The Pulitizer and Tony Award winnning rock opera RENT comes to the Broadway Theatre Center May 21 through June 20 as part of the Sylight Opera Series. Ticket prices range from $62 to $20 and are available at the Box Office, 414-291-7800 or www.skylightopera.com.
Set in 1989, in New York City's thriving BohemIan East Village, Rentis a modern take on Puccini's 1896 classic, La Boheme. With a driving rock score integrating dance, pop, rock 'n roll, R&B and salsa, Rentfeatures video artists, performance artists, guitarists, strippers, cross-dressers, and drug addicts, all trying to find themselves and find their way in a tumultuous society. Rentsings of our time; of facing an uncertain future with courage, humor, loyalty and love; of celebrating life while struggling to make it. A rock opera bringing musical theatre to the MTV generation, Rentwon the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 1996 Tony Award for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book.
"Bringing Rent to the Skylight Opera Theatre just one season after our production of La Boheme is incredibly important in a multitude of ways. We may be the only professional company in the country to produce both of these works; and the opportunity to do so within a years time is a unique and exciting opportunity for Milwaukee audiences." - Bill Thiesen, Artistic Director
"Even though Rent is a rock opera, we are very pleased to bring a more intimate, accessible version of this Pulitzer Prize winning piece to the Cabot stage. We won't be blasting out your eardrums as is often the case with Rent. We will be true to the spirit of this extremely important work and at the same time make it a pleasure to listen to this extraordinary score." - Bill Thiesen, Artistic Director.
Skylight will be partnering with the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin for Rent. This partnership includes Skylight donating its May 23rd performance of Rent to the ARCW. "Even though RENT debuted in 1994, major themes from the performance continue to resonate in the fight against AIDS," said Doug Nelson, ARCW President and CEO. "Homelessness and difficulty accessing health care remain significant barriers to achieving a long and healthy life for HIV patients, many of whom live in poverty. We are grateful to everyone at the Skylight Opera Theater for their strong support of ARCW and our housing program."
AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin (ARCW) - The AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin is home to the ARCW Medical Center - Wisconsin's largest and fastest growing provider of HIV health care. Through its integrated medical, dental and mental health clinics along with social services including food pantries, legal program, housing support and social work case management, more than 1,200 HIV patients gain the health care they need for long term survival with HIV disease.
Donna Drake (Stage Director/Choreographer) - Broadway: original production ofA Chorus Line, Sophisticated Ladies, Woman of the Year, The Wind in the Willows, 5678-Dance and the original production of the 1940s Radio Hour. Her work has earned an Emmy nomination, 3 Drama Desk nominations, a Mac Award nomination and a Theatre World Award. Most recently she choreographed Catherine Zeta Jones for the American Film Institute Awards and currently running Off-Broadway she directed a new children's show, John Tartaglia's Imaginocean. TV credits include Disney's Johnny & the Sprites, ABC TV's Dear Alex & Annie, One Life to Live and The Edge of Night. Regional credits include, The Wizard of Oz, starring Mickey Rooney & Eartha Kitt; Romance In The Dark, starring Jennifer Holliday; Nothing Like A Dame, BC/EFA 2004-06, All the world is a Stage at Carnegie Hall, A Chorus Line, AIDA, Hairspray, Rent, Tommy, Damn Yankees, NEWSicle, Annie, Love Always, Patsy Cline, Smokey Joes Café, Sweet Charity, Honk!, Beauty & the Beast & Chess.
Jamie Johns (Music Director) - Pianist/conductor Jamie Johns is currently a coach/accompanist with Florentine Opera, and a frequent guest artist with the Skylight Opera Theatre. Conducting highlights include The Marriage of Figaro, Carmen, Romeo and Juliet, The Coronation of Poppea, and La Traviata. Favorite shows on which Jamie has served as music director are The Last Five Years, Little Shop of Horrors, Cabaret, Archy and Mehitabel, Jacques Brel..., and The World Goes Round. Accompanying Gary Briggle as Noel Coward, Jamie has performed A Talent to Amuse; an evening with Noel Coward, in Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Sarasota, Iowa City, and Sacramento. Other companies that Jamie has worked for include Lyric Opera Cleveland, Orlando Opera, Madison Rep, Milwaukee Rep, Bel Canto, Present Music, Writers' Theatre (Chicago) and Milwaukee Opera Theatre. This fall, Jamie will be a visiting professor at the University Wisconsin-Milwaukee, working in both the music theater and opera departments.
