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Community Corner

RENT: The Musical, July 11-13th

The Actors Training Center (ATC) Summer Musical Intensive presents the revolutionary rock opera RENT, July 11-13th at the Wilmette Theatre. Guaranteed to be unlike any other musical theaterized version of RENT that has played out on stage before, ATC’s version will offer theatre-goers a true-to-life depiction of this era and how these people lived and how those who suffered from AIDS died.   

 

A celebration of life and the heroic struggle to survive, RENT electrified a whole generation of theatergoers. It was an immediate hit when it premiered off Broadway in 1996 and went on to win every major musical award, including the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize for drama.

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RENT is a story of seven friends struggling to survive and create their works in New York’s Lower East Side in the thriving days of bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. Written by the late Jonathan Larson based on the Puccini opera, La Boheme.

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Alex Benjamin is musical director and Jeff Award winner Janet Louer, the Musical Theatre director of ATC’s Repertory Company, directs the production. 

 

Although the plot of the production remains quite faithful to its original material, Louer has reworked the script bringing more of the true-to-life culture of the late 80s / early 90s into the play. By integrating footage into the performance and re-arranging numbers, Louer is able to capture how these people truly lived. Issues of drug addiction, sexuality, and homelessness will be addressed and Angel’s death from AIDS will be a progression that unfolds on the stage – in all its raw emotion.

 

In addition to the educational subject matter, this is also a very important production for three senior members of the ATC Repertory Company family as it will be their last performance: Sabrina Fosse, Carson Rammelt, and Sammy Ferber.

 

“Each one of these students has a tour de force in this last production,” said Louer. ‘If you think you’ve seen them at their best, you haven’t.”

 

 

RENT cast includes:

Elizabeth Baker (Alexi Darling) of Evanston; Matthew Berzon (Benny) of Deerfield; Gabrielle Browdy (Maureen, Cast 2) of Deerfield; Connor Carlin (Collins) of Evanston; Noah Cott (Roger, Cast 1) of Highland Park; Colleen Dougherty (Joanne, Cast 1) of Evanston; Sammy Ferber (Mark) of Deerfield; Caleb Fietsam (Roger, Cast 2) of Lake Bluff; Sabrina Fosse (Mimi) of Glencoe; Liam Oh (Mark, Understudy) of Wilmette; Julia Packer (Maureen, Cast 1) of Glenview; Carson Rammelt (Angel) of Wilmette; Logan Scofield (Support Group Leader) of Oak Park; and Charli Williams (Joanne, Cast 2) of Chicago.

 

Performances will take place on:

·      7:00pm, July 11th

·      1:00pm, July 12th

·      7:00pm, July 12th

·      7:00pm, July 13th

 

Tickets are $15 and can be purchased on-line, at www.wilmettetheatre.com, by phone, at (847) 251-7424 or at the theatre box office located at 1122 Central Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.

 

About Actors Training Center (ATC):

The Actors Training Center provides professional-level, process-driven classes for children from kindergarten through 12th grade and adults.  Courses in acting, improv, physical theatre, on-camera and musical theatre are offered at the school.  Need-based scholarships are also available. For more information about ATC, please visit: www.actorstrainingcenter.com

 

About The Wilmette Theatre:

In 2014, the not-for-profit Wilmette Theatre will celebrate its 100th anniversary. This is the premiere multi-arts and performance center anchoring downtown Wilmette business district by providing vibrant entertainment, education and enrichment for the community, located just steps away from the Wilmette Metra station. www.wilmettetheatre.com

 

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