NY Observer > Rent

Rent's Original Gwen Stewart Returns Before Closing

Gillian Reagan — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:04:42 -0400

All the old Rent fogies are coming out of the Hollywood woodwork before the musical closes on Sept. 7. Gwen Stewart, who created several roles for the original Rent in the mid-90s, will play those characters again in tonight's performance (July 21). Ms. Stewart, who introduced the solo vocals on the theme track from the show "Seasons of Love," has since had bit parts on TV show including Notes From the Underbelly, Related, Law & Order, Charmed, All My Children, Moesha, 24, Strong Medicine, and The Guardian, according to BroadwayWorld.com. read more »

No Rent Means Layoffs for New York Theatre Workshop

Gillian Reagan — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:45:32 -0400

Don't expect those at the New York Theatre Workshop to see the humor in this sad coincidence: they're going to have a hard time paying rent because the Broadway run of Rent closed down. The workshop, a 25-year-old East Village mainstay in Off-Broadway theater, is cutting down its budget from $4.5 million to $3.5 million, partially because of the closing of Rent, which premiered at the workshop in 1996 and has been sending royalties to the company ever since. Six production staff will be laid off starting May 30 and replaced with temps. read more »

Rent's Original Stars Go on Tour

Gillian Reagan — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 14:52:58 -0500

Rent stars Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp will reprise their original Broadway (and film) roles in a 2009 national tour of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Jonathan Larson musical, which will begin in January, according to Playbill. Rent is due to end its 11-year run on June 1 at the Nederlander Theatre. Mr. Pascal and Mr. Rapp originated the roles of Roger Davis and Mark Cohen at the New York Theatre Workshop, on Broadway. In Entertainment Weekly, the actors reminisced about working Mr. Larson's musical before it became a smash hit.

Anthony Rapp, Mark: I was working in a Starbucks on the Upper East Side. I hadn't done a musical in years, and I went in and auditioned for this Off Broadway rock opera — and that phrase, admittedly, didn't fill me with a tremendous amount of confidence. read more »

Rent Closing on June 1

Gillian Reagan — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:00:37 -0500

After a year of dismal ticket sales, Rent is due to close on June 1. (We'll have to settle for Spring Awakening.) The show has been staged for 12 years at the Nederlander theater, the seventh-longest running show in Rialto history. read more »