Lin-Manuel Miranda

REVIEW: Seizing the day in harmony in North Shore Music Theatre’s ‘Rent’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Why do things happen the way they do?

Chance meetings and a string of random events bring a group of Bohemian artists together in profound ways as they struggle to survive in NYC.  Spanning one year from 1989-1990, North Shore Music Theatre’s Rent reveals a striking and darker interpretation than previous versions I have witnessed.  Perhaps it’s a reflection of our troubled times, but its powerful and optimistic message still remains that the best way to cope with suffering is by holding onto each other.

Directed poignantly yet hopefully with sharp choreography by Marcos Santana and vigorous music direction by Robert L. Rucinski, North Shore Music Theatre continued Jonathan Larson’s Pulitzer prize-winning musical Rent live and in person at North Shore Music Theatre in Beverly, Massachusetts through Sunday, September 28.  This rock musical has adult themes and ran two hours and 35 minutes with one 15 minute intermission.  Click here for more information and here what is next in North Shore Music Theatre’s season.

The cast of “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

Having had phenomenal success as an acclaimed hit musical in the 90s and as one of the longest running shows on Broadway, Rent took the stage around the world and was adapted into a film of the same name in 2005.  It recently celebrated its 30th anniversary since its stage debut and it has been nearly 30 years since its Broadway debut.  In 2021, Lin-Manuel Miranda also directed the acclaimed film adaptation of autobiographical musical, Tick Tick Boom, based on Rent creator Jonathan Larson’s life starring Andrew Garfield.

Based on Puccini’s world famous opera, La bohème , Rent is a daring, joyous, raw, and poignant musical about a group of 20-somethings living in New York City during the AIDS epidemic.  It explores love, loss, hardships, dreams and realizations all while this group struggles to make the rent.

he cast of “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

A chalkboard graffiti-riddled floor, tattered rafters, scaffolding, glowing Christmas bulbs, street lights and a sporadically-lit and weathered neon sign illuminated by José Santiago’s vibrant lighting is just a portion of Jeffrey D. Kmiec’s industrial-inspired sliding set design depicting Mark and Roger’s East Village loft in Manhattan.  Rent truly comes to life through video designer Beth Truax’s cinematic touch and Alex Berg’s bustling sound design.

Like nostalgia of the era displayed in North Shore Music Theatre’s previous production of Grease, Rent showcases its own remnants of 80s and 90s nostalgic flair in combat boots, flannels, pay phones, corded phones, amusing answering machine messages and newspapers.

After a quieter opening scene, Rent hits the ground running with fervor, urgency, and pulsing chorography in its title track. This theatre-in-the-round’s immersive experience featured various incidents of kindness and conflict occurring in several parts of the theatre and this trend continued several more times ranging from humor to frustration in building intensity. 

Aaron Alcaraz (Mark Cohen) with the cast “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

Driven by powerful and edgy vocals, Rent’s characters are a combination of dreamers and those firmly planted in the present doing whatever it takes to get through everyday life.  Aaron Alcarez depicts ambitious and determined Mark, an aspiring documentary filmmaker living with his contemplative and temperamental roommate Roger, portrayed movingly by Austin Turner.  Roger is HIV-positive, a recovering drug addict and with guitar in hand, vows to write one amazing song before he passes demonstrated in rising triumph in One Song Glory.  However, when Didi Romero as vivacious Mimi shows up at their apartment, life takes an unexpected turn demonstrated in a playful duet and instant chemistry with Turner in Will You Light My Candle and the sincere and tender, I Should Tell You.

Didi Romero as Mimi Marquez in “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

In fishnet tights and layered clothing, Romero is daring, charming and bold as free spirit Mimi fueled by Romero’s provocative and soaring vocals Out Tonight, possessing more than a passing resemblance to Idina Menzel who portrayed Mimi in the 2005 film.  Robert Garcia approaches complex Angel with a self-assured kindness and less splashy demeanor in Are You Okay while Aaron Arnel Harrington warmly portrays Collins with a distinctive deep baritone.

