I saw Rent twice while it was in Pittsburgh - the opening night on Tuesday and the second to the last show today. I have seen the show at least twice (possibly three times) before, and I have listened to the soundtrack more than was probably necessary for one person.
I saw it for the first time in high school. A friend's mother had gotten her tickets for her birthday, and she asked me to go with her. I remember my friend's mother sort of warning my mother about the content of Rent. After it was over, I remember thinking how amazing it was.
The whole idea of their lives was foreign to me back then. Like - how
could people even live in NYC?! I had never been there, and it was
worlds away. All I knew about AIDS was from the health class
booklet we all had (I'm like 95% sure it had a blue cover). I didn't
know any out gay people (and didn't even know bisexuality existed). Drag queens were something only in movies.
To me, Rent was exposure to real life.
Caleb, destroyer of all things fun, was bitching earlier this week about how all the characters are terrible people. Today was the first stage production he had seen, but he had seen the movie before. There is a giant difference between seeing Rent as a high school kid from a suburban area and seeing it as an actual adult person.
I think if I had seen Rent for the first time now, I would think of it entirely differently.
I have friends who live in NYC, and I have spent time wandering around by myself figuring out what to do (although I haven't been alone in the East Village - went to McSorley's with other people). I know a lot more about AIDS, and I have met people who are HIV+. (Side note: I wonder how different the show would be if PrEP existed back then - would just the intravenous drug users have AIDS?). I definitely know people on all parts of the LGBT spectrum. I've been in drag shows!
There were people much younger than me at the Tuesday performance. The one guy in front of me didn't seem to be enjoying it as much as the rest of us. He was kinda slumped over with his head on his hand. Honestly, it made it easier to see so whatever.
Part of the magic of Rent - for me anyway - was that it was a glimpse into lives that I couldn't even imagine. Does this show (can this show) hold up today?
I think it still stands up. There may be more of a nostalgia factor for the music, and it being the first time I encountered a lot of these ideas. There are obviously flaws in it, but does that really matter? Rent was one of the first times I really thought about their being other ways to live your life. There will always be a place for a show like that.
