DCU Rent: A New Lease

When Rent closed on broadway last September, after a 12 year run, DCU Drama wasted no time in securing the rights to produce and amateur production of the rock musical. Their far-too-short sell out run in The Helix this March was critically lauded and has secured them a number of nominations at this weekend’s Association of Irish Musical Society Awards.

So impressive was DCU Drama’s production of Jonathan Larson’s musical about art, family, friends, community, drugs, homelessness and AIDS that they are now ready to bring Rent back to the Olympia Theatre under the direction of John Donnelly, 8 years after the Broadway Tour brought it to our shores. It is nearly unprecedented to see an amateur troupe bring a major production such as this to a national venue.

I spoke to Producer Roibeárd O’Mhurchú about the Helix production and the upcoming Olympia run:

• Rob, when DCU’s Rent hit the boards of the Helix earlier this year, it took a lot of people by surprise. It’s hugely talented cast and extremely professional production was widely praised. On opening night, there were no doubt nerves, but did you know then that you had such a quality show on your hands or were you as surprised as your audience?

I wouldn’t say that we were surprised, no. We knew that DCU has an amazing pool of talented young actors & singers, and they were all champing at the bit to get involved in RENT. Of course we were nervous, who isn’t on Opening Night? But we knew that we had a great show and a great cast, and were itching to get out there and prove it.

• I’ve heard that professional director John Donnelly had a struggle on his hands reigning in the wild ways of the cast of students for the Helix run. Did he have the same uphill battle on his hands for the Olympia run or did Rent come before studies this time around?

As a former chair of DCU Drama and 2-time chair of the Societies & Publications Committee in DCU (that’s the committee that oversees and funds all society activities), I have always supported the attitude of “Study first; Societies second.” When it comes to a huge undertaking like RENT, it’s always a bit of a struggle to maintain a high level of attendance at rehearsals - so many of our cast are studying different courses, have assignments due at different times and so on. For the Olympia run, it wasn’t much easier - the DCU exams were running until the 30th of May! The cast have been brilliant though; everyone has done their utmost to attend rehearsals, and since the exams finished, there’s been no issues at all - RENT comes first now!

• I assume you’ll be far too busy preparing for the show to make it down to Killarney for the AIMS Awards? This weekend Rent is up for Best Director and Best Overall Show, amongst others. You have to be feeling confident of picking up some awards?

The timing of our very first AIMS Awards isn’t the best; I’ll be the first to admit that! We are doing our get-in at The Olympia that weekend, so there’s a lot of last minute rehearsals, set building, tech run-throughs and a myriad of other little jobs to be done. However, myself and John Donnelly will be heading for Killarney - someone’s got to fly the flag! As for the possibility of winning awards, it’s an old cliche, but we are genuinely delighted to have been nominated. Some societies have waited years to get a Best Overall Show nomination, so this is a serious honour. We’ll keep the fingers crossed and see what happens.

• I understand director John Donnelly was largely responsible for bringing Rent to the Olympia. What has it been like working with the Award winning director, for both crew and cast?

John is a bit of a legend in the amateur drama circle, and justifiably so. He’s got brilliant vision, knows exactly what he wants and works very well with the cast. He’s a motivator and has that unique ability to get maximum effort and results from both cast and crew. It’s been a pleasure to have worked with him these past few months.

• It’s not often that a student production has made it to a national venue. This has to be a proud achievement for all involved?

Like you wouldn’t believe! I think it’s still hitting the cast as we speak - after all, it’s not your average summer for a college student. We are literally bursting with pride; to bring our show to such a respected and historical venue as The Olympia - it’s just unheard of. We’re thrilled.

• I was lucky enough to catch Rent in New York as well as its Irish run almost 10 years ago. How does it feel to be the group that bring it back to the Olympia? Do you feel that you have very big shoes to fill?

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! We do feel that we have quite the shoes to fill, but having done RENT to great acclaim back in March, we’re quietly confident that we have the talent and the professionalism to do this fantastic show justice on the national stage.

• You have spent time in New York, I believe. Did you go to see Rent often? Has this project been a labour of love for you?

I lived in New York for four years, but only got the chance to see RENT once while I was there - back in 2002 when Joey Fatone from N’Sync was playing “Mark.” I absolutely loved every minute of it though, ran out and bought the soundtrack and haven’t looked back! One of my “missions” for DCU Drama when I became chair was to organise an annual trip to New York to see musicals on Broadway. I’m proud to say that we’ve been over 4 years in a row now and have seen some of the best musicals in history, including RENT in 2007. We met the cast afterwards and even got them on video, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw83hrOfV_A. A labour of love this has definitely been; it’s been a dream come true for all of us to be honest.

• Though I am a fan of the musical, I wasn’t overawed by the 2005 film. I felt a lot was removed unnecessarily. Have you changed or removed much from the original stage production to make your version work for you?

I agree with you on that; they took out “Christmas Bells” - one of the most complex and brilliant songs you’ll see in any show anywhere! We kept our production of RENT as faithful as possible to the original Broadway run. We changed a few words here and there - just minor cultural references that Irish audiences might not catch, but otherwise RENT remains as intact as it was when it premiered in 1996. We have increased the chorus though - the original run of RENT featured a cast of about 16 - we’ve got over 40 in our show.

• At the time Larson wrote Rent, poverty was widespread and the AIDS issue was still hot in the media. Do you feel that Rent can still resonate with audiences as much as it first did in 1996?

I believe that it can - poverty has not gone away, and with the recession dominating world headlines, it’s more in the public conscious that ever. AIDS still kills many people every year, and it’s important to keep it in the media spotlight. I feel that RENT is the kind of show that makes a lasting impression; it’s not just another show - it’s a way of life. It’s a powerful and emotional experience that still resonates with audiences as much as it ever did.

• The theme of community runs throughout Rent. Has this experience brought the cast closer together?

Without a doubt. The RENT cast, many of whom were only casual acquaintances before the show, have become almost like a family. When we’re not on stage or at rehearsals, we’re hanging out at each other’s houses!

• “The opposite of war isn’t peace - it’s creation“. What’s next for DCU Drama? Will you stick with musicals and take on Jesus Christ or Hair perhaps, or have you other things in mind?

DCU Drama always have a few tricks up our sleeves! In addition to the annual musical, we do a Shakespeare every year, a Panto at Christmas, a “Stars In Their Eyes” competition and more contemporary fare too - in the past few years we’ve put on productions of “All My Sons,” “Three Days Of Rain,” Disco Pigs,” “Bash” and several student-written plays. We’ve won National Best College Society three times at the Board of Irish College Societies Awards - more than any other society, and have always pushed ourselves to offer our members a brilliant time, year in, year out. We put on Jesus Christ Superstar in 2000, and as for next year’s show, well, let’s just say there’s a few contenders…

• Lastly, what would you say to convince people to go see this show?

I am unhesitant to use the word “unmissable” when talking about RENT - for a paltry 20 or 25 euro, you have the opportunity to see a Broadway-calibre show that will leave you wanting more, now who would want to miss that?

Rent begins its run in the Olympia this Monday, 15th June, and ends next Saturday, 20th June. Tickets are available from Ticketmaster and more information can be found at DCUforrent.com.