Isaiah Rose Garcia (Angel Dumott Schunard) and Aaron Arnell Harrington (Tom Collins) in “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

A jumble of ostentatious ego, stubbornness and high maintenance, Cate Hayman puts gusto in Maureen, especially in a gutsy and unhinged rendition of Over the Moon.  Level headed and hardnosed lawyer Joanne, portrayed with powerful vocals and a guttural growl by Kat Rodriguez, rocks in Take me or Leave Me, but one of the best moments of the musical occurs between Alcaraz and Rodriguez in a catchy, chiming and playful harmony in Tango: Maureen.

Kat Rodriguez (Joanne Jefferson) and Aaron Alcaraz (Mark Cohen) in “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

Grave issues such as homelessness, capitalism, promiscuity and drug addiction are often laid bare in Rent and is partially demonstrated in the bold La Vie Boehme.  Romance in this musical makes an impact, but what far exceeds the romance is the incredible harmony and camaraderie this group creates together.  Christmas Bells, Happy New Year, and Another Day soar, but nothing quite compares to the musical’s iconic number, Seasons of Love in which the audience shared a moment of stunned silence in awe of the stirring power of that moment.

Aaron Alcaraz (Mark Cohen), Aaron Arnell Harrington (Tom Collins), Austin Turner (Roger Davis), Didi Romero (Mimi Marquez), Cate Hayman (Maureen Johnson), and Kat Rodriguez (Joanne Jefferson) in “Rent” at North Shore Music Theatre thru September 28. Photos © Paul Lyden

North Shore Music Theatre continued Jonathan Larson’s Pulitzer prize-winning musical Rent live and in person at North Shore Music Theatre in Beverly, Massachusetts through Sunday, September 28.  Click here for more information and here for here for what is next in North Shore Music Theatre’s season.

REVIEW:  ‘Freestyle Love Supreme’ an astounding good time

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

A roaring crowd greeted hip-hop comedic dynamos, Freestyle Love Supreme opening night at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston on Friday, March 18.  Packed with plenty of self-proclaimed Freestyle Love Supreme super fans, witnessing this unique, interactive, Tony award-winning production feels more like attending a rock concert.  The anticipation leading up to it was palpable and I immediately got the sense I was in for a truly remarkable experience.    

Before In The Heights or Hamilton, there was Lin Manuel Miranda’s Freestyle Love Supreme which continues live and in person at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston Street in Boston, MA through April 2.  The show is approximately 90 minutes with no intermission. Click here for more information and tickets.

L to R: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Kaila Mullady AKA Kaiser Roze, Anthony Veneziale AKA Two Touch and Aneesa Folds AKA Young Nees Photo credit to Joan Marcus

No wonder Freestyle Love Supreme is beloved seeing that the show still features some of the founding cast members since the group started in 2004 and went on to be featured in the self-titled Hulu documentary and on Broadway.  Founding member Chris Sullivan AKA Shockwave wows with phenomenal hip hop beats (and seemingly impossible) sound effects, Aneesa Folds AKA Young Nees can perform powerful vocal gymnastics to anything that is thrown Young Nees’s way, and founding member Anthony Veneziale AKA Two Touch is a great and welcoming host.  Not only can every cast member deliver clever quips at the drop of a hat, but the show is friendly, interactive, and inclusive.

From L to R: Chris Sullivan AKA Shockwave, Richard Baskin Jr AKA Rich Medway, Anthony Veneziale AKA Two Touch and Aneesa Folds AKA Young Nees Photo credit to Joan Marcus.

Is Freestyle Love Supreme a big party?  A resounding yes, but every performance is unique so it is best enjoyed just knowing the basics.  Don’t feel pressure to participate, but the more enthusiasm and participation, the better the show.  Trust me.  Even in masks which Freestyle Love Supreme deems ‘consonant killers,’ the audience is invited to demonstrate what they are saying in creative and amusing ways.  It is fun, has heart, and there wasn’t a dull moment.

The show is tailor made for the locals boasting a slew of signature Boston and pop culture references.  Listen closely for the inventive and masterful delivery of these brilliant, high-speed rappers.  The possibilities are endless.  They also aren’t shy about what they say onstage.  This may sound a bit like Whose Line is it Anyway and Wayne Brady was part of the cast at one point, but accompanied by an intimate live band, Freestyle Love Supreme is just on another level.  For example, one audience member suggested the word, ‘Yankees’ and it was amazing to see how just many ways that one word was demonstrated led by the vocal styling of hilarious Jay C. Ellis AKA Jellis J.

