‘Sex, love, rock ‘n’ roll’: Lake City Playhouse stages popular ‘Rent’ musical
The cast of Lake City Playhouse’s “Rent,” which runs through Feb. 16. (Courtesy of Jolena Long)
Lake City Playhouse’s production of “Rent” is a true homecoming for Robby French.
In 2012, French took to the Lake City Playhouse stage as Roger Davis in the Inland Northwest premiere of “Rent.” Three other stints as Roger later – most recently a professional production in San Antonio in 2019 – French and “Rent” are back at Lake City.
But this time, his fifth working with the show, French is looking at the story from the director’s chair.
“As an actor, it was a nice opportunity to be on the other side of things and look at the way of telling the story with my history and knowledge of the show, but also bringing something new and different to this production, because I have that opportunity to make those choices,” he said.
“Rent” opens Friday and runs through Feb. 16 at Lake City Playhouse. The musical features a book, music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson and is loosely based on “La bohème” by Giacomo Puccini, Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.
“Rent” follows a group of young artists trying to not just survive but thrive in New York City’s East Village while dealing with the ups and downs of life.
The group includes roommates Roger Davis (Oskar Owens), a previously successful but now struggling musician who is HIV-positive and an ex-junkie, and Mark Cohen (Jameson Elton), a Jewish-American equally struggling documentary filmmaker.
Then there’s Roger and Mark’s downstairs neighbor Mimi Marquez (Stevie Astudillo), a Latina stripper who is also HIV-positive. Previously in a relationship with landlord Benjamin “Benny” Coffin III (Mitch Heid), now considered a sellout by his former roommates after marrying into a rich family, Mimi sets her sights on Roger during the show.
The group also includes Angel Dumott Schunard (Daniel Renz), a drag queen and street percussionist living with AIDS. Angel is the love interest of Tom Collins (James Padilla), a teacher living with AIDS who dreams of opening a restaurant in Santa Fe.
Finally, there’s Maureen Johnson (Elizabeth Theriault), a performance artist who once dated Mark and is now dating Joanne Jefferson (Torey Routson), a public interest lawyer who attended an Ivy League school.
The ensemble includes Ashley Techavimol, Conner Heim, Karlin Kahler, Caid Wood, Marlee Andrews and Emily Schneider.
“Rent” is music directed by Heather Brown. The show is choreographed by Delaney Kahler and features costumes by Zoe Evans and Lincoln Wood, sets by Jolena Long, lighting design by Logan Tiedt and sound by Michael Scott.
To prepare the cast for some of the heavier moments in the show, French spent many early rehearsals speaking with each actor about their character and the paths they take during the show including their relationships with other characters and health-related challenges.
With his experience, French could answer a lot of questions the cast had, but he made sure to not fill in every gap.
“That’s the fun part of acting is to create a backstory of what isn’t in the script, to make everything else make sense with those around you and the story that you’re telling as an individual,” he said.
Intimacy coordinator Lorna Hamilton and assistant intimacy coordinator Delaney Kahler also helped the cast develop their character’s relationships amongst one another in a way that felt comfortable to each performer.
To help the show feel more authentic for the performers and audience, French brought realism to the set. There are no furniture pieces on stage just to fill space, for example.
“If they’re there, they’re actually used and mean something to bring you into that environment even more so you can really believe where you are,” he said.
French also worked with lighting designer Tiedt to make sure the lighting matched the mood of the show and didn’t make the gritty rock musical look like a bright, happy show from start to finish.
Following its 1996 Broadway opening, “Rent” received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama as well as multiple Tony Awards and Drama Desk Awards. The musical ran on Broadway for 12 years, closing in 2008.
Larson died the night before “Rent’s” Off-Broadway first preview performance from an aortic dissection.
With such a beloved musical on their hands, French said he and the cast and crew have a duty to deliver the highest quality show not only for their resumes but also to honor Larson’s legacy and the messages he worked to share through “Rent.”
The shadow of the HIV/AIDS crisis looms over the musical, but the show also touches on “community, love, acceptance, loss, grief, support, sex,” French said.
“Keep shining your voice in a place that’s trying to shut you down and love who you want to love and be who you want to be and create art and make noise,” he said. “Sex, love, rock ’n’ roll.”