Rent attendance anecdotes — Page 13

I just got back! Let me say that I was a near-total "Rent" newbie going in, and I really enjoyed it. Loved the cast and was really glad they let the (mostly) B'way veterans make the movie. "Tango: Maureen," of which I knew nothing but the title, was my favorite. And yes, I cried at all the crying parts.

The audience at our noon-hour show numbered about 50 (in a theatre that seats maybe 175), but they were a good group and seemed really into it. I suspect this was a repeat visit for a fair number of them. No walk outs, lots of chuckles at appropriate places, silence at appropriate places. I heard plenty of sniffles and clearings of throats when the end credits started. Probably the best laugh was when Maureen's mother said to Mark, "Now maybe you two can get back together." I was aware of two older (60+) couples, and a man probably in his 50s who was there alone. There was one teen boy with 4 teen girls, and another young man with a group of young women, but the vast majority of the audience was female, mostly teens & twenties, with a few "moms" probably in their 40s along with them. (I'm in the "moms" age bracket, for whatever that's worth.)

(THANK YOU, Anthony, for being part of "Rent," and part of BWW. I'm in a mid-sized city in the vast Red midsection; I'm shy about posting where on the public board, but if you're curious, you're welcome to PM me for specifics.)

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I've seen the show three times in the last couple of days (Fort Worth/Dallas area). On Wednesday night, we bought tickets hours in advance, and got to the theater almost an hour early. To my surprise, there were already about 30 people in line behind the roped off area they had set up leading into the theater. I've never had to stand in line for a movie, but we just plopped ourselves down like the "line" in the old days. The place was *packed*, and the audience applauded as the movie title came on the screen - and they applauded the end. Very cool.

My entire family went on Thanksgiving night, and again - it was pretty much sold out. I tell ya, it's funny what all three audiences have laughed at:

~when the answering machine says, "speak" (every time)
~"Merry Christmas, bitches!"
~Mark's line, "f-ing weird."
~Angel's response when Collins says, "you're drunk"
~Benny and Collin's reaction when they find out Maureen was with another girl (those get me as well)
~the gang following Maureen and Joanne from room to room during TMOLM

I don't mean a little laughter, it was noticeable, and I know there are moments I'm forgetting.

At all the showings, you could hear many, many sniffles after the funeral. What seemed funny was that there was this long break of silence where you could hear a pin drop, and the moment there is sound again - the sniffles start up - like they were waiting for sound to drown them out.

There was an older man behind me on Thursday night who brought his family. After the movie, he was asking his grandkids all down the line what they thought, and he just kept saying, "Wasn't that powerful? Brilliant. Brilliant."

I do have to say that I really, really missed "Halloween" and "Goodbyle Love". I wanted so bad to be ok with those songs being gone, but the more I see the movie, the more I realize how much that cut into Mark's character development. I want/need that confrontation before Roger heads out west (makes more sense when he goes), and I want that moment of Roger calling Mark on his bulls**t (and vice versa). Other than that, I was so happy with it. I'm still too emotional about it to write up anything coherant at the moment. I'm just so proud of the movie.

I've been enjoying reading everyone's reactions. Thanks for posting.....

Updated On: 11/26/05 at 05:49 PM

I just went with my friend and little sister for the third time this morning, and it was ONLY us in the theatre. the first two times the theatres have been ALMOST half full. people here are disappointing me, we don't even live in a small town! but it is a conservative suburban area.

However, we were the best audience I've been in yet :]

We were respectful but of course HAD to get up and tango. and dance around during LVB. :]]

if you have the chance, Rent in a huge movie theatre all by yourself is ridiculously fun.

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I've seen it four times already, but I want to see it in an empty theater. Either really early or really late on a weekday.

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Saw it again last night with my mom. She's pretty conservative, but actually called me while shopping to ask if I wanted to see it.

The place again was packed, maybe a few empty seats, nothing more. Age range, mostly 20 somethings, but quite a few 60+'s (including mom) in the house.

I loved it just as much as the first time. My mom sighed a few times over the constnt singing however, During "Without You" I heard a lot sniffling and to my surprise found my mom crying. Then she continued crying when Jesse sang "I'll Cover You." Ok, I still heard laughter over the "mountain top scene," but that kind of broke the tension.

Long story short, Ok Anthony, my mom is in love with you and she now totally gets why Rent is so important to so many people!

Just saw it with my two cousins (age 39 and 15) in a random small Long Island town, and the average sized theatre had maybe 40 people in it, not bad for an early afternoon show. Very quiet audience, but seemed appreciative. No applause between songs, but no random snickering like at the midnight showing I went to.

My 39 year old cousin had seen most of the original cast back in 1997 or so and adored the movie. She said she actually felt more for the characters and more emotion was expressed on scren than on stage. My 15 year old cousin loves musicals but this was her first real exposure to RENT. She loved it, but I was shocked that her only complaint was, "that Maureen girls voice was so annoying!" a teenage girl who does NOT worship Idina!! Haha but I asked them if any of the cuts confused them, and they said no, but I did have to explain to the 15 year old that Benny was cheating on his wife.

