Thom Allison confided to StratfordToday that directing this year’s rendition of Rent is as complicated as it sounds.
“It’s a little jewel of a show that’s actually so complicated,” he shared. “It is thrilling, but it’s a huge puzzle that we will be figuring out even in rehearsals.”
Rent, the first show of the Stratford Festival season, begins previews on Saturday. Opening night is June 2.
Written by the late Jonathan Larson, Rent is a musical set in Manhattan in the middle of the AIDS epidemic. It follows a group of East Village artists as they struggle to survive and navigate poverty, societal discord, and their connections.
As Allison explained, those connections are crucial to the story.
“There's a line in the show,” he pointed out. “‘We may have our disputes, this family tree’s got deep roots.’ I think that's a great analogy for what the show gives to people. You feel the family inside of a fight. They bicker, they push each other, and it’s crazy, but in the end, they all seem to come back together and go ‘no, no. We're here, we got each other.”
This is not Allison’s first foray into the world of Rent. He joked that 25 years ago he played the young drag queen Angel because he was still young at the time. In a later rendition he played the anarchist, Collins.
Acting in those roles was playing with a piece of the puzzle, he said. Directing is being able to touch on every single piece. It is such a different experience to acting and one which he feels excited to have been provided.
Directing a production like Rent is particular. The story remains the same, though Allison brings a texture to the story which reflects his own experience and way of life. To that end, Allison is hoping to connect audience goers with the AIDS-era.
Allison said that when the musical was first playing, AIDS was still rampant, looming, and unknown. Now, the disease is more well known and treatments are available. It was important for him as the director to remind the audience – many of whom will be young or have never been affected by the crisis – of what this epidemic meant.
Rent is often associated with its grand, operatic rock anthems, including the iconic 'Seasons of Love'. Allison wanted theatregoers to know the era, despite the grandness of the soundtrack.
“It was a case of taking us out of the romantic world of the show,” he said. “We’re far enough away that it’s (AIDS) forgotten now … (We’re) taking a more realistic look at those darker parts to make people actually remember what the show is really about, how important love and contact was in that moment.”
Allison said that effort will contrast with the grand and joyful moments in the play.
The theme for the 2023 Festival season is 'Duty vs. Desire'. Allison said that as he has been working on Rent, that theme will sporadically show itself in unexpected ways. He tends to gravitate to the question of ‘duty to who?’
“Desire we get,” he reasoned. “But ‘duty’ is different things: duty to your friends, duty to your partners, duty to your lovers, to your community. I think that’s all over Rent in many ways."
Allison and the production team are not revolutionizing the play, he stressed – at its core Rent is still Rent – but they are working to create a production that speaks to young and old audiences alike.
“We want to dig in to a way that allows this modern audience to look at the show with a more sympathetic and realistic eye.”
Rent runs at the Festival Theatre until Oct. 28. To purchase tickets, visit the Stratford Festival's website.
Director’s Notes is an ongoing series from StratfordToday, featuring interviews with Stratford Festival directors; discussing their project, their scope, and their goals for this year’s production
