Iowa City and Coralville residents who have lived here for several years may have reacted with puzzlement by City Circle Acting Company’s announcement that they would be opening their season with RENT, the hit musical of the 1990’s about struggling artists in New York City. Most theatres try to put together a season with plays that are either new to the area, or have not been performed in many years. Bucking convention, City Circle’s production of RENT comes four years after staging a high school production—and will be performed with the same cast.
Director Chris Okiishi says that the decision to stage this production arose from a moment of inspiration. As the theatre company deliberated over which plays to stage for the upcoming season, Okiishi explained, “We happened to run into someone who loved the original [2009] production, and then we ran into two actors from it on the same day.”
That gave the company the idea to stage the same play with the same cast. While cast members were almost or already graduating high school four years ago, today they are at the same point in their college careers. Most of the actors still have family in the area and have time off in the summer to rehearse.
“It seemed like a great time to revisit the show with the additional training and life experiences that the actors had,” Okiishi said. “It is also one last event before they scatter around the world after college graduation.”
The upcoming production will have different sets and a more prominently featured band. They will also be including the songs “Contact” and “La Vie Bohème,” two songs that were left out of the high school production. Though the cast is the same, the young actors are “significantly more mature” than they were four years ago. Okiishi believes this is the most fascinating aspect of the show, saying, “We rarely see them after high school, so this is a chance to see our students come back and see what they can do, how they’ve grown.”
For people who have been fans of RENT from the beginning (known as “RENT-heads”), it can be a sobering thought to realize that the actors in this production were barely in elementary school when the musical premiered on Broadway in 1996. With its dismissive attitude online and its focus on no-longer taboo issues, the musical can feel like a relic. Okiishi thinks that the passage of time has not diminished the musical’s power. After all, RENT is based on the Puccini opera La Bohème, which Okiishi explains is about “what sacrifices are you willing to make for your art? How does a community come together during hard times? How do you make your mark?” These themes are relevant to any age, even as technology and social mores march on.
RENT will be performed at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts on August 2 and 3 at 7:30 p.m. and August 4 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets may be purchased online. For additional questions, call Patron Services Supervisor Nancy Mayfield at (319)-248-9370.
