RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night
RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night
Leading Actor Joined: 3/30/04
RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#0
Posted: 8/14/06 at 12:47am
First up and just being honest, after hearing some negative things about this cast I was going into this performance not being totally thrilled.
First up...the cast.
Full cast except:
Mimi - Jennifer Colby Talton
Collins - Aswad
Mr. Jefferson and others - Jamal Adderley
I will admit that I was a bit bummed not to see Arianda...whenever someone is largely panned I want to see for myself to make up my own mind. I guess she was out for both shows today...oh well.
Bryce Ryness (Roger) - So much stronger than I had anticipated. I guess I was most excited that his hair was different than the promo pictures. Now he had moved from the long hair Constantine (shudder) look to a punky late Manley Pope look. He's tall and lanky and just seems to have that edge that I think Roger needs. He had great chemistry with Jennifer (although during La Vie Boheme he seemed to be paying more attention to Sheila Coyle...holding her hand, gave her a smooch on the lips) For sure the strongest and most consistent voice and actor in the bunch. I was impressed.
Jed Resnick (Mark) - Another surprise. Another good haircut. His Mark seemed to be fairly well thought out and he had some nice moments onstage. His voice seemed a little weak/quiet tonight (with no help from some seriously muddy sound problems...something that shocks me at The Ordway...they are usually much better). What I liked is his performance didn't reak of past Mark's...he put his own stamp on the role and I liked his interaction with all the cast members.
Aswad (Collins) - For someone that has been with this show as long as he has you would think he would feel more at home in his understudy duties tonight. Not so. I thought his Collins was strictly by the numbers, and nothing to really write home about. Not a lot of chemistry with Ano (not that he was getting much help) and he just seemed really uncomfortable most of the time. His singing was just ordinary...which disappointed me because I had expected a bit more out of someone that's a veteran of the past tour.
Michael Ifill (Benny) - Not a lot to say. Handsome guy but struggled (as most Benny's do) to flesh out his character and make him a true supporting player. Benny is always a problematic character for me because he exists really only to be used as a ho-hum plot device that puts a wedge between our leading lovers. In the countless times I've seen the show only a few Benny's have been successful as registering with me.
Chante Frierson (Joanne) - Another very pretty Joanne. I guess the days of casting the bigger gals as Joanne are gone (not that there is anything wrong with the thinnies). The last few Joannes have been svelte and smoking and she was no exception. She seemed to be having some trouble with her high notes tonight and I appreciated that her and Jed resisted the urge to turn Tango: Maureen into a farce but played it more awkward. She's got a powerful voice. And I loved how she sat on the bars during Happy New Year...it was so simple but very sexy.
Ano Okera (Angel) - He was a problem for me. First off, he backsang EVERYTHING. Someone mentioned him having trouble with him catching his breath. Tonight he barely made it through Today 4 U...I thought they were going to have to bring him out some O2 during You'll See. He also was sweating more than any Angel I've seen. Had some major trouble on the high notes. The end of Contact was a bit painful. A major plus for him was that he looked divine in every costume he wore. ,
Jennifer Talton (Mimi) - Like I said, I was bummed I didn't get to see Arianda for myself but was happy because of the two Mimi understudies I would MUCH rather have her than Nina. Aside from a small flub during Another Day (that only someone who truly knows every line to the show would notice) she was a pretty solid Mimi. She didn't always match her emotions to what she was singing but she made the most out of what she has to offer. I think she's probably the strongest Mimi in the tour...too bad she isn't doing it full time.
SideNote - My friend at the ticket counter told me how lucky I was to see Jennifer...she described Arianda's voice as "nails on a chalkboard".
Tracy McDowell (Maureen) - I liked her dorkenheimer take on Maureen. A nice loud voice (sometimes during the ensemble singing she was SO loud that she didn't blend). I liked that she put some new twists on the role and what she was singing about. Loved how she kept hitting Mark whenever she had the chance. I think her and Bryce would have a future with RENT if they so desired...I can see them both subbing in in NYC sometime.
Ensemble:
Nina Metrick (Mark's mom and others) - Like I said, glad I didn't see her Mimi. Her stuff was pretty good but nothing extraordinary. I think she looks like a young Laura San Giacomo.
Gavin Reign (Gordon, et al) - Nothing amazing here in my book. Kinda bland. Although I do feel sorry for any actor that has to do that horrible 'Santa Claus is coming" line and motion...it always gives me a big case of Rolled Eyes.