I just adore this movie more every time I see it. I keep noticing things, like for the first time I saw Angels drumsticks on top of her casket ::sniff:: This is such a beautiful movie, I have to say thank you AGAIN Anthony!

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Back again after a second viewing in Fresh Meadows, Queens. About half full theater, weird audience. They clearly didn't get it, a few walk outs after I'll Cover You and Take Me Or Leave Me. The walkouts were teenagers. And I got the feeling that they found breaking into song jarring. "Over The Moon" bewildered them. But my mom and I loved it every bit as much as when we saw it opening day at the Zeigfeld. The other people that seemed to really enjoy it were a few couples over 50.

Good news, people were filing into the theater in greater numbers after our showing let out, a number of them in Rent shirts.

Going back on Monday but this time I'm going back to Manhattan!

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I live in a small town and we did not have a midnight showing so I went to the 12:15 am showing. It was absolutely wonderful. There were only about 15 people there and I wore my RENT shirt. It was absolutely wonderful. I couldnt have asked for a better movie.

Anthony, I just wanted to say hi and thank you for making Mark such a wonderful character. If you talk to any of the other cast members, please tell them that they were all just perfect and I keep dragging everyone there to see the movie.

I also went back again Friday night and the whole theater was full this time.

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Oh my gosh, I have to complain about my audience...
Ok, I saw the preview on Monday and everyone was great... great audience, great reaction... but everyone in there already knew the story...

I saw it again on Friday...
-Somebody screamed when the Rent thing came on the screen after Seasons of Love...
-Same usual laughter where it's supposed to be...
-When Angel said "You okay honey?" there was some nervous laughter from the teenage boys who came in a group... just a bunch of straight teenage boys... with no girls... I figure Harry Potter sold out.
-When Angel came to out to sing Today 4 U, some guy in the front, right before he started singing goes, in astonishment "That's a man!" really loud... I want to die.
-After the movie, I was in the bathroom and a bunch of teenage girls were like "I didn't get it. What did it mean." Umm... hello! Then one of them was like "All I could think about at the end was 'That girl had a near-death experience.'"
It kind of makes me sad that this musical came out ten years ago and some people still aren't ready for it.

And by the way... I live in a relatively large city...
And, oh, the theater was packed both times... first time sold out 3 hours before the movie started (unless you're like me and have connections) and the other it was hard to find seats for two of us...

saw it wens night in city 45 mins of orlando called melbourne, me and bout 8 other of my theater friends went, and yes i wore my mimi/candle shirt, and best friend picked on me bout it, but when we got in ther very full 600 seat theater, almsot everyone else was in some sort of rent thing . be it shirts, to full out costumes, the age was teens to 40's . and i wondered how this area thats is ok with gay couples, and when i say ok there is no major hate groups, but also no pride groups here either would handle the angel/collins and Maureen/joanne stuff. but they were cool.

the movie it self was amazing,never heard a theater so quiet for the whole time.. all 8 i was with are going back next sat

and the theater where it's showing has sold out every show

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so i went tonight for the fourth time, taking my mother who has seen rent at least a half dozen times, loves it, etc.. in a regular, suburban theatre... kind of weird, I'm not gonna lie. my town is a upper-middle class moderate town on Long Island. Loews Cineplex in Stony Brook, NY, to be exact. 7:40pm showing. It was packed, sold-out. my ex-boyfriend and his mom actually got the last two tickets and were sitting in the front row five minutes before the movie started. i got there 15 minutes before it started and had to look really hard for seats.

the audience was very diverse. a couple dozen older people, that i could see, but most looked like high school students, or maybe college. i felt it was really low energy at the beginning. no one clapped for the credits or at the end of SOL. no one clapped after the songs (but thats your usual movie!), no one even really laughed until the first voicemail from mrs. cohen. i didn't see anyone walk out though, which was good. the girl next to my mom had to get up to answer her cellphone right at the beginning of angel's funeral which was, to say the least, OBNOXIOUS. i heard a few cellphones going off through the end. turn off your cellphones, people!! there were lots of sniffling after Without You and ICY:R. a bunch of people, myself included, clapped at the end.

my mom loved it. she thought it was excellent, and loved everything that was added (for the most part). she cried, laughed, silently clapped after each of the songs, etc.

i think most of the audience loved it as well.

Updated On: 11/26/05 at 11:03 PM

I live in Columbia,SC or as I have appropriatly titled it-Hell. I've seen the movie 3 times now...the 23rd, the 25th, and the 26th. I used fandango for the 23rd expecting it to be sold out but it wasn't even half full, the 2nd time I saw it there were more people, and tonight it was 80% full.

The musical theatre community is hardly booming in Cola,SC. haha.

Also, a lot of my friends(I'm 15) have parents that aren't allowing them to see the movie because of the same sex relationships(rolls eyes). I loved the movie though and will probably see it a few more times haha.