Last night, my friend PJ and I saw RENT for the very last time on Broadway. We, along with many of our fellow theater geek friends, have been big fans of this show for the last 12 years. From it's high points - it's amazing first season with the original cast, subsequent reunions, cast members like Sherie Rene Scott, Norbert Leo Butz, Neil Patrick Harris, national tours etc - to some low points - Scary Spice anyone? :) But no matter the cast changes or what was going on in the world, RENT was always there.
But as of September 7th it won't be. That will be the date of RENT's final performance. This is obviously an impossible show to get into, no tickets etc. And the final week is going to be nutty as it approaches quickly. So PJ and I decided to go last night and bid our farewell quietly.
The absolute highlight for me was Will Chase (Lennon, High Fidelity, Aida, Full Monty) who is the current Roger. My friend Meredith and I did standing room to see him during his first stint as Roger a few years ago. And just as he was then, he remains one of my favorite Rogers (Adam Pascal will always claim #1.) He is such a great singer that he often outshone his fellow castmembers. His "One Song Glory" is the only one that comes close to Adam's! I know it's terrible to compare the two but it just can't be helped.
Another highlight was Tracie Thoms as Joanne. While the RENT movie was being filmed I had the opportunity to meet Tracie Thoms a few times. She was always very sweet and sounded great! She was one of the few actors in the movie that was not an original cast member reprising a role. In fact she had been auditioning to play Joanne on Broadway for years but had never gotten the part. Now not only does she hold the honor of being the Joanne preserved on film forever, she is also Broadway's final Joanne. And she seems to be savoring every moment.
Yet another highlight was Eden Espinosa as Maureen. Eden, who was also in the ill-fated Bway show Brooklyn (and was the only good thing about that show), and in Wicked as Elphaba, has a rabid Broadway fanbase. Girls screamed when she appeared on stage. I have seen her in both of her previous shows and she has a vocal range to rival just about anyone else. This is cliche but I think at her highest note she really can shatter glass. Now not only did she sing the hell out the role but she made it entirely her own. She wasn't doing an Idina Menzel impersonation (which she also did not do in Wicked). And she was hilarious. "Over The Moon" is a tough song to sell and she was fantastic.
Most pleasant surprise was Adam Kantor as Mark. Adam graduated last year from Northwestern University. He has appeared in a few shows there and, well, that's about it! This seems to be not only his Broadway debut but his first professional theater job as well. It was a stroke of genius to put a total newcomer in this role at the end of its run. It shows how this show has grown and evolved and remained relevant. And that it continued to give new actors their first jobs and seasoned actors a place to come home to. *sigh*
It was weird to think that all the significant moments of the show would be the last times we'd see them performed at the Nederlander. During Over The Moon I said to PJ "You have to moo. It's the last time!" And then as "Season of Love" began PJ said "Awww last time!" Hard to believe that we'll never see those songs and all those tiny little moments we love about RENT performed on Broadway again.
To pull a lyric from the show and end this post like the cheeseball I am - "I can't believe this is goodbye."
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