The Rent Welcome Wagon- Page 15

[insomniak]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:21am

What they don't know won't get my CD taken away. Even in highschool they would think it's 'inappropriate'. God forbid I should listen to something that ivolves gay characters.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:23am

haha, yeah. WOW indeed. C'est la vie; to each his own. My mother has never seen Rent, though I keep telling her she must. She just hasn't really gotten to it yet because she put it off so long in my better interests. She's pretty forgiving with subject matter, and always asks me a lot of questions about it, but she can never fully appreciate my rants and raves.

[BWIDB Charlie]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:23am

Fredi,
As a Robert Altman fan, I'm curious to see what you thought of The Company.

I wasn't a big fan but that may be because I've been around dancers for years and kept waiting for more of a plot... and I know RA films are character studies.. but still!

Charlie
[e-mail]

[greenifyed]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:24am

When I was eleven, I "got" it. My cousins took me to see the show, having had an uncle die of AIDS, practically being a mom to my younger brother, and random other things - they figured I'd get it. Loved it then, love it now. It's part of the reason I like to say I grew up between eleven and thirteen. It helped.

[BEKA531]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:26am

my parents havent seen rent either... they just stay informed... unfortunately... lol


can never fully appreciate my rants and raves.

my parents cant either. for the past couple of weeks all ive talked about was the rent movie, the rent movie, the rent movie, and they have no idea what i'm talking about when i'm giving them a thorough comparison between larson vs. chbosky vs. columbus script... haha

[OneBlazeOfGlory]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:27am

back to the reactions of the parents:

Never have actually seen it... but once in the car I put in my Rent CD and my parents were for the most part okay until
'Benny! Sh*t! Dudes I'm on my way. Great! F*ck!'
they let that slide... but then came Tango: Maureen... ooh boy. The look on my mom's face was priceless. I made sure to skip over Contact so that they would at least give the show a chance...Now they're okay with it because I explained how if they are going to deprive me of actually seeing the show, the least they can do is let me listen to it

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:27am

On one of the nights I saw Adam sing Glory, my mom called me a few hours later to see what was up; I told her what a beautiful thing it was and she was just like "yup, so that sounds um... fun." One day, she'll get it, I hope. I think once Drew leaves I'm going to bring her to see it.

[JoAnne1]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:28am

this is very interesting to me as a parent...

my oldest is 11 and none of them have heard RENT yet nor will they be taken to see it anytime soon (partially because they live in Barbados - and partially because they are too young)

I'm very strict about what I let them watch and they aren't nearly as hip as you guys..(not yet anyway) but then I'm completely honest with them on "real-life-subjects" (sex, drugs, hygeine, war, etc.)

opinions?

f-

[BEKA531]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:28am

i guess i am kinda glad i saw it at 13... i probably "got" it alot better than i would have at 11. i was a long way off from seeing the OBC anyway... i turned 13 in 2001.

[greenifyed]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:30am

My mother doesn't get it. Never has. Never will. She enjoys Seasons of Love and that's about it. I convinced my chorus teacher to do Seasons of Love at my senior chorus concert, and I was soloist #1. This actually had her sort of wanting to see RENT. Then my friend and I performed Take Me Or Leave Me for her.

Needless to say, she doesn't want to see RENT anymore.

*grumble* One day, I'll get her there. And she'll love it. But today, tomorrow, and the next day - are not that day.

Thank god I've always been allowed to listen to whatever the hell I wanted to listen to.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:31am

I had seen RENT about 8 times before I took my parents and younger sister. My sister had been a fan of the CD for years and couldn't wait to see it, and my parents at this point had heard so much about the show they figured that had to see it. They adored it, thank god - and it was a really great experience to share with them.

[insomniak]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:31am

I'm certainly not qualified to give parenting advice, but an eleven year old probably wouldn't really understand Rent anyway. I think the key is to just know that kids do grow up and after a certain age you don't need to pretend that some things don't exist. My mom still thinks I barely know what sex is, and I'm in highschool. Not realistic.

Emcee and Glory, some people just don't get it. It has happened to me too. Kinda sad, really.

[BEKA531]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:32am

fredi --

i guess i agree for the most part, but doesn't rent sort of tie-in to the "real-life-subjects"? IMO... anyway...

i first heard the rent OBCR when i was 9... at sleepaway camp ... that's all my cabin listened to for the ENTIRE 8-week summer (well, rent and moulin rouge... we were very into musicals lol)

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:32am

My parents always kept me pretty sheltered for the most part. I hated it, and sometimes still do, but somehow I ended up getting out of it all an open-minded individual. In terms of Rent in particular, it's a heavy thing to take, and because it's come to be so important to me now, I'm thankful that my parents didn't give in to my early-teenage whining and let me see it when I was 13 or 14. My parents were never particularly "honest" with me about stuff, they sort of just assume I'm going to pick it up in one place or another, but I think they should've been moreso; that's a really important thing.

