Rent

Rent... a musical staged and presented by St. Pauls Players at Adlington Community Centre, Railway Road, Adlington on Thursday, 5th March, 2026.

I’ve said this twice now in less than a week ... there’s a general expectation that NODA representatives will have seen every show many times, not so, or at least, not always! This was the second ‘Musical’ in just over a week, that I’d never seen before... Chess and now Rent! So, what’s RENT all about... well in words taken from probably it’s most famous song, which I had heard and actually sung ‘Seasons of Love’... the storyline follows ‘a year in the life’ of eight friends, starving artists, musicians and activists as they navigate ‘eviction’, ‘addiction’ and ‘heartbreak’ whilst striving to create art in a world that often feels different.  Written by Jonathan Larson, a young composer who wanted to create a musical that spoke honestly about real life — love, friendship, art, and surviving in New York City during the AIDS crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Larson’s inspiration for Rent came from several different sources, but many characters are drawn directly from Puccini’s La Bohème. La Bohème was also about the lives of poor young artist’s, substitute HIV/AIDS for Tuberculosis as the health issue and New York for Paris for the location. Tragically, Larson passed away suddenly the night before the show’s first Off-Broadway preview in 1996 and never got to see the incredible impact his work would have.
Rent went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and multiple Tony Awards whilst it continued to move audiences around the world. More than 25 years later, this show still feels relevant, urgent, emotional, and deeply human.

The Production Team... WOW! To get all that on your stage, must have been a challenge and something you should all be proud of!  Dave Maloney (Director), Lily Blundell (Assistant Director /Producer), Lauren Mulholland (Musical Director) and Georgia Hilton (Dance Capt./Ensemble), were the ones chosen to bring this challenging storyline to stage!  Wonderful cast, no weak links, all of whom looked well-rehearsed and up for the many challenges that lay ahead. To stage such a musical, on not the biggest stage area, you have to have a Production Team with vision and that was obvious from the off!  They obviously knew exactly what they wanted from this production and how to achieve it, whilst allowing the production to flow with impeccable natural ease. Every aspect, every detail was well thought out and achieved...  be very proud each and all!

The Cast... twenty-one incredibly talented, well-rehearsed cast members took to the stage to bring to life this amazing story and what a job they did! The named principals included...
Ben Brooks who played ‘Mark Cohen’, Sam Meyer played ‘Rodger Davis’,
May Upton played ‘Mimi Marquez’, , Mathew Gavin played ‘Angel Dumott Schnard’,
Katie Toole played ‘Maureen Johnson’, Zoe Blackledge played ‘Joanne Jefferson’,
Tom Townsend played ‘Tom Collins’, Callum Harrison played ‘Benjamin (Benny)Coffin III’,
Ensemble included Annabel Jenkins, Danielle Gavin, Emily Wild, Hannah Thornley-Corkin, Emily Bailey, Dylan Robinson, Harry Cohen, Imogen Bradley, Isla Graham, Jane McQueen, Jordan Lawler, Ave Deveney and Georgia Hilton.
Did we have a ‘show stealer’... did we have a ‘show stopper’ I’m not sure we did, because the success of this show, for me, was totally down to those twenty-one talented actors coming together as one! Sometimes, when you can see that everyone on stage had ‘given of their all’ it’s even difficult to start picking favourites ... BUT never one to sit on the fence, I am going to give ‘shout outs’ to four people who really do need to be ‘mentioned’ and they were Ben Brooks and Rodger Davis, two of our three ‘leads’ who both acted as ‘kind of’ Narrators, which they did with great aplomb. Mark, played by Ben is an aspiring filmmaker; Roger, played by Sam, an aspiring musician. Best mates, who live in the same building, both looking for that ‘one big break’. Wow, what characters, what stage presence, they lived those roles, you could tell. I’ve seen Ben many times, in various productions in various roles, but this was ‘next level’... be very proud Ben! My third choice, our third and final lead … May Upton who played Mimi Marquez, a nineteen-year-old heroin addict, an edgy exotic dancer, who lives on the block with Mark and Roger and who has an interest in Roger! May, much like Ben, I’ve seen grow up on this stage! A few years ago, in a ‘show report’, I suggested May was a ‘triple threat’ ... and I quote, “one to look out for in the future’ ... well May, that future starts now! Your portrayal of Mimi was so impressive!  From the body language, the shaky hands, the facial expressions, the eyes and the mannerisms OMG ... you really do need to be very proud of this performance! Last but not least, Matthew Gavin gave us an outstanding portrayal of ‘Angel Dumont Scunard’ the warm-hearted, loving, generous ‘Drag Queen’ who makes money busking/drumming on the streets! Another wonderful character created, looked effortless... again be proud!  Honestly, I could go on! The ensemble supported the principals ever so well, their rendition ‘Seasons of Love’ ... was amazing!

Staging/Tech ...  I said at this year’s District 6 Awards Dinner, and I’ll re-iterate it again here, not only are we blessed with talent on stage, but off stage as well and some of those dedicated backstage ‘wizards’ had been at it again! OK, it wasn’t elaborate, didn’t need to be, but what it was, was ‘user friendly’ which allowed this production to flow with ease! Putting the orchestra on stage allowed for a large stage extension to be used to great effect. Exit and entry points had been well placed and used, as was the lighting. The sound and the techy stuff were used to great effect, so what’s not to celebrate! Responsible for all things stage wise was Jill Heeks (Stage Manager), Steve Pilkington (Stage Construction), Steve Blundell, Barry Heeks, Alan Leyland, Kamil Kupniewski and David Worsley (Crew), with Sound & Lighting in the capable hands of the ever-present Jo & Natalie Sweet, Stuart Naylor and Richard Cornes. You guys really are dedicated ‘Theatre Wizards’!

Band ... we had five band members set on stage being led, ever so well, by Lauren Mulholland (Musical Director). The band included Dave Dossett (Keys1); Jack Hogg (Guitar1); James Eccleshare (Guitar2/Keys2); Scott Simpson (Drums); and James Greenhalgh (Bass).  It was lovely to hear a band accompanying a cast perfectly rather than competing with them.  All the songs bar ‘Seasons of Love’ were new songs to me, so I really wanted to listen and understand the lyrics which was afforded me because of the balance between band and cast. Well, done Lauren, well done folks... great job!

Wardrobe ... costumes were co-ordinated by Liz Blundell, Lisa Cohen and Judith Armstrong. As with most productions ... costumes are an important element of any production, they really can, if done right, enhance most, if not all productions... and the costumes for Rent, I would suggest are just as important if not more! Why, because a society could go a little too extreme, over the top ... but I think St Paul’s got it just about right.  The costumes were of the era; they looked authentic, even though possibly self-supplied, and I felt they really did enhance ... congrats!

Props/Set Dressing ... first class and used extremely well under the watchful eye of Becca Hilton.

Thank you so much for the invite, both my wife and I really loved the production. Thanks again to Graham Cohen for looking after us throughout and to St Paul’s for their efforts both on and off stage!

Stay Safe, Keep well
“Stronger Together”

Jim Briscoe,
NODA NW
District 6 Rep  

 

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