Ben Roseberry (Steve, et al) - He's a Mark understudy? I'd like to see that. A nice, clear solo in Will I and some interesting ensemble characters.
Mike Evariste (Paul, et al) - I think he totally disappeared into the ensemble for me. He hardly registered.
Sheila Coyle (Alexi, et al) - OK...nothing great. I think she'd be an interesting Maureen. Her Alexi was so over the top...and I think it lost some of the humor of it.
Jamal Adderley (Mr. Jefferson, et al) - I really didn't care for any of his characters (just seemed to young for them all) but his solo was excellent. Totally confident and pure. Quite strong.
Mimi Jimenez (Mrs. Jefferson, et al) - Wow. She's NEW? You would never know it. I thought she was fan-tastic. A big booming voice that she used to great effect in Act 1 and then blew my hair back with her SOL solo. I really loved her voice and think she would make one heck of a fierce Joanne. Also, someone mentioned she had a gap between her high note but I didn't hear it. She hit the high note and then took it one step higher. Truly one of the standouts of this cast.
Some other things -
Who was on sound tonight? It was SO muddy.
Some sound effects were off...a phone sound cue went off right before Jed says 'Smile for Ted Koppel Officer Martin." Jed paused for a second and sort of rolled his eyes. Maybe this has happened before?
The crowd outside the door was pretty big. I didn't stick around but as I was heading to my car I heard loud cheers every time a new cast member came out. It's been a while since I've seen that kind of commotion around the stagedoor.
I can't tell you how many people I heard say "Wow, it's so different than the movie...I was expecting it to be just like it!". That sorta makes me sad. Even though I thought for the most part this cast was OK I just WISH some of these "youngsters" could have seen the original touring casts. Those were truly the days.
No matter who is singing this music you can't deny that it still is powerful and has an impact today. I haven't been to RENT since NYC a year or so ago but I was glad I got another dose of it in my system. It reminded me why it touched me in the first place and why I still hold it in high regard. Yeah, some of the people I didn't love and didn't enjoy some choices...but at least a whole new generation is getting introduced to it.
And that is what it is all about, right? Spreading that message.
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#1
Posted: 8/14/06 at 12:52amYes it is. I love RENT too. The story is great, and the music is great.
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#2
Posted: 8/14/06 at 8:23am
Thank you for this well thought out, through and honest review of one of my favorite shows 
It will be here in Novemeber, but I think there will have been some major cast changes by then.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/29/04
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#3
Posted: 8/14/06 at 8:33amYeah, only 4 or 5 castmembers are staying.
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#4
Posted: 8/14/06 at 5:32pm
Thanks for the wonderful review...I was at the performance too and happened to be sitting next to the sound board. I was noticing all of the missed sound cues and kept looking over at the sound guy...he was obviously new. There was another guy (my guess, the guy he is replacing) who kept telling him things and giving him tips. There were some major sound cues that were missed...Mark's mic was so quiet you could barely hear him and then all of a sudden it would be almost too loud.
The only thing I have to disagree with you on is Mimi. I thought she was horrible...the high note in "Out Tonight" is the defining note for that character and she did not hit it once. The producers should have far greater expecatations for an understudy.
But all in all I agree that the cast was pretty sound (especially Roger and the Mrs. Jefferson).
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#5
Posted: 8/14/06 at 5:35pmAno and Aswad? They're just SCREAMING for a dirty joke, aren't they?
Leading Actor Joined: 3/30/04
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#6
Posted: 8/14/06 at 6:48pm
bdwayump22, I will agree that Talton wasn't an excellent Mimi (and yes...I'm one of those people that starts to measure a Mimi by her Out Tonight) but compared to Arianda and Nina (the other understudy)...we for sure got the better end of the bargain =)
This is also terrible but up close (I was in the third row) she looked like Emmanuel Lewis (at least in the face).
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/29/04
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#7
Posted: 8/15/06 at 8:34amA request, please, to those who keep sending me PMs and emails about the cast changes. The contracts have yet to be negotiated so I'm not going to name those returning castmembers, and I'm certainly not going to tell you who was and wasn't asked to renew their contract. There are six current castmembers who will be staying with the tour, and, of course, the new soloist. Have patience. September 17 isn't that far away.
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/05
re: RENT - St. Paul, MN Closing Night#8
Posted: 8/15/06 at 8:54am
glad to hear the cast is pretty good! my sister and her drama group are seeing the national tour in September, so I'll be glad to tell her the cast is fairly good
:)
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