The article reflects on Jonathan Larson's influence through his iconic musical, Rent, while also evaluating the transformation of the East Village due to gentrification. The Jonathan Larson Project, a revue at the Orpheum Theatre, seeks to highlight Larson's lesser-known works rather than just focusing on Rent. The piece emphasizes how Larson's creations captured the artistic spirit of the neighborhood in the mid-1990s but also questions the current state of that spirit in today's landscape, dominated by a different demographic.
The show, essentially a revue, at the Orpheum Theatre, proposes to uncover and stage Larson's work beyond what you may already be intimately familiar with.
With all these subjects - Rent, this neighborhood, and Larson in general - a rosy tint is inevitable, especially given the circumstances of his life.
Larson mythologized the mid-1990s incarnation of the neighborhood with Rent, the world-conquering rock musical that changed the sound of contemporary musical theater.
Are there even artists there anymore, or is it just all NYU kids and tech bros in condos? What's left of la vie bohème, aside from branding opportunities?
Collection
[
|
...
]