The cast of ‘Freestyle Love Supreme’ Photo credit to Joan Marcus

Freestyle Love Supreme is hilarious, relatable and brilliantly fast-paced, but what makes the show most endearing was not so much the spectacle, but how much the cast does not hesitate to share their personal experiences as each show is shaped into a carefully tailored crowd pleaser. To think for the first time ever, the show’s full set was not delivered by opening night!  I can’t imagine having a better time.

Freestyle Love Supreme continues live and in person at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston, MA through April 2.  Click here for more information and tickets.

REVIEW:  Creativity runs wild in Andrew Garfield’s Oscar-nominated portrayal as Jonathan Larson in Netflix’s ‘tick, tick…BOOM!’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Though at times he has traveled under the radar from stage to screen aside from his turn as our friendly neighborhood Spiderman, Andrew Garfield has most deservedly been on the map lately.  Though he was sadly overlooked by the Academy as the emotional center of David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin’s 2010 acclaimed drama, The Social Network, Garfield has finally scored an Academy Award-nomination for the musical hit, tick tick…BOOM! available on Netflix.  Garfield has a knack for dynamic performances and though everyone is looking at Jessica Chastain as Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Garfield also brought a wealth of humor, quirkiness, and manipulative prowess to his portrayal of TV Evangelist Jim Bakker.

Once an Off-Broadway play, tick, tick…BOOM’s film adaptation is available now on Netflix and directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda.  The film is currently Oscar-nominated for Best Actor for Andrew Garfield and Best Film Editing and Garfield has a Screen Actors Guild nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

As Lin-Manuel Miranda was once a struggling writer himself, it is not surprising he is the director of the Academy Award-nominated musical tick, tick…BOOM!, a fascinating semi-autobiographical story about Jonathan Larson, a struggling writer living in New York City years before he created his hit rock musical, RENT.  A writer writes about what one knows and so much of this story offers glimpses into Larson’s inspiration for that wildly-successful musical.

However, this is about the struggle and this musical film is brimming with it.  The painstaking work of creativity and all that could go wrong illuminates tick, tick…BOOM! as Larson struggles to keep it all together to achieve what at times seems impossible, especially in New York City.  tick, tick…BOOM! is not only about Jonathan Larson’s frantic life, but it is also an ode to the writer and the struggle to live that extraordinarily competitive dream while just skirting out and skimming by trying to get a chance.

At its center is narrator and lead Andrew Garfield who brings a driving intensity and delivers an electrifying performance as the frenetic Larson on the eve of Larson’s 30th birthday.  The unconventional, deeply creative, and quick-thinking Larson divides his time between writing and working at the Moondance Diner.  Look for Lin-Manuel Miranda as a short order cook.  However, music and writing naturally pours out of Larson’s soul and he is often consumed by it at the expense of everything else.  For forward-thinking Larson, turning 30 is a looming chasm that soaks up every ounce of his time until that odious deadline as he demonstrates in the catchy and memorable number, 30/90.  Thirty is not old, but maybe Larson always felt like he was running out of time.

The musical features a dynamic, infectious, and multi-dimensional soundtrack about living in your 20s in New York City and how life changes.   RENT’s influence is unmistakably evident in the lighthearted and humorous numbers, Boho Days and No More.  It is also easy to recognize the roots that will develop Larson’s future work.  Inside the Moondance Diner, Sunday features beautiful harmonies that include some of Broadway’s biggest stars.  Therapy is a fantastic and humorous number about the miscommunication of love.  The rap-infused Play Game depicts the struggle between living out the uncertainty of your dream or entering the corporate world which is a prevalent theme throughout the film.

tick, tick BOOM! explores the little victories, the bigger victories, and the gut-wrenching defeats in Larson’s personal and professional world.  However, what is genuinely important becomes painfully clear and what truly inspires his work changes as the film progresses.

tick, tick BOOM! is currently streaming on Netflix. Click here for more information on RENT’s 25th Anniversary Farewell Tour.