ARTSETC.
Overture play not low-‘Rent’
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by Anna Speaker
Monday, December 3, 2007
Overture Hall's 2,251-person capacity auditorium was filled to the brim Friday night as a sold-out performance of "Rent" brought heat to a powerless New York City apartment. In every sense of the word, this presentation of the popular musical was flawless, as the actors, sets, choreography and score were brilliant.
Without second thought, as the play began, the audience was immediately immersed in a world saturated with drugs, AIDS and jealousy. The three hour performance told the tale of the depressing lives of Roger and Mark (Heinz Winckler and Jed Resnick), two starving artists and roommates whose personal trials and tribulations were captivating enough to grasp the attention of both musical theatre lovers and haters.
The story also closely focuses on the capricious relationship between Roger and Mimi, a 19-year-old songbird dealing with a shameless drug addiction and suffering from AIDS. Jennifer Colby Talton, acting as Mimi, delivered an astounding performance. The sincerity of her representation of the character was enigmatic, which drew the viewer closer to the story than was thought possible. This was paralleled, if not exceeded, by the crystallized singing voice of Winckler's character Roger. Every note was pristine as it resonated through the amazing acoustics of Overture Hall. Within 15 minutes, the two characters performed the song "Light My Candle" and made their amazing abilities and chemistry shine. This song was closely followed by Winckler's solo of "One Song Glory," striking the entire hall silent until the song ended and the audience exploded with applause.
The hall was equally dumbfounded by the hypnotizing physical contortions of Angel, played by Kristen-Alexzander Griffeth. The AIDS-infected homosexual cross-dresser was colorfully flamboyant and arguably the most endearing character in "Rent," holding the community together with optimism and love.
Though the eroticism and drug-related content was subtle, this play was not for the young or faint of heart. Still, the audience seemed to grow notably closer throughout the performance. The community created between the characters by the end of the play mirrored the gained camaraderie throughout the audience, as both the characters and audience shared laughs, tears and excitement. Maureen, Mark's ex-girlfriend-turned-lesbian, even had the crowd mooing along during her eccentric interpretive dance segment entitled "Over the Moon." This performance was entertaining and humorous, but limited the vocal talents possessed by Christine Dwyer, the actress portraying Maureen. Fortunately, her skills were exemplified and amplified in the dueling ballad entitled "Take Me or Leave Me" between Maureen and her contesting new girlfriend, Joanne (Onyie Nwachukwu).
This song also took advantage of the intricate set of "Rent." An artistic use of three ordinary metal tables set the stage for three separate scenes simultaneously. While there were only a few props, the whole stage was a complicated series of lights and gadgets with an elaborate grunge factor that gave the sense of New York's East Village. The ironically festive Christmas lights and scrap-metal tree illuminated the recurring theme of the play, displaying the upside of being down and out of luck, money and time in the city.
Undoubtedly the most impassioned song of the play, "Seasons of Love," was performed with the entire cast boldly taking on the audience front and face. It was in this song that Mark and Roger's old roommate, Collins (Anwar Robinson), belted exceptional and relevant lyrics with his smooth tones resembling the likes of Stevie Wonder.
The only possible downside to this event at the Overture Center for the Arts would be the fast-paced dialogue and lyrics that made it difficult for the first-time viewer to follow the plot closely. Despite this minor setback, the exceptional acting, singing and dancing skills, along with a fantastic set, acting and storyline made "Rent" a far greater experience than something that could be measured in "midnights and cups of coffee," but instead something that could be "measured in love."
5 out of 5 stars
Anonymous (December 3, 2007 @ 2:48pm):
Rent at Overture was really not all that good. The actors rarely made challenging notes and I could barely understand a word. It's a very difficult play to execute well, and I was not particularly impressed with the Madison, Wisconsin version.
Anonymous (December 3, 2007 @ 9:33pm):
Rent was amazing! the vocals were perfect and the entire audience was enthralled throughtout the performance.
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