But then again, I can't understand how anyone could have their life changed by a midiocre show like HAIR. But I'm getting into another debate... Oh no! I agreed wholeheartedly with everything you said until called Hair mediocre...let's not.
Yes, that's what I think most people miss when they say they wish Rent were dead and buried--I see why it's called dated, I see why it's called badly written, I even see why it's called boring (although I agree with none of those things), but with the hype Rent gets (or once got) and because of its sometimes annoying fandom, people forget how much there is to it. It's got far and away more heart than anything else I've seen lately, and not the artificial "BKYLN" kind. I'm a cynical person so I don't usually like to tout the show's "message" (a word that is unbelievably overused when talking about Rent), but that "message" is there and it changes people--I'm not talking the silly tweens, I'm talking the close-minded homophobes who are dragged to see it and come away having considered for the first time in their lives that homosexuals are people just like they are. If it keeps on doing that, then long live Rent. I understand that (*cough*petty*cough) creative criticsms keep the arts going, but Rent should be a show that forces us to look at the bigger picture. I defy you to name any up-and-coming show that needs the Nederlander and would make a fraction of the contribution Rent continues to make every night.
...and because I do want to put in one more good word for Hair (I too once thought it was a sloppy mess), this article is an interesting read. Completely different topic, of course.
Scott Miller on HAIR
"If there is going to be a restoration fee, there should also be a Renaissance fee, a Middle Ages fee and a Dark Ages fee. Someone must have men in the back room making up names, euphemisms for profit."
(Emanuel Azenberg)
Updated On: 10/5/06 at 12:33 AM