"Rent" Benny Tour

[Phantom487]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:39am

Any one know if the current "Rent" Benny Tour is any good? Its comnig to Connecticut, and I was going to go with some friends.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:55am

There hasn't been a Benny tour in a lonnnnnnnng time.

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:56am

We're on the third leg of the Collins tour as of last night.

The Bennies disperesed years ago, many of them are on Broadway now.

[NightLaughs]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:57am

What's it called now, the JoAnne tour? Hahah some how that doesn't quite flow like Benny... I was thinking of getting tickets myself, I'd like to know how it is.

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:58am

No, it's the Collins Tour.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:58am

If you want the benny tour, look at the current broadway cast.. a lot of them are vets of that tour.

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 11:58am

Seeing as that their first show was last night, it is too soon to tell if they are any good.

[Phantom487]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 12:02pm

I'm not sure what "tour" is coming to connecticut, but RENT is coming to the Bushnell Theatre in Hartford, CT, Feb 24 - 27, 2005...... anyone know what tour it is??? Updated On: 8/11/04 at 12:02 PM

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 12:29pm

There is only one tour, and it is the third Collins group.

[Phantom487]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 12:33pm

Well is the third Collins group any good???

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 12:34pm

Did you even read my other posts? Their first show was last night, no one knows yet.

[Phantom487]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 12:37pm

Sorry, no, guess I didn't read that.......

[BwayTheatre11]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 1:04pm

Yes. They are in Portland 8/10-8/15.

[kyle.]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 1:19pm

ah the bennies...good times those were.

[showmethetony]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 1:48pm

I don't know what tour it was, but the last time i saw RENT in Pittsburgh some cat named Constantine was playing Roger and he was pretty okay. Brian Gligor was Mark and he was pretty good also, a little too gay for my Mark likings, but had a great voice. And the guy who played Angel (Deshaun something?) I have actually seen play this part twice and I adore him on stage...

[thibodeaux]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 1:54pm

Yea, I saw the same cast that showmethetony saw...

Constantine's look is WAY unlike anything I've ever seen for Roger, but he did a pretty good job. I was surprised, actually; when I didn' think he would be able to sing any higher, he went higher. However, he looks kind of dorky when he sings. He's not exactly the macho-man Roger that we've all come to know and love.

Brian Gligor as Mark is pretty gay all over, hah, but he's a cutie and not bad at all as Mark. When the cast came to Raleigh, a few of them (Gligor, DeShaun Smith, an ensemble and a swing) came out to the local gay bar...So I got to talk to some of them. REally sweet guys.

Damien DeShaun Smith is an excellent Angel. Beautiful. He can move and he can sing. And he pointed to me during LVB's "you and you and you, you and you". I felt so special :)

Overall, a great cast. The JoAnne is GREAT! A graduate of North Carolina School of the Arts--shes one of the best JoAnne's I've seen. Maureen is a bit to flighty, not hardcore enough.

The Collins is PHENOMINAL--amazing!! He took those words and sounds and made them his own; a beautiful singer and amazing talent.

Mimi was great, too--though when I saw her her voice was going out. The next day, JoAnne played Mimi and a swing played JoAnne. (It was weird.)

Worth seeing, for sure.

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/11/04 at 1:59pm

You guys are talking about the second leg of the Collins Tour- with Constantine, Jamie Lee, Brian, ect. They were my first cast of Rent ever, and I love them to bits.

[StateOfJade]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 12:39am

I believe it actually is called the Joanne tour.

[GirlfriendFromCanada]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 4:19pm

It's not actually. They're still the Collins tour.

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 4:34pm

Yup, still the Collins'. There was no siginficant downtime between tours other than to change casts, so they don't get a new name.

As for their first shows, I hear they were shakey but no more than you'd expect a brand new cast to be. There appear to be major sound tech issues, though.

[PattyO'Furniture]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 6:34pm

Let me ask some dumbass questions: what are the differences between the groups? Why do they have names and what do those names have to do w/ changes in the show?

[insomniak]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 6:53pm

They change the name when a new tour starts. There may be cast changes within the tour, people generally stay for a year, but there isn't a new name until the tour officially closes and a new one opens a few years down the line.

[Type_A_Tiff]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 9:11pm

Was the hiatus for the new replacements not considered a "closing"? Cuz Portland is the first city for the new cast but there was like a 1 month gap in between.

I'll hopefully be seeing the new cast next week in Seattle, or definitely the week after that in Vancouver. Do you think 1 week of performances is enough to get the new cast comfortable in their roles?

Will keep y'all posted! (I'm def worried about these tech/sound problems though!)