RENT | Theatre

A review of the 30th Anniversary production of RENT the musical, currently playing at the Tom Stoppard Theatre in London’s West End.

A friend and I went to London to see the anniversary revival of RENT at the recently renamed Tom Stoppard Theatre (was Duke of York Theatre), and it was every bit as good as we’d hoped.

It’s simply superb. If I included star ratings in my mini reviews, this would get all of them.

Warning: In case you aren’t aware, this is not a jazz hands musical. Not at all. It deals with some very dark themes: poverty, homelessness, addiction, illness and loss. It doesn’t pull its punches, and there are moments that are genuinely difficult to watch. Yet somehow it remains full of life, friendship, humour and hope.

The Story

Created by Jonathan Larson, RENT is loosely based on Puccini’s opera La Bohème, transplanting the story to New York during the HIV/AIDS crisis – and even weaving direct musical references to the opera into the score. I’ve heard it described as one of the shows that changed the direction of modern musical theatre, proving that musicals could tell contemporary stories about ordinary people facing real problems. I don’t know enough about musical theatre to know if that’s entirely true, but it is difficult to imagine many modern musicals existing in quite the same way without this one in the background.

Although the story is rooted in a very specific time and place, its themes remain sadly familiar. Questions of housing, inequality, community, identity, illness and how we choose to spend the time we are given continue to resonate decades after the musical was first written.

The Production

The production itself was excellent. The staging was intimate, with some audience members seated on stage amongst the action, while the rest of us watched from more conventional seats. Even from the dress circle, it felt close and immediate. There was very little, actually no, separation between audience and performers, making it feel as though we were experiencing the story alongside the characters rather than simply watching it unfold. The set was relatively minimal but incredibly effective, making clever use of a small rotating stage and a few chairs. It trusted the performers to fill in the gaps and allowed the story, music and characters to remain firmly at the centre of everything.

RENT is a show that asks an awful lot of its performers, and the cast delivered from start to finish. The choreography was extraordinary, energetic and utterly committed, while the music retained all the power you would expect from a score that leans far more towards rock opera than traditional musical theatre. The singing was phenomenal from every cast member.

The Score

Everyone knows Seasons of Love, whether they realise it or not. It’s easy to think of it as a beautiful standalone song, but within RENT it becomes something much more powerful. Opening the second act, it’s one of those songs that has escaped its place within a musical, taking on a life of its own. Having heard it countless times outside the show, I wasn’t expecting it to affect me quite so much. Hearing it in the context of this production, knowing what these characters have lived through and what some of them are yet to face, gave it an entirely different weight. Its message about measuring life in love suddenly felt much more personal and much more profound.

That said, I also have a real soft spot for Tango: Maureen and Goodbye Love too; this isn’t a one-song score by any stretch of the imagination. Seasons of Love may be the famous one, but there is plenty else here to discover.

A couple of other moments really stood out for me. The use of candles as a motif throughout the production was beautifully done, growing in significance as the story unfolded. Angel’s death was handled with real sensitivity, and I also appreciated the decision to bring Angel back on stage later in the show. This helped provide a sense of closure while reinforcing the idea that the people we lose continue to shape the lives of those left behind. A difficult truth I am living myself. In that moment, it felt like a warm hug at the end of a very sad story.

RENT isn’t an easy watch. Nor should it be. But it is a fantastic one. Go and see it.

RENT | Tom Stoppard Theatre