Thank You, Jonathon Larson

A NEW CHAPTER FOR 'RENT'; Final Performance To Hit Screens Nationwide This Week

The final performance of RENT to ever be played on Broadway was recorded by a highly skilled company called @radical.media and shown in movie theaters for a limited time. I believe there are four days they are scheduled for across the nation. Last night Kelly and I saw this recording at AMC 24. (Read article)

Now, I have seen the live show twice (tours), so I was familiar with the staging and the director choices. Kelly, however, had never seen the production other than the movie made. So much changes from stage to film, and I was thrilled to get to watch her discover this story in a new (and better) light. I was not disappointed. I haven't even listened to that soundtrack in ages; I kind of go through musicals in shifts. Seeing this was like finding something that I didn't know I had lost. We were both so moved. At the end of the show, the cast came back onstage with previous cast members, including some of the originals (I heart you, Anthony Rapp).

There is a tour coming to Houston in April; consider us there. We skipped the last tour: I have seen it twice, and I didn't really want to keep spending money on the same show. I will however lay down some ducets for this show because Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal (the ORIGINAL Mark and Roger) will be in the tour! Sure, sure, they may be getting to old to play twenty-somethings, but who cares! I get to be in the same room as Anthony Rapp! I'm excited about Pascal as well, but the headshot in this article is...unsettling, so my excitement is on hold.

I find it so amazing (and heartbreaking) that Jonathon Larson could create this magic in his last days. His show "tick, tick...BOOM" has some wonderful music, but on the whole it cannot hold a candle to RENT. His stories are so raw, so real. I wish he could have stayed with us; I would love to know the potential he still had, after a success like RENT.