Need some splaining from theatre people

i think rent is a fantastic show and very challenging for a high school to pull off...i say best of luck to them!  i think its amazing that a school would select this as a school play.

there is a cross dresser too, and everyone has AIDS.  the lead is homeless and squatting in an abandoned building.  oh my GOSH.

but the POINT of the show is how deep relationships bring you through the most horrid experiences of life.  it's incredibly moving and you are lying to yourself if you don't see a little of yourself in each character.

Yes, there is a lesbian couple, a gay couple where one is a transvestite, the transvestite and two heterosexual characters have AIDS. Some talk of drug use as well. One character dies of AIDs and there is a scene in an AIDS support group meeting. I do know that the "junior" production was trimmed of some of the more questionable stuff, but the AIDs and homosexuality are not glossed over.

I think it's a great play with a great message; the guy who wrote it (Jonathan Larson)wrote about his experiences in the late 80s when the AIDs epidemic hit, and being in the arts, he knew many people who were affected, he lost friends, etc. That's sort of what the play is about - his experiences. Tragically, he died the night the show premiered (NOT of AIDs, he had an aneurysm and was found in his apartment later on).

And that's all I'm going to say about this. All I will say is that I saw it as a high school student, with several of my friends, and I turned out just fine. I would also strongly encourage the parents to do a little bit of research into the play before they make any snap judgements. There is a fairly good movie adaptation out on video, and I'm pretty sure the Junior version of the play is even more tame than the movie.

it sure ain't The Fantasticks

I'd say the themes as pointed out in the thread are definitely adult.  Whether it's appropriate is certainly a valid topic for discussion, but I think if approached correctly it won't "mess up" anyone's minds.

Even the Fantasticks had a dark side...the "kidnapping" of the main female character was originally referred to as a "rape". Though I think many modern productions have revised the script a bit...

A lot of the old plays have some very racist/mysogenistic undertones (like Carousel - where it's cool to beat your wife b/c she'll still pine for you after you've died). Just sayin'

Anyway, Rent is awesome and fine for mature high school students with parents who are willing to answer questions 

SJCMT (San Jose Children's Musical Theatre) is about to do it here.  Everyone beat me to it.  I am all for high schools doing it.  One thing that I didn't see mentioned and may have been taken out for youth productions, is one of the main characters is an erotic dancer.  But the message of the show is beautiful and the music is wonderful.  These are issues that High School students have already come across in books, movies and prossibly in life, depending on where the high school is.  

Going all the way back to Greek theatre, adult themes are in many plays the high schools do...Much of Shakespeare has to do with Sex, incest murder and even rape.  I think someone above said it very well...if a mature group of high school students are cast and the school is willing to take some heat and answer questions and stand behind the director and the show...it would be a great educational experience about life. 

When I was in high school, we did Brighton Beach Memoires...there is a scene that talks about masterbation...some parents complained and we had to clean up the script a little...the scene was not cut tho!  I also had hate mail sent to me, when I directed Dracula at a lutheran school...because it dealt with the supernatural.

yeah, because no high school kids masturbate

I heard on NPR last night that they did make a cleaned up version of RENT for high school.  Cut out some of the bad language and a few other things.  They interviewed people from one of the first high schools in the country to do it.  Apparently, a lot of the parents were concerned and a few of the actors had a tough time with people in the school. 

Here's a link if you are interested.

I have nothing new to add re: the content of the show, but a local theater put on the high school version of Rent over the summer.  It was fantastic.  The kids did a phenomenal job.  No one in the cast (or the audience) appeared to be remotely offended by any part of the show--people knew what it was about prior to participation.  Really, love was one the overarching themes...and we all could use a little more of that.

http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/8001/110/

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http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2008/Apr/21/il/hawaii304210004.html

Ive seen it twice... as long as the version that the high schools put on is toned down a little bit, in terms of the language and the explicitness; for example, the number "Contact" and a few of the things mentioned in "La Vie Boheme" come to mind, I think it is perfectly acceptable to be put on and shown to high school students.

It has a terrific message and is very relevant.  And is entertaining to boot!!  I hope that the folks against the play there settle down... would be a shame otherwise.

I'm apparently in the minority here because the wife and I saw it off-Broadway a few years back and thought it was by far the worst show we have ever seen (and we see a lot of theater)

Can you tell us WHY you thought it was bad? I've seen some BAD productions of some otherwise good shows.

I know that Contact is cut from the version sold to high schools. Beyond that, not sure of the details, but that scene, I know for sure, is cut.

Unfortunately many times the schools care more about being PC than talented. I've seen some wonderful HS performances, but some awful ones too. Even in good productions there are almost always one or two roles that are woefully miscast.

X2 I've seen Rent quite a few times, and there was one performance I saw and thought "damn I'm glad that wasn't the first time I'd seen it or I'd hate it."

The women in my high school productions were usually horrible. At least once this one teacher started directing. (Our choir director was fantastic but wanted nothing to do with the musical because of all the bs politics - he ran it one year and that was enough for him). Usually, the guys who are into theatre are pretty good and so we always had good male leads. The girls who could actually sing (and no, not just myself but some other very talented, attractive girls) got stuck in the chorus, while she casted talentless airheads in all the lead roles. Before this woman took over, the musicals were phenomenal. Now she is gone, and my old drama director from junior high took over and now the shows are back to being amazing, even winning competitions - something we never got to do when I was there.

La Vie Boheme was also toned down from the original.

Thanks for clarifying the content for me.

As far as people down here settling down I don't think it will happen.  The opposition and those in favor, were at the school board meeting last night and the school board is going to decide whether to allow the play to be per formed or cancelled.

Come on down and bring your popcorn.

educational theatre has little to do with the end product, but forming and teaching the talents.  You are going to have good shows and you are going to have bad shows, and you are going to have uneven shows, where some of the performers are good and some bad.  It is high school and not college or professional theatre.  That being said, you also shouldn't go into a show knowing full well that every part will be well above the actors ability and that there will be little learnt but failure. 

I am also curious as to why the "tri" thought it was a bad show.  The last touring production of it that I saw, was mainly performed by younger "American Idol" contestants.  It really felt more like a concert then a show.  A lot of the emotional intent was missing.  I could understand if you saw that same show, how you might think it was bad. 

That's reason enough right there. Ick.