You Say You Want a Revolution
Ten years ago, nobody in their right mind would've ever thought that Rent would be celebrating its tenth anniversary on Broadway this week. Or that the show would be the seventh longest running show in Broadway history.Nor would anyone be able to envision the millions of Rent-heads that would propel the show to a cult phenomenon (yet would curiously stay away from the theaters when the horrible Columbus-directed film premiered).
Yet, Jonathan Larson did exactly what he hoped to accomplish with his musical. He bridged the gap between the musical and MTV. Not since Hair has there ever been a work that has so effortlessly tapped into the pulses of rock music, thereby harnessing its energy and strength to propel a story forward. The New York Times runs a piece today by Anthony Tomassini, the last reporter to interview Larson before he died. In it he details how Larson wanted to more fully marry the most contemporary music form with lyrics and a narrative.
Sure, there's a lot to object to in terms of the play's morality and what it condones, but one thing's for certain--the creator achieved what he wanted.
posted by cinegod @ 10:13 AM
1 Comments:
Jeff and I saw Rent on DVD and while I'm sure it doesn't do the stage version justice, I found it fascinating to watch.
But the best part of the DVD was some of the extras where they talked about Larson and his vision and passion. He was a true artist who did it for the love of art. No matter what you think of what he did or his views about life.
Post a Comment
<< Home