This one is very similar to mine, and I really love it. By the way, the author gets a gigantic pile of marshmallows and chocolate for GIVING ME ABSOLUTELY NO NEED TO SPELLCHECK! WOOHOO!
Anyway, I love the whole thing and I quite agree with the statement at the end. And a quick note for the Panda (sorry to hijack this...)
I'm going to see RENT over February vacation, and I can't look forward to it. Why? Because even more than loving every second of the experience, I'll hate every second of the parting. I'll see it with my mother, who's been my biggest family anchor in the RENT world, and it's going to be cathartic...and I know Jonathan would be very annoyed with me for feeling this way, but all I can think about is how much it's going to hurt to know that this is the last time I will ever see it onstage. This show changed my life and is still doing so, and saying goodbye to the Nederlander will be one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I've been there maybe 7 times in my life and it feels like home...how am I cupposed to enjoy such a big ending?
Bah, humbug. I am stupid. Read this amazing account and don't let me act like a lunatic.
I would love to be able to say that I was one of the original RENTheads back in 1996, who saw the show and fell in love. I would love to be able to say that when the OBC still reigned, I was a struggling artist who could only afford tickets by camping out in The Line. Sadly, that's not the story. In 1996, I was three years old.
Strange as it may sound, my RENTheadedness is all thanks to Wicked. I was and am a huge Wicked fan, and I was obsessed with Idina Menzel. So when my friend said that she had rented RENT (heh) for a sleepover she was having, I jumped at the chance to watch a whole movie full of Idina.
I still remember sitting at my friend's table, eating pizza, as the DVD menu popped up. My first reaction was to squee at the clip of Idina, but afterwards I was mesmerized by the beautiful chords of Seasons of Love.
Time to backtrack a little. My love affair with Seasons of Love began long before I even knew that it was from RENT. I heard the song a few times, and thought it was lovely. Then my amazing chorus teacher chose it for one of our performances, and I fell in love with the music and the words. I immediately bought the song off iTunes (even though it turned out to be that weird Stevie Wonder version) and listened to it nonstop.
But anyway. The movie started, and my friend who had seen it once before explained a few little details as the opening chords played. However, I pretty much tuned her out as soon as the characters started to sing. I smiled as I finally heard the song I loved so much as it was supposed to be sung. Then Rent started. I pretty much thought it was the most badass, awesome, rock-out song ever. And being the rebellious, music-loving pyromaniac that I am, when the chorus joined in and started throwing fire out the windows, I couldn't stop grinning. This…was…AWESOME.
By the time Angel rescued Collins from the alley, I was completely mesmerized. Before my friend said it, I just knew they would end up as a couple. The way those two men looked at each other was just adorable.
I knew Taye Diggs was Idina's husband, and during You'll See, I could see why. He was so charming, and I loved his voice. At first I couldn't see why Mark and Roger didn't like him, until it was revealed that he had sold out, and started acting like an asshole.
Then One Song Glory started. I was struck by the passion in Adam Pascal's voice, and immediately decided that I quite liked Roger. April, not so much. My friend explained that she had killed herself after finding out she had AIDS, and I exhibited my tendency to get pissed off at fictional characters.
Enter Mimi. Light My Candle was adorable, and I thought Mimi was hilarious. I could understand every emotion on Roger's face, and the way he said "Fingers – I figured" turned it into one of my favorite RENT quotes for a while. When Mimi made the sexy exit with her smack, I decided she was awesome.
When Today 4 U started, I fell in love with yet another character. I thought Angel was beautiful, and her drum solo and back flip were so kickass that she became my favorite character in the initial stage of my RENTheadedness. This would be the song that I would sing constantly and do embarrassing dances to in front of the school. Angel was pretty much the coolest person ever.
I could go on for at least three more pages, but suffice it to say that I was completely wrapped up in every single second of the movie. The moment that last chord ended and Angel's beautiful face faded off the screen, I burst into tears. To this day, RENT is the only movie that has made me honest-to-goodness cry.
After a few minutes when my two best friends and I sobbed, and our other two friends waited for us to finish sobbing (they never really saw the big deal), it went back to typical sleepover madness. But I couldn't get that music and that message out of my head. My friend burned me the OBC recording, and I didn't stop listening to it for at least three months straight with no other music in between. Not even Wicked. And that's really saying something, because my eighth-grade self lived for Wicked.
Then, about half a year later (I believe it was the day before my birthday), my two best friends and I got the opportunity to go into the city and try to get RENT lottery tickets. We all entered our names, and we actually mooed on the streets on our way to lunch, we were that excited. Standing in line as we listened for our names, my friend actually PRAYED to Adam Pascal. And miraculously, with the combination of winning two tickets and buying two more off a scalper, we actually got seats. I sat there in the second row, actually watching live the thing that had changed my life.
Before RENT, I was sheltered, like so many others in this post-movie generation of RENTheads. I didn't have a problem with gay people (in fact, I was way more tolerant of differences than most people I knew), but I didn't know any, and I didn't completely understand them. I knew next to nothing about AIDS and drugs. Now, I long to ditch the suburbs for New York, and my circle of friends and my outlook about them have changed. Before, they were people to hang out with. Now, I like them a hell of a lot more than my family. I've broken out of my shell, and I've taken an even bigger interest in theater. Basically, I'm a different person. I've met some really great friends through RENT. (shout-out to Wayne and Panda!)
And it sounds funny, but now that RENT is closing, I feel this odd sort of peace about it. Obviously, I'm incredibly sad, but I got the chance to see it twice, once with Adam Pascal (Anthony wasn't there that night), and that's more than I can say for many RENTheads. And it had to end eventually. And if I may paraphrase Albus Dumbledore like the dork I am, RENT will never end as long as there are RENTheads who love it.
Thank you, Jonathan Larson.
1996-2008: The end of an era.
By Mo aka DramaQueenMaureen
