by Carrie Nieman
Richmond.com
May 12, 1999

Same-sex couples, AIDS, homelessness and drugs: The future of theater hit Richmond last night when the Landmark Theater opened it’s eight-performance run of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning musical "Rent." The sold-out Broadway hit that swept all major theater awards in 1996 was accepted with slightly less interest in Richmond -- none of the performances have sold-out. But those who attended the opening night performance appreciated what they saw -- the minute the final notes sounded, the below-capacity audience shouted back with an immediate standing ovation.

"Usually this sells out in every city but we didn’t anticipate it to in Richmond," says Frederick Wickham of Broadway Under the Stars. "It deals with a lot of issues that Richmonders don’t want to look at."

True, the musical that rejuvenated Broadway is a bit racy and controversial for conservative Richmond, but it presents the modern world’s harsh realities in a hip, exciting, in-your-face, ’90s way. The rock musical is loosely based on Puccini’s “La Boheme,” featuring an on-stage rock band rather than an orchestra, headset microphones and colorful, bohemian East Village garb.

Because of the incredible success of the first tour of "Rent," two companies are currently touring the United States at the same time as several international tours.

The show’s creator, Jonathan Larson, who was a struggling artist himself, never got to witness the success of his project because he passed away the night after the show’s final dress rehearsal.

In keeping with Larson’s spirit and with a tradition started when the show hit Broadway, $20 tickets will be made available for every performance of "Rent.' The seats will be in the front two rows of the orchestra and will go on sale at the Landmark box office two hours prior to performances. "Jonathan was himself a struggling artist and his dream was to create a universal piece of musical theater that’s available to everyone," explains "Rent" producer Kevin McCollum.