Rent to be revived next spring in first production for new company

A revival of award-winning musical Rent will hit the stage next year.

The first show for new company Landmark Productions, the piece is directed by Paul Jepson with musical direction from Mark Crossland. Casting is to be announced.

Based on Puccini’s La Bohème, Rent follows a group of impoverished young artists who live in New York under the shadow of HIV/AIDs. After first premiering in 1996, the show first ran in the UK in 1998, with a film released in 2005.

It has music, lyrics, and book by Jonathan Larson, with numbers including “La Vie Bohème”, “Without You” and “Seasons of Love”.

Paul Jepson, CEO and creative director of Landmark Theatres said: “This is another exciting step in the evolution of Landmark Theatres. Having joined the Arts Council National Portfolio earlier this year we are thrilled to be bringing our first production to the venues we operate in North Devon and Peterborough. We are committed to creating high quality, new and exciting live entertainment to share with the communities we work in, and are looking forward to launching Rent, the much-loved rock musical, which we know will resonate with our audiences, as our first production.

“The production will provide a variety of opportunities for young creatives and touch points for schools and young people as part of our Talent Development and Participation Programmes.”

The show will open at Peterborough New Theatre on 20 June before visiting the Queen’s Theatre Barnstaple from 3 July.

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