring this story to life, and that they do, with their up-beat version of 'La Vie Boheme'.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 29/8/19
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