Living for Today: Old Academy Players Takes on Rent
by Abby Williams
There’s no musical I’d rather kick off the holiday season more than Rent. You may be wondering, “Rent isn’t a Christmas musical?” To that I say, of course it is a Christmas musical. Yes, I know it’s November! However, I still feel the Christmas spirit. After all, “Christmas bells are riiinnnginngggg, Christmas bells are riiinnnginngggg!” Rent has always had a special place in my heart. I remember walking through the halls as a high school student blasting favorites like “Seasons of Love,” “Out Tonight,” and “Take Me or Leave Me” into my headphones. Even now, at 23 years-old, I still find myself coming back to this show (and always on Christmas Eve)! As one of my first introductions to musical theatre, Rent will always be a show I think fondly of.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Rent, this hit 90’s musical was written by Jonathan Larson. The musical is inspired by the opera, La Boheme- however, Larson reimagines the story through an entirely rock score. The story follows a group of struggling artists living in New York City during the AIDS epidemic.
Larson’s story is a tragic, yet an inspiring one and no discussion of Rent is complete without mention of him. Larson was a struggling artist living in NYC and working at the Moondance Diner, patiently waiting for a taste of industry success in the city. After years of trying, Larson struck gold with Rent. In the early morning hours of January 25, 1996, the day of Rent’s first Off-Broadway preview at New York Theatre Workshop, Larson collapsed in his kitchen. Around 3:00 AM, he was discovered by his roommate and emergency services were called. Tragically, Larson was pronounced dead at the scene and would not live to see Rent’s roaring success. However, the cast of Rent would go on to perform that night in a historic sing-through of the show in his memory. Since that fateful day, Rent went on to have a 12-year run on Broadway, a movie featuring the original cast from the off-broadway and broadway productions, and regional and community productions nationwide.
The Old Academy Players is a quaint theatre tucked within the East Falls neighborhood of Philadelphia. The space was quite charming featuring a warmly lit lobby and spacious second floor lounge space. During intermission, audience members were welcomed to the second floor lounge for light refreshments. Rent is their 555th full-length production!
The production is directed by Annie Hnatko and choreographed by Carson Long. There was no Music Director or Stage Manager credited in the program, so I am unsure of who was responsible for managing those aspects of the production. Hnatko utilized the theatre’s space in every way possible. Cast members entered and exited through the wings, side doorways on stage right and left, and even through the audience. However, there were many points throughout the show where the stage was overcrowded with cast members, causing our main characters to get lost in the background and lose audience focus. I felt Long’s choreography had its share of ups and downs as well. For example, the choreography in “Out Tonight” was fun and in the spirit of Mimi’s character. However, I felt some of the movement in the opening number and “La Vie Boheme” lacked the grittiness or messiness required for this show.
Accompanying Hnatko with the set design was Steve Hnatko. The set was simple, yet effective for this show. The stage featured a small platform upstage with stairs on either side and a railing. There were a few graffiti paintings scattered around the walls and one large painting above the platform. Additionally, there were tables utilized and moved for different purposes throughout the show. The set was built by Ed Wudber, Carla Childs, Bill Cozzens, and the cast and crew of The Women and Rent. Annie and Steve Hnatko was also credited for the lighting design of the show. The lighting served the story well and didn’t overpower the actors on stage. There was a brief moment towards the end of “I’ll Cover You” where the neutral lighting switched to fading rainbow lights that I was not particularly fond of. I felt it was abrupt and took me out of the song. However, most of the lighting choices throughout the show were appropriate.
The production took an interesting choice with Benny’s character in terms of costuming. Played by Bob Gordon, Benny was seen wearing clothing similar to that of the poor struggling artists. He wore a T-shirt, jacket, jeans, sneakers, and a backwards baseball cap. I wish he had been assigned something that shows the audience he has recently come into money, as it is an essential part of the story and Benny's character. For example, a spiffy sweater or suit jacket, slack pants, and loafers. There was no Costume Designer listed in the program, so I am unsure if costumes were provided by the cast or assigned by an individual. Mimi’s costumes were my particular favorite, most of which resembled or made nods to the original production’s costuming. The costumes for Mark and Joanne also were quite well assembled.
Our two main characters Mark Cohen and Roger Davis, were played by Josh Tull and Kyle Mitchell respectively. Tull gave a great performance as Mark, serving as one of the anchors in the cast. His acting choices were sensible and in tune with Mark’s characterization. Mitchell and Tull played off each other nicely and portrayed the friendship between Mark and Roger with care and truthfulness. The two gave a great performance of “What You Own” towards the end of the show. While the friendships were prominent, I feel the relationship dynamic between Jane Vitelli, who played Mimi, and Mitchell fell short of my expectations. As a notoriously toxic couple, I was hoping to see more intensity and passion between Roger and Mimi. Vitelli has a beautiful voice, who gave a standout vocal performance in the song “Without You”.
Carson Long, who also played Maureen Johnson, delivered my favorite performance of the night with an outstanding rendition of "Over the Moon”. This is an incredibly hard song, because it is strange and needs an actress that can fully immerse themselves in the weirdness. Long did this flawlessly! In this number, they presented flawless vocals and hilarious acting chops. I cannot say enough good things about the execution of this number. Brava!
Alyssia Sims played Joanne Jefferson in the production. Sims gave a consistent performance and had wonderful chemistry with Long. It is a small moment, but I particularly loved the interaction between Long and Sims during “Goodbye Love” when the two reunite and Joanne accidentally bites Maureen's lip. It was a very sweet moment and the chemistry between the two was undeniable.
Another standout performance came from Matthew Iacoviello who played Angel. Iacoviello gave a great acting performance from start to finish. He portrayed confidence and sass in numbers like “Today 4 U” and sincerity in his solo in “Contact”. There were great harmonies found in moments of “Santa Fe” from Tull, Mithcell, Iacoviello, and Gregory Kooker who played Tom Collins. Kooker and Iacoviello played off each other nicely and portrayed genuine love. Gordon gave a great performance of “You’ll See” in the beginning of the show and played the hotshot attitude well. The cast was rounded out by the ensemble members, which included Alexa Archer, Emily Browning, Haley Dunning, Ariana Gill, Isaura Sanguinetti, Cameron Moy, Guy Sims, Wyatt Underwood, and Christopher Wunder.
I felt the cast worked well as an ensemble during this iconic story to life. You could tell that every individual was passionate about the work they were putting on and loved the art of theatre. I did feel that there were some dips in energy at certain moments throughout the show, “La Vie Boheme” being one of them. Additionally, there were many points where cast members came in late to begin singing or singing wrong pitches. I feel the cast could have benefitted from a distinct Music Director throughout the process. Finally, I need to single out a moment in “La Vie Boheme” where an ensemble member did a cartwheel and then a headstand. I couldn’t quite tell what it was, but it was awesome! That was great and you made my night!
If you are a “Renthead”, make your way down to Old Academy Player’s production of Rent running through November 22. You can purchase tickets here: https://oldacademyplayers.org/
