Jonathan Larson: "Rent"

 "Rent" has one mostly legible story, about a struggling songwriter named Roger. (We can assume Roger is the lead male character; in the nineties, Adam Pascal was Tony-nominated in the "Lead Actor" category.)

Roger is drawn to a young person named Mimi, but he has PTSD from a bad affair. He rejects invitations--in a nasty way--and he is distrustful by default. At the same time, he can't help but flirt with Mimi. And these two push each other to do good things, i.e., returning to school (Mimi) and making use of a pen and paper (Roger). An actual story unfolds, through showing, not telling; the Roger/Mimi songs are specific and evocative ("Light My Candle," "Another Day," "I Should Tell You," "Without You," "Goodbye, Love").

I think Roger's story is an entire musical; unfortunately, "Rent" is bloated. It's almost three hours long. Jonathan Larson throws many, many wet noodles at the wall. One wet noodle is the character of Mark, who doesn't have a crisis until hour 2.5. It's at this point in the story that Roger tells Mark, "You're like Georges Seurat, walled off from the world." It's too late for the audience to care about this information, but we're asked to care, because the faux-problem reemerges in the final scene. Additionally, a likable person named Joanne falls for a braindead and toxic narcissist--and the script asks us to think that the narcissist, Maureen, has valid relationship concerns. (Nothing about Maureen is intriguing, and I have to believe that the character's iconic Broadway status has to do with Idina Menzel, who earned a Tony nomination with thin, thin material.) Finally, Jonathan Larson invents a magical healing gay person, and names him Angel, and the gay person gives valuable lessons to straight people before dying in a sort of pretty, decorous way, on a table.

Maybe I'm hard on "Rent," but a troubled Paper Mill production has made me newly aware of its issues. Critics wonder if this show has staying power; I think it has obvious staying power, because it's a Boy Meets Girl story, and in that way, it's in a Shakespeare-and-Chekhov tradition. The Paper Mill version has added weight to an already heavy show with somber testimonials from various New York residents who survived the AIDS epidemic. I don't think these lectures are necessary; I think Larson tells you all you need to know through the story of Roger and Mimi. And I think Roger will "speak" to viewers just as long as young people are drawn to drugs, inconstancy, and bad decisions. (Forever and ever!)

I can tolerate the Maureen stuff, because no show is perfect. If you go to "Carousel," you have to sit through the clambake. If you watch "Sunset Boulevard," you have to spend several slow minutes with Betty Schaefer. Such is life.

Here's to a more joyful version of "Rent," somewhere in New Jersey's future.