RENT is a rock-musical which has been close to the hearts of members of the LGBTQ community since it first took to the New York stage back in 1996. It tells the tale of a group of bohemian artists living in the big apple.  There is a massive cast of lovable characters, with the central protagonist’s being very real and easy to relate to.

We start off with Mark, a film maker tying to capture his crazy, boho world on celluloid. His room mate Roger has been cast into a deep depression after losing his girlfriend to suicide.  He meets Mimi, a drug addict living in the same building.

None of the characters have a cent to their names, so they ’squat’ in a building owned by Benny. Benny is an old friend and had promised them all free rent when he married the landlords daughter, now however, he is looking for their back-rent and this begins a turbulent year in the life of our small group who are trying to make their way in the world. During this time they deal with AIDS, the loss of a friend, relationship splits and contemporary life lived in a very difficult situation.

As they fight for the right to stay in their home, the disparate group of residents come together and we hear their stories.

There is a lesbian relationship between an ivy-league lawyer Joanne and Mark’s ex girlfriend, Maureen, a performance artist who decides to protest against the eviction of her friends.  This relationship is topsy turvy to say the very least, but there is chemistry between our leading ladies and you are routing for them to get it together.

The character of Angel, though, is every crowd’s favourite. A drag queen who is not afraid to stand up and be counted, he is living with AIDS yet manages to carry himself with an inspirational dignity. No audience can help but smile every time he comes on stage.

This production, which is on in the Olympia, is being performed by the DCU Drama Society and is running until June 20th.  The cast certainly can sing and they don’t shy away from some tough content.  The assistant producer was kind enough to answer some questions for us…

So why did the DCU Drama Soc choose RENT?

RENT has a very special place in the hearts of DCU Drama members – “Seasons Of Love” has been something of a theme song for our society for some years now, and we first made enquiries about performing the show way back in 2001. That’s how long we’ve been waiting to do this! It’s a show that many of our cast can identify with, and we just love the music – the songs are so powerful and uplifting. And it makes a refreshing change from the more standard musical fodder like “Grease” or “Oliver!”

The cast seemed very large, how big is the Soc?

DCU Drama has about 350 members; there’s 40 in the cast of RENT, which was easily our biggest show this year. We’ve always tried to do a large variety of material in our productions, from Arthur Miller to Shakespeare to the Rocky Horror Picture Show – we like to mix things up!

Do you still think RENT is as valid a musical as it was when it was first performed or has it dated somewhat?

I feel that RENT is very much valid and definitely hasn’t dated. The sentiments expressed in RENT and the experiences of the characters haven’t gone away over time. AIDS hasn’t been cured; poverty and homelessness are still widespread. They’re just not in the media spotlight as much; just because they’re no longer considered the “hot” topics doesn’t mean that they’re any less important.

Do you feel that Mamma Mia’s success has brought musicals back into fashion?

Ugh. I would admit to being a casual fan of ABBA, but Mamma Mia is an abomination; a weak excuse to construct a half-arsed story around a greatest hits CD. It’s too saccharine, too happy for my liking. I would attribute the comeback of the musical to the film adaptation of Chicago which, after all, won the Oscar for Best Picture and was a thoroughly enjoyable romp.

Although it seems, on the surface, to be a sad tale of poverty and illness, RENT manages to be a celebration of friendship and love, did you find it hard to strike a balance between the uplifting aspects of the story and the more serious side?

I’ve got to give massive amounts of credit to our cast for this one – not only are they great singers, but they are great actors too. They know how to get into the character’s heads and play them out. Striking the balance was a challenge, but they were more than up for it.

Fiona Carty, who plays Maureen kindly took some time to answer some questions for us as well, here’s what she had to say:

As a lesbian audience member I was particularly interested in the gay storyline, do you feel comfortable playing such roles?

I was completely comfortable and I found playing the part no different to any straight character i have in the past. I sort of felt i knew Maureen pretty well since i was a big RentHead before auditioning for the show so at the end of the day she’s just a character with a story to tell.

I love Maureen’s confidence and spontaneity but not the fact that she treats her partner so badly. Both her current girlfriend and ex Boyfriend Mark actually bond over what a bad girlfriend she is but as they say they “love when she’s mean” so she has a sort of a power over people that’s kind of interesting! I’d say she’d be a good laugh to have a drink with! I’m the total opposite of Maureen which makes her pretty fun to play.

There are very few gay characters out there, do you feel like this is an opportunity to play someone outside the “norm” or do you just play her as you would any character?

For me she is just a character with a story but i have noticed that when i tell people about the story of Rent they do get a bit more interested when they hear about the gay story lines. I have a lot of gay friends so to be honest it doesn’t seem like anything more that a love story with a few hiccups along they way, the same way the straight couple in Rent , Mimi and Roger have problems.

I am going into my final year of a Business Studies degree after the summer. I intend to be just as involved in DCU Drama next year and after final year who knows…I’ll keep the performing going though wherever I end up!

The part of Joanne was played by the gorgeous Stevi Russell, she also took some time to answer our questions:

As a lesbian audience member I was particularly interested in the gay storyline, do you feel comfortable playing such roles?

I feel completely comfortable in the role of Joanne. When you think about it,its just like any other part that I’m playing and its neccessary to really get under the skin of these characters as they are all so different and unique from one another. Myself and Fiona had no problem kissing or acting close with each other as we are comfortable together and are quite good friends anyway!

Do you like her?

Yes, I love my character Joanne! At the beginning i was able to grasp what kind of person she was supposed to be although we are very different people! It was fun being able to play a person different to myself and been given the challenge to work outside of my comfort zone and feel like i did her justice. I feel now like i have given her my own little stamp and I’m almost part of the character, theres a little bond there definitely!

There are very few gay characters out there, do you feel like this is an opportunity to play someone outside the “norm” or do you just play her as you would any character?

Well in my opinion I feel like Joanne is just like any other character. It was never really an issue that the character I had to play was gay, I play her as i would play any other strong minded and intelligent woman. The only difference was the fact that i needed to be attracted to another woman in the show and i approached that using the same emotions and mindframe of any person in love. There are characters like Joanne and the rest of the cast all over the world, they just dont appear on stage as often and it was an honour to have the opportunity to play her and bring to light her character.

What’s next?

Who knows what next?! Back to college I suppose, I’ll be going into my third and final year of Communication Studies in DCU in September. After that I really dont know, obviously theatre is something that is my dream to do and if the opportunity presents itself I will definitely be back on stage!

RENT is on in the Olympia until June 20, tickets are between €20 and €25 and can be purchased here, over the phone at (01)  679 3323,  or at the venue.