A new version of Jonathan Larson’s rock musical Rent is to explore the isolation and prejudice faced by deaf and hearing communities during the 1980s HIV/Aids crisis. Scenes from Rent – A Staged Performance will run at Curve in Leicester next month as part of the theatre’s New Work festival showcasing Midlands artists.
For its director, Lilac Yosiphon, Rent’s context lends itself to new consideration from a deaf perspective. One of the challenges during the HIV/Aids crisis in New York, she said, was the lack of access to information. “The deaf queer community had even less access to information because it wasn’t available in American Sign Language,” said Yosiphon. “This suggested to me that there is a way to look at the characters [and ask]: what would the world of Rent look and feel like if the community included deaf and hearing characters, rather than only hearing characters?”
Larson’s musical was inspired by the opera La Bohème and set among an artistic community in New York’s East Village. It became an off-Broadway hit and opened on Broadway in April 1996, three months after his death from an aortic dissection at the age of 35. Rent won four Tony awards and the Pulitzer prize, all given posthumously.
The new production focuses on specific sections from the musical, bringing together key songs, including Seasons of Love and La Vie Bohème. It will be bilingual, performed in British Sign Language (BSL) and spoken English. “Language holds power, and we are changing the power dynamics within the play and its creation process, from English being the dominant language with BSL being added on, to working bilingually with BSL leading the process and artistic choices,” said Yosiphon, who is also artistic director of the ensemble Althea theatre. She highlighted how BSL as a language has been oppressed, with deaf people instead encouraged to use their voice or lip-read, affecting access to everything from healthcare to education.
In Scenes from Rent, several characters will be deaf, including the lead role of Mark, a documentary maker. “Each character’s communication and signing styles are rooted in their character traits and we are exploring the nuances of these when it comes to their communication with others,” explained Yosiphon. “For example, is BSL the character’s first language? Did they grow up mainly in a hearing community or a deaf community? How do they prefer to communicate? Those questions will drive the artistic choices that we make about how each of the characters uses BSL.”
The play has an ensemble cast of deaf and hearing actors, reflecting Yosiphon’s choice to reimagine the characters as a deaf and hearing community. “My work as a director often explores the theme of belonging,” she said. “Now is the time to give deaf artists more agency and opportunities to take space and share their artistry and skill, allowing them to find belonging within our stages.”
The process has involved exploring working methods as well as the material. “Making sure the room is safe and nourishing so people can bring their whole self to the work and collaborate is key,” Yosiphon said. “Each deaf performer has different interactions with music and some of the time will be spent in exploring that, too.” She wants to challenge the misconception of deafness and musicality as binary ideas, instead recognising that there are many deaf artists and audiences with a passion for musical theatre.
“I hope that the play will send a message to audiences and the theatre community that revisiting these big titles in a bilingual way is essential,” said Yosiphon. “It holds value for both hearing and deaf communities in understanding each other’s cultures and identities. I hope it allows for more conversations about deaf-led work and collaborating with deaf artists in mainstream theatre, and that members of the audience feel seen, acknowledged and as though they have had their experience recognised.”
Most of all, Yosiphon hopes that audiences leave the theatre holding on to Larson’s message: that there is “no day but today”. She added: “Live each day as you are, for as long as you have, with the people you love.”
• Scenes from Rent – A Staged Performance is at Curve, Leicester, 7-9 March.