Updated On: 11/24/04 at 12:32 AM

[insomniak]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:34am

Mine assume that if they don't tell me, I won't find out.

That's not exactly how life works. Perspective is good.

[broadwaystar2b]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:34am

This is gonna sound completely cliche and suck-upish, but Rent honest to G-d changed my life.
I had never seen a show like it, and I have seen few that have moved me the same way since.
At eleven and knew absolutely nothing about the AIDS crisis.
At my middle school, being “gay” meant being stupid (like what "lame" used to mean before the PC craze).
It showed me a world that I, a spoiled prep school upper-middle-class girl from the Orlando suburbs, had never seen before.
The first time I saw Angel's death scene was the first time I ever remember sobbing, literally sobbing during a show.
It was also the first show I remember seeing with characters with real life problems. The show showed me a world that was scary not because it was a wild gross fantasy but because it was a reality.
It is also the only show were I have had the same powerful reactions to every time I have seen it so far.
But I'll be the first to admit that having this completely culture shock at eleven, A LOT of the martial went straight over my head, and it wasn't until I saw the show again four years later that I think I actually "got" the show.

[BEKA531]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:35am

Thank god I've always been allowed to listen to whatever the hell I wanted to listen to.

ME TOO


my parents have kept me pretty sheltered too... which has made me an extremely opinionated person, which has i think made them loosen up a bit. don't even get me started on politics... lol

[broadwaystar2b]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:38am

somewhat random, but that line
Benny!
Sh*t!
Dudes I'm on my way.
Great! F*ck!
is what taught me the f-word
thank you Peter Matthew Smith
Updated On: 11/24/04 at 12:38 AM

[JoAnne1]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:38am

that's the funny part -

my kids know ALL about sex
they know about homosexuality
they know about drugs and drug addiction...

we are very open and discuss everything with them because their father and I believe it is our job to PREPARE them for life - not protect them from it....

we always ask ourselves - if something happened to us - would they be able to handle themselves in the world?

at the same time - we are very strict about what they watch.
we want them to maintain their "innocence" as long as possible... I was granted that priviledge yet still mangaged to be pretty hip and open minded

f-

[insomniak]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:38am

Star- I didn't say more than five sentances for the rest of the day following the first time I saw Rent. No piece of art or media has ever done that to me (not that I've been alive long enough for that to be a big statement). It's a lot to absorb and something that I think everyone should.

[VivaBohemia]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:39am

Finally! It seemed like a YEAR reading the last 8 pages. But Im here now!.

Okay, first things first. Luvtheemcee..is that Adam on your Avatar? and Second, Beka, WHERE did you get that pic of Adam and Anthony?

Fredi, nice to see you again!

*ETA*
My dad never cared much for my broadwayness. He loves Phantom, and he will listen to Rent, but he doesn't see why I am so animated about the show. My mom wants to see it, yet she isnt very enthused when I asked her if she wanted to go see the tour.
My sister on the other hand I'm bringing to Jeremy's last show in January, so she can finally see it, she is becoming obsessed like me, I love it!

Updated On: 11/24/04 at 12:39 AM

[BEKA531]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:39am

The first time I saw Angel's death scene was the first time I ever remember sobbing, literally sobbing during a show.
It was also the first show I remember seeing with characters with real life problems. The show showed me a world that was scary not because it was a wild gross fantasy but because it was a reality.
It is also the only show were I have had the same powerful reactions to every time I have seen it so far.

agreed. i mean, i've shed a couple of tears during wicked, but never like rent. right after happy new year b, i'm bawling throughout the entire second act. even though i don't exactly live a bohemia lifestyle, i could still totally relate to the characters, which i think is one of the largest appeals of rent. you truly feel for roger, mark, mimi, collins, maureen, angel, joanne, and benny because you ARE them. this show isn't some make believe utopia, it's REAL LIFE. (and you all know my obsession with the literal)

[greenifyed]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:40am

I'm eighteen, I'm not really up to giving parenting advice. Had I not been through the things I went through, always had friends who were a LOT older than me, or had parents and relatives who made me listen to music that wasn't top 40 - then I probably wouldn't have gone to see RENT at age 11. I'm GLAD I had cousins who were willing to take me to see something with substance, instead of a musical meant for children.

It all has to do with maturity, I think. I don't know. I'm rambling.

[insomniak]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:41am

Fredi, I like your philosophy.

Beka, I felt similarly. The characters' personalities bear a strong resemblance to people I know and so it was like watching my friends die...

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:41am

haha, star2b, I remember my mother walking in on that line and going "Emcee (insert name if ya know it!), did I just hear Adam Pascal say f*ck? WHAT are you listening to?" I laughed.

In response to what Freddi said - as I get older it seems like it's probably a matter of finding a good balance, as long as kids, like you said, are PREPARED. I suppose that mass media isn't the best way to make sure of that, so keeping tabs on what kids see is definitely important.

ETA - Viva, yeah, that's "Emcee Adam."

Updated On: 11/24/04 at 12:41 AM