Rent is about a group of impoverished young artists struggling to survive and create a life in Lower Manhattan's East Village in the thriving days of bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. Set at the dawn of the 1990s, a group of New Yorkers struggle with their careers, love lives and the effects of the AIDS epidemic on their community. Mark, an aspiring filmmaker, and Roger, an HIV-positive musician, scramble for money to pay rent to their landlord and former roommate, Benny. Meanwhile, their friend Collins, a professor, has fallen for Angel who is slowly dying of AIDS.

In this interview, director of Rent Jody Brown talks to Simon Frost about the musical, the characters in the show together with insights into the rehearsals and the stage production.

Simon: Is this your first time directing a TFT play, Jody? Please tell me a little about yourself and your experience of TFT.

Jody: My name is Jody Brown, I am a trained dancer and musical theatre performer as well as a qualified teacher of Performing Arts. I have performed with Lila Dance Company, Luke Brown Dance Company and M.O.P Dance. I have had workshops with Wayne McGregor Dance Company and performed in musicals and plays from A Midsummer Nights Dream to A Chorus Line. My first show with TFT was as a dancer in their production of Kiss Me, Kate. I have directed Avenue Q, We Will Rock You, The Addams Family and devised plays/musicals through my role as a teacher. This is my first experience of directing with TFT and taking on a musical as iconic and large as RENT has been incredible.

Simon: Rent is sub-titled ‘A modern Day La Bohème’, one of Puccini’s most famous operas. Why do you think this is appropriate for this show?

Jody: Jonathan Larson wrote Rent almost a century after La Bohème premiered. The idea of artistic bohemians still rings true, the retelling transitioned from one century to the next with ease. It is a story about finding small joyful moments in your life through your friends and loved ones; it shows relationship breakdowns, jealousy, insecurity and death but always comes back to the tenacity of the human spirit.

Simon: The background to La Bohème provides quite a contrasting background to New York in this period. How do you think you will handle this in this stage production?

Jody: Although the settings are very different (Paris in the 1800’s contrasting dramatically with New York in the 1990’s) the poor treatment of ‘lesser people’ due to either their wealth/sexuality/social status is the theme that is being depicted within the musical, and is adaptable to all settings and time periods. Rent is a show which has garnered a strong fan base since its premiere in 1996, with certain elements becoming synonymous with the show. Having been one of the longest running shows on Broadway, we wanted to bring the show to life in our own way while maintaining the integrity and heart of the original.

Simon: Please tell me about the main characters: Mark, Roger, Benny, Collins and Angel. 

Jody: Mark is the constant for the group of friends stories we follow, he is an aspiring filmmaker and a wallflower. He documents the ‘special moments’ of his life through video recording his time with the people he loves. He is aware that he is the survivor and fears that one day he will be the only one left drinking some stoli around the loft table.

Roger is a musician, he is a HIV positive individual with a tragic past. His ex girlfriend commited suicide after finding out she had AIDs and Roger has closed himself off ever since. This changes when a young girl named Mimi knocks on his door asking for a light for her candle. She lights up something in him that he thought had died a long time ago.

Benny is an ex roommate of Mark and Roger and is now their landlord. They found their way out of poverty by marrying into a wealthy family. Benny has dreams of creating artistic space but has somewhat lost perspective when it comes to treatment of less wealthy individuals such as the homeless. They are conflicted between love for friends and new found wealth and social status.

Collins is an activist. He left the apartment to go to university but did not like how the ‘higher thinkers’ of society viewed changes. He is an openly gay and HIV positive man. He is optimistic about living however long he has left of life to the fullest and wants to make a change to the world in regards to AIDs. He falls in love with Angel and dreams of having a life with her in Santa Fe, but sadly, not all perfect love stories have a happy ending.

Angel is the kindest soul in our story, she finds Collins after he has been mugged and takes care of him. She is a savvy and creative individual who has found ways to make money on the streets and is so selfless that anything she earns is split with those she loves. She is another character who is HIV positive and lives with the mantra ‘no day but today’ and embraces life with all she has. 

Simon: What has it been like rehearsing for the show?

Jody: Creating this show has been an insane experience, the piece is so emotional and thought provoking that it has meant I have had to get to know the cast on such a deep and personal level to ensure that the story feels as real as possible. I am so very lucky to have been working with such talented and beautiful souls who are as passionate about telling the stories as I am. All the while teaching people to tango, contemporary dance and climb scaffolding whilst singing and acting. They are absolutely phenomenal people and are happy to experiment and create with me to make sure what we are doing is as impactful as possible.

Simon: What do you think audiences will like about the show?

Jody: I think audiences will like how real this musical is. When you look at the synopsis for Rent and see HIV/AIDs/Drug use, people have a tendency to switch off as for a lot of people it’s not something they feel they can relate to. In this production we are covering those topics but we have stripped it back and it’s more than that, it’s following the journey of a group of young people working their way through life. Finding love, losing love, following their passions, giving up their dreams and simply working out what life means to them. There are some truly heartwarming moments in this production that I believe will hit home with any audience member. 

Simon: Finally, can you tell me a little bit about the music in the show?

Jody: Jonathan Larson always wanted to push the boundaries with what musical theatre had to be. In a time where Sondhiem was seen as a musical genius and mega musicals were being pushed through Broadway constantly, Larson wanted something different, he wanted something real. It is considered a rock opera and although the musical holds well known songs such as ‘Seasons of Love’ there are so many numbers that lyrically tell such a beautiful story and hold so much emotional content. The heavy guitar and drums within the piece help with the angst and frustration felt throughout the piece in regards to what was going on in New York during that time. 

Titchfield Festival Theatre’s production of Rent opens at the Titchfield Festival Theatre, St Margarets Lane on Monday 28th March until Saturday 2nd April 2022. The shows start at 7.30pm. There is a matinée performance on Saturday 2nd April 2022 starting at 2.30pm.

For more information including booking tickets, please go to http://titchfieldfestivaltheatre.com/ or contact our Box Office on 0333 666 3366.