The play is “Rent – School Edition.” But last week’s electric rehearsal at the Marcus Jewish Community Center brought to mind both “Fame” and “Mr. Holland’s Opus.”
There was the excitement of the teenage cast singing and dancing around the theater. And there was the devoted director, Brian Kimmel, pushing them with a fatherly Richard Dreyfuss-like quality.
“Your acting is great, but I don’t understand a word you’re singing,” said Kimmel as 15-year-old Jordan Rich belted “One Song Glory.”
A few seconds later Kimmel interrupted with, “If I can just get you to use your consonants.”
Finally, Jordan nailed the song.
“Mwah. I love you,” shouted Kimmel from the center of the theater.
“I love you, too,” said Jordan, smiling.
The play is the first production of MJCCA’s Center Theatre’s Teen Summer Stock program. It runs July 27-Aug. 1.
“Rent-School Edition” is an adaptation of Jonathan Larson’s Pulitzer-winning Broadway musical, “Rent.” Loosely based on Puccini’s opera, “La Boheme,” the play follows young artists living a Bohemian lifestyle in New York City. While remaining true to the overall story and its main characters, the modified version, tones down the controversial subject matter of the original play. One song, "Contact,” has been omitted.
In the play, cast members – with ages ranging from 14 to 18 – portray characters in their mid to late 20s, who live with AIDS and drug addiction.
“I just love its message,” said Ebeth Engquist, 17, a rising senior in the performing arts program at North Springs Charter High School in Sandy Springs.
She plays Joanne, a Harvard educated lawyer. “She’s also a rebel. She takes the time to fight for civil rights and injustice. She comes into the group because she is dating Maureen,” Ebeth said.
“A phrase that’s used in the show is ‘There is no day but today,’" Ebeth continued. “It doesn’t matter if you’re going to die tomorrow. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have any money. You have to just keep living your life without fear, without regret. That’s just such a big lesson for [me] to take advantage of. ”
At the start of production, director Kimmel had to figure out how to relate the dynamics of the story to his young cast. To give them a sense of the joy and rebelliousness of Bohemian life, he had them imagine sneaking out of the house in the middle of the night as their parents slept.
He has led them in group discussions on drug addiction and homelessness.
“Obviously there are no heroin addicts in this group so we’ve had to talk about heroin addiction and what that means,” Kimmel recalled. “What kind of desperate life an addict on the streets of New York is living. That kind of weathered beaten down thing, we’ve had to work on because these kids have lived fairly comfortable lives. I think it’s awesome for them to have to dig down deep and look for characters that are beyond them.”
Producer Dina Shadwell, admits “Rent-School Edition” is an ambitious and mature play for the debut of MJCCA’s Teen Summer Stock program, however, it’s what young folks respond to, she said.
“To think that we can shelter these [students] is to do them a disservice,” she said. “Yes, we can do ‘Grease' or ‘Hello Dolly'; we’d be happy to do that, but they are intrigued by other things.”
Kathy Davidson is the mother of one of the main cast members in the show. Her son Christopher, 16, plays Collins, who is suffering from HIV.
“There are probably close to a dozen personal friends of our family who are dealing with HIV,” Davidson said. “For Christopher, it is his contribution and his message to our friends and family members.”
George Roberts, 16, a rising senior at Chapel Hill High School in Douglasville said the play taught him how to keep an open mind and not judge people.
“It’s just an amazing show to me,” he said. “It’s a celebration of life.”
Cast members have a hand in nearly every area of the production. They are stage managers and technical directors overseeing music, light, sound effects and even props.
“This is also about mentoring," Kimmel said. “I’m trying to teach them not only about actors and directors, but about putting the whole production together. It’s a high-quality production that mirrors what they would do in the real [theater] world.”
“Rent – School Edition”
Runs at Center Theatre in the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, July 27-Aug. 1. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 10 p.m. Saturday; 3 and 7 p.m. Sunday. $20-$22. 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. 678-812-4002, www.atlantajcc.org or www.centertheatreatlanta.org .
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