Last night, I saw Rent at the Progress Energy Center for Performing Arts in downtown Raleigh, NC. The show was funded by Broadway Series South, which pays to have national tours of shows come to the Triangle area, so I thought it had potential to be pretty good. I’ll be honest, though: I was skeptical. I’m in general a skeptic (or, as some more honest friends let me know, a snob), and the only place I’ve seen regional theater is in Washington, DC, where I grew up. Washington is a great theater town, perhaps more so than people realize, so I’m used to really good stuff. Now, I love Raleigh. I chose to live in Raleigh. If I wanted to be elsewhere, I would. I used to live in Boston, I could easily have chosen to stay in DC with my parents, but I picked Raleigh because I love North Carolina and I love this city. That being said, Raleigh isn’t known for its theater. It gets some good names here, but no producer is about to bring a pre-Broadway show here for an out-of-town tryout. This kind of gets you in my mind-set for what I was thinking going into this production of Rent. I was hopeful, yet cautious.
Turns out, I really enjoyed it. I’ve seen Rent twice before: on Broadway shortly before it closed (I told my mom I would just die if I didn’t see it, so it was a college graduation present), and a youth production in Greensboro, NC starring my friend Brandon. Like many musical theater nuts of my generation, I know literally every word of this show by heart. Let me first say the things I didn’t like and get them out of the way. Don’t worry, it’s a relatively short list. At the beginning of the show, I thought it was too quiet. When the notes to “Rent” start playing and Mark starts singing “How do you document real life...” I want to literally feel the music in my bones. I’m not a fan of loudness in general, it hurts my ears and I startle easily, but Rent is a rock musical – it’s supposed to be loud! Turn up the volume, folks! By the end of the “I’ll Cover You” reprise, I felt like the volume had reached an appropriate level. The only other thing I didn’t like had nothing to do with the production but, like other shows, has to do with the etiquette of other theater patrons. Almost my entire row showed up during the opening number, and I was on the end, so I had to stand and let about 10 people pass me, all while trying to not miss a moment. The lady in front of me had her Blackberry on her lap and it had a red light which blinked every few seconds. The girls behind me were chatting during the show until I gave them the Ellen Degeneres “Don’t you know that’s irritating?” backwards glare. Seriously, folks: etiquette. It is not that hard to put your phone in your pocket and wait until intermission to discuss things with your friends. Also, when Collins and Angel kissed, I heard these girls giggling because Angel is really a boy. Oh my goodness, get over it!
Okay, now I want to say what I liked. Some numbers really stood out. “La Vie Boheme,” a favorite of mine, was so well-done that for those minutes, I didn’t even notice the blinking Blackberry light. I loved “Take Me or Leave Me,” and I thought the actress who played JoAnn had a phenomenal voice and blew the lid off that song. Sometimes, as a theater junkie, especially having seen shows multiple times, we forget the power that shows can have on first-timers. The lady in front of me (yes, the one with the Blackberry, but it’s okay) was clearly very moved by “Seasons of Love,” as she was clapping along in pure delight. I just think it’s so wonderful to see the impact theater has on people. That’s when it occurred to me why regional theater (and community theater and high school theater and so on) is so vital to the arts. If there were just Broadway, think of how many people wouldn’t have access to some of the most amazing things ever written. Let’s face it, not everybody is as into theater as I am (something I still can’t quite wrap my head around), but that doesn’t mean it can’t affect them. I’d bet that a lot of people in that theater couldn’t tell you details of Jonathan Larson’s life, couldn’t name for you all of the principles in the original Broadway cast of Rent, and haven’t read Anthony Rapp’s memoir twice. But the power of Larson’s show reached them because of this wonderful production of Rent.
I know I’m going on a long time here, but I also wanted to say that seeing this was very budget-friendly. I got a seat in the balcony (it’s only a 600-seat theater, so the seat was actually great), which cost me, all in all about $35. I arrived early so I could find street parking and avoid the $7 charge to park in a lot. And, most importantly, I had a great night at the theater with one of my favorite shows. I’m becoming less of a cynic, and from now on I’ll be way more open-minded when it comes to regional theater in Raleigh. It’s good. I think the Triangle would be a great place for an out-of-town tryout, just in case any producers are reading this and they’re wanting to do something different with their show.
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