by Terry Loncaric
The Star
September 16, 1999

"Rent," playing at the Shubert Theatre, is a gritty New York musical that isn't for everyone.

Not everyone can relate to the saga of starving artists.

Truthfully, some of the situations seemed contrived.

Roger, one of the characters, spends all year trying to write his last song. He is HIV-positive. His girlfriend, also HIV-positive, commits suicide.

So after going through all that, and kicking a drug habit, we are expected to believe that Roger falls in love with Mimi, a drug-addicted stripper who leads him to believe she has kicked the habit when he knows deep down inside she really hasn't.

Mimi touches Roger's heart one night when she knocks on the door with a lit candle after the power is turned off because none of the tenants who share a New York loft can afford the rent.

Though lighting a candle is a good metaphor for letting hope back into your life, it just didn't seem real to me.

But if you peal away some of the hard-to-swallow scenarios in "Rent," there is still a heart-felt story of human struggle.

This is ensemble theater at its best, because all of the characters have a story to tell in a city that tries to beat them down.

Mark is a nerdy filmmaker with a passion to succeed. He is still mooning over his girlfriend Maureen, who left him for a woman.

Maureen is a militant performance artist who loves being the center of attention. Maureen drives Joanne, her lawyer girlfriend, crazy because Maureen has a roving eye, and Joanne is tired of being the anchor in the relationship.

Angel is a drag queen who has AIDS but refuses to let his death sentence stop him from helping others and living life to the fullest.

These characters all fight the good fight, and that makes them endearing in their own way.

Christian Mina, as Roger, delivers an inspired performance as a man who knows what it means to hit bottom and still survive. Mina exudes rage when he sings "One Song Glory," his anthem of hope that combines tenderness and power.

Cristina Fadale, as Maureen, gives an animated performance, especially when she performs "Over the Moon," her ode to bad performance art. Fadale appears to take all of her political causes and incorporate them in one song that completely abuses the English language but has us laughing at her angst-ridden rantings. Fadale is a charmer as Maureen.

Scott Hunt, as Mark, is just as funny as the neurotic filmmaker who can't put his camera down. Hunt delivers all of his songs with just the bite Jonathan Larson intended when he wrote the script and musical score for "Rent."

Inspired by "La Boheme," Larson has crafted a deeply moving story for the '90s that is driven by a heart-pounding rock opera score.

"Rent," you'd think, would be a dark and dreary play because the characters deal with AIDS, poverty, drug addiction and urban violence.

But there is also tremendous humor and humanity in Larson's blunt and funny script. Sarcastic phone conversations are cleverly woven with angst-ridden ballads, pounding rockers, passionate love songs and down-in-the-gut blues ballads.

"Rent" is funny, sad, tragic and powerful. The ensemble touches us our hearts when they sing "Seasons of Love," "Life Support" and "Light My Candle." There is even a touching eulogy for Angel in which everyone remembers all that Angel taught them about life.

"Rent" is a strangely life-affirming story about some of life's darker moments, yet it conveys a heart-felt story of human dignity.