3 months in the life of friends: Behind the scenes of Loyola’s “Rent” production

Loyola’s production of Rent caused a buzz from the moment of its casting call, when students were asked to send in a 60-90-second rock song performance, substituting the typical polish of musical theater with the grungy, edgy sound characteristic of the ’90s.

The students who made the cast would tackle a story that celebrates life and survival during the AIDS crisis in New York City. James Galanis (BS ’29) played Mark Cohen, an aspiring filmmaker living in the East Village documenting the lives of his friends, who are part of the “bohemian” scene. Luc Leffe (BA ’28) tackled the role of Roger, a tortured ex-junkie rock band frontman weighed down by his HIV diagnosis and the fear of losing himself to the illness. Saniah Johnson (BS ’27) took on the role of Joanne, a professionally driven lawyer torn between her career and playing the supporting act to her artist girlfriend, Maureen.

October 27, 6 p.m., Central Standard Time: Auditions for Rent begin. From here on, the cast recounts their journey from the auditions to the final performace. 

The audition process set the groundwork for the students’ character growth, challenging them to use distinctive vocal styles and step outside their comfort zones.  

Johnson: I spent a little bit of time auditioning in the New York scene, and that’s pretty common— where you’re not auditioning with musical theater songs, you’re auditioning with things you hear on the radio.  I loved it because it gave me a chance to show… a part of my voice that the musical theater people don’t get to see.  

Leffe: I so don’t have a rock voice. I have, or maybe I should say had, a much softer, more Sondheim-esque style voice… I was so used to playing the softer characters or the very, very, very high-singing characters. Learning how to do that was just so much fun. 

When rehearsals began in February, the cast started the process of discovering their characters and how they move through their world.  

Galanis: [Mark] just does the most random things. He doesn’t fear social anxiety. He’ll jump on the tables, he’ll run around, [and] scream. I mean, he loves art and film, so he’ll go out of his way to make his life the most fun it can be. He’ll introduce himself to new people, he’ll make friends, he’ll film homeless people on the street. Like he really doesn’t care. He just does. 

Johnson: [Joanne] has these moments where she’s hard on the outside, and then you see that front fall. You get to see a little bit more of the vulnerable side of Joanne. And I think that’s what makes her such a complex character…  playing that on stage and allowing the audience to see that internal battle with the two personalities and two sides of Joanne is a very fun thing to do. 

As the actors became more familiar with their characters, they were able to add  dimension to their portrayals.  

Galantis: Mark has this camera [that is] basically his whole personality. Coming into the show, I knew that it existed, but I didn’t realize how much it was a part of his character and his story…It’s like it’s attached to his arm. It’s not just  a camera. It’s a part of him. 

Leffe: A lot of the show, Roger is very depressed and he keeps to himself and he’s not very happy. But in two or three moments, I get to explore what, maybe, a happier Roger looks like, or [what] a more figured-out Roger looks like. I really enjoy playing those scenes. And I really enjoy the dissonance of what I’m usually doing on stage versus those moments when I just get to have fun. 

Throughout rehearsals, the students received direction and support from the directors, DeRon Williams, an assistant professor of theater in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts, and their cast and crewmates. Rent involves many scenes featuring sex, drugs, and illness that must be understood in the context of the AIDS epidemic. Properly integrating these elements was key for the cast to succeed in their roles.  

Leffe: We had a few rehearsals where we just had a whole day to sit with the cast, and our director, Dr. Williams, would ask us questions about our characters—not even just [the seven principals], but the ensemble numbers as well. “What are you doing in this number? Who are you portraying in “Santa Fe” versus in “La Vie Boheme?” [In these two musical numbers, the performers play characters representing different backgrounds and desires.] Are you homeless? Why are you homeless? Are you choosing to be homeless? Are you addicted to drugs?” And I thought that was so special. 

Galantis: The show is very intimate, and there are a lot of advanced topics. From the get-go, the directors informed us that there were going to be moments when people are touching and kissing and doing sexual things. They really emphasized the importance of boundaries and being comfortable in the space. I really respect that, especially as someone who hasn’t done a show at this level of intimacy. 

As actors dove into character work, their own experiences and decision making colored their portrayals.  

Galantis: I’d say like Mark, I like to be friends with a lot of people. Mark latches on to people and he wants to be friends with everybody, and it takes a lot for him to be upset. It takes a lot for him to hate somebody. I see that a lot within me.  

Johnson: Unfortunately, at the beginning of this process, it wasn’t what I was expecting it to be. I lost a close family member. That really shook everything up for me. And it was really hard to jump back into a show that examines death [to the] extent that Rent does, and where we even have things like a funeral scene. I learned a lot about myself and who I am and also found that I was able to lean on my community and my peers when needed.   

Leffe: I think what hit me hardest was how similar I was to Roger, even if sometimes I don’t like to admit it. I grew up in New York, so I knew a lot of Rogers. My dad, I think, was maybe part of Roger and his friends were parts of Rogers. 

With a show so vocally and emotionally taxing, the cast adopted methods to preserve their voices and center their minds when getting into character. 

Leffe: I have a playlist of songs either from that era that I think Roger would have listened to or songs that I think he would have liked or just that embody his character. And I would sit and listen to that, if I really needed to focus and get in character.  

Johnson: I meditate a lot before rehearsal… And I constantly hydrate. Tea is my best friend. Honey’s my best friend. I play [the Rent soundtrack] all the time because I want to keep things in my brain, and I don’t want to lose them.  

Leffe: Dealing with all of Roger’s memories and false memories and just learning about all that stuff from the ’80s and ’90s, it was hard not to let it affect my day-to-day life. Forcing myself to go out or, as our director likes to say, to disrobe the character after every rehearsal, that has really helped. 

As rehearsals progressed, the cast became incredibly close, and the students’ connections became central to the emotion of their performances. 

Leffe: If we had a different cast, I don’t think this show would have been nearly the same or nearly as emotional. We got so close, so fast; it was actually shocking. I basically went into rehearsals not knowing anybody, maybe a handful of people. And now I don’t know what I’m going to do when the show is over and I won’t see these people every day. 

Johnson: It would be a lot more difficult to do the things we’re doing if we didn’t trust these other people that we’re around.  

Galantis: We all understand the message that this show is trying to get. We all respect it, and we all know that we need to do it justice. 

The cast found moments of laughter during rehearsals, and these moments both helped the group bond and took the pressure off during some of the heavy scenes.  

Galantis: One time we were rehearsing a scene and one of the actors, Shane, just came in with this obnoxious singing entrance and we all just broke character. And Dr. Williams, he’s like, ‘What are we doing guys?’ 

Leffe: There’s a moment in the second act when a character is walking wrapped in a blanket, and said actor or actress was pretending to go up a spiral staircase we hadn’t built yet. They stepped on the sheet and, like a cartoon banana peel, it slipped right out from under their legs. I was facing away, so all I heard was a face plant and a lot of laughter.  This is during a particularly heavy moment of the show, so we were sobbing and then suddenly crying-laughing.   

March 26, 7p.m., Central Standard Time: after months of rehearsals, Rent’s opening night arrived. The addition of the audience energized the actors and enlivened their performances.  

Galantis: Hearing the audience scream and cheer as we were walking on stage before we started… you’re filled with this adrenaline and this energy to just go at it. You feel so proud. 

Johnson: Whenever I get the opportunity to do a show and then I finally get to do it in front of an audience, I think it makes so much of it come to life in the sense that you hear the laughter… you find out that the audience thinks certain things are  much funnier than you expected. And it’s nice to know that jokes are landing and that people are also having fun. 

Leffe: Our opening night, my parents were in the audience, and I sing a song in act 1 called “One Song Glory.” The second that I started singing that song, all I could think about was my mom watching me. The whole song, I had to try not to cry, at least not yet. It was very unlike any stage rehearsal or music rehearsal that we’d ever had—just where the song was sitting in my chest that night.  

Johnson: I think one of the biggest things that I enjoy about performing this show live is when “Seasons of Love” comes on and people hear  the first chord and you see people in the audience nodding, like, “wait, I know this,” or they sing along and start clapping with us. 

The show closed on April 12, but the cast will carry the growth they made as actors as well as the family they found forward into the future. 

Johnson: I think my confidence got a major boost that I very much needed. Being in this production not only improved my acting capabilities, but also the confidence that my character possesses, I think, is something that I want to embody in my day-to-day life. She’s very secure in who she is, and she stands on that. I think that’s something that I would love to apply to myself.  

Leffe: I never really sang rock before this. I would do it for fun, but I didn’t have that ability … vocally. So that’s something I feel very grateful I got the opportunity to work through… I feel like I’ll be able to take away a lot of what we did from the show. I think it’s why it’s so special to a lot of us, just because it’s so unlike most other musicals. 

Galantis: I’m definitely going to take away a lot of the relationships I made during this show. I have made a lot of bonds with the cast and crew of the show. And I hope that I can keep those friendships strong and stay in communication with my directors and my castmates and crewmates. 

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