Retro interview: Anthony Rapp of "Rent"

That's a Rapp:

Actor comes full circle with film version of "Rent"

By Jon Chattman, for thecheappop.com - November 2006

Anthony Rapp is the first one to admit he didn't think he'd ever see a film version of "Rent," and if there was one, he figured it'd be so far off into the future that he'd only turn up for a cameo: never being able to recreate the role he originated on stage back in 1996. These days, the 34-year-old actor couldn't be happier to have been wrong. On Nov. 23, after years of rumors and top-notch directors from Spike Lee to Baz Luhrmann's names being attached and detached to the project, the film version of the Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning play will finally hit multiplexes, and Rapp's front and center. He's not alone. In an atypical Hollywood move, nearly the entire lead cast (sans two) who had been with the show from its very beginning recreated their roles for the film version.
We recently spoke to Rapp, who noted the film is just the latest in the "Rent" journey. The show, which is loosely based on the opera "La Boheme" centers on East Village Bohemians who are coping with life, love, death, and AIDS, opened off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop in early 1996, but its creator Jonathan Larson, who had been misdiagnosed twice, died at 35 of an aneurysm the day of the show's first preview. Before long, "Rent" landed on moved to Broadway and won the Best Musical Tony Award and The Pulitzer Prize.
The film stays true to Larson's vision, Rapp explained, thanks in large part to director Chris Columbus, who had been deemed somewhat of an unlikely choice to direct the film given his past blockbuster bravado. Rapp elaborated on that as well as how it felt to revisit "Rent's" lovable-yet-lonely insecure filmmaker Mark Cohen, and reunite with his cast members. Now, as they say in "Rent," "Speak!"

JC: This has got to be an exciting time for you, right?
AR: It's probably the most exciting time in my life.

JC: The film version of "Rent" has been discussed, it seems, since you guys hit Broadway. Did you ever think you'd at this point?
AR: We didn't think much about it in the early days because movie musicals weren't being made. It was so out of fashion. [It was] before "Moulin Rouge," and before "Chicago." We had to jump through some hoops. It didn't seem like it would be made at all, and I kind of let it go. I thought [eventually it would be made], but I'd probably make something like a cameo or something.

JC: So, you must've been surprised that yourself and most of the original cast were brought on board for the film. Typically, Hollywood casts big "movie stars" for film versions of shows...
AR: Yea, I heard [Chris Columbus] was going to direct the thing and use as many of the actors as he could. I did "Adventures in Babysitting" with him, and I remember when he came to see the show, how much he loved [it]. I didn't know if people wanted to move on. I wasn't sure, but I knew how I felt. No matter what, I wanted to be part of it. I've never had a desire to walk away from it, and leave it behind me. It was just an incredible gift that it came through like this.

JC: You were just a kid in "Adventures in Babysitting." Did you reconnect with Columbus with "Rent" or had you kept in touch?
AR: When he came backstage in "Rent," I hadn't seen him in a long time. There was a time a few years ago when I was doing a play at Berkley, and I thought I'd see him-he lived in San Francisco, but he was in England doing "Harry Potter." I tried, in my way, to maintain some sort of connection. I've never been one to try to take advantage. When I heard he was directing it, I only hoped that our previous collaboration would give me a chance to do the film.

JC: When you think Chris Columbus, you think big blockbuster movie not a movie musical with sort of an Indie feel...
AR: There is sort of a realism to it even though it's a musical. He has done lighter-hearted, fantastical. I felt frankly that he has not lived up to his potential as a director. He's made many crowd-pleasing films, but I knew that if he were to take "Rent" he'd take it to a deeper, darker place. He recognized the opportunity as an artist.

JC: What was it like on the set with Columbus?
AR: Everybody clicked with Chris. He embraces collaboration. He wants, on the set, to be a family.

JC: You were away from the character of Mark for a while. Do you think it helped your performance? How long had you been away from the character?
AR: I finished in London... October 1998. Then, we did a five-year anniversary concert. It's certainly been a part of me. I'm writing a book about being in "Rent" and losing my mother to cancer while I was in the show. It stays very alive for me. It hasn't stayed behind in the dark corners of my past. Inevitably, as an actor, you're always using whatever is there for you in the moment. It's your raw materials, which you transform into your character. I'm older and wiser, and I'm sure that there are new colors that come forward into my performance. I just try to be truthful in the moment. I imagine there is some subtle difference.

JC: Can you still relate to Mark?
AR: When I first did the show, I was in a much more struggling point in my career. I was living in the East Village, and I had friends of mine who passed away from HIV and it's like what Mark was going through. My mother had cancer and was passing away, so I was on a parallel with Mark. There was a real connection there. We share a kind of idealistic vision of life: a sense of community, integrity in our work: the importance of art.

JC: And, you never had an interest in doing another character in the play?
AR: I did the workshop in '94, and then there was a year until the workshop. There wasn't a Roger and Jonathan Larson, who wrote it, had an opportunity to present a couple of songs at this opera event. He asked me to sing some of Roger's songs. They were "Light my Candle" and "Another Day." It was fun to do that. I would never do Roger, but there's certainly a lot going on with him.

JC: Now that the movie is complete and soon-to-be released - ironically just days after the new Columbus-free "Harry Potter," what is your general feeling about it? Do you think it did Jonathan Larson proud?
AR: We just saw the film just about a week ago, and I was just blown away. It has so much subtlety in it, and quiet moments. My brother is a novelist and we often talk together. He can articulate it better than I can. You see the play, and you're blown away by it because it's this visceral thing coming at you. The music is overwhelming, and you have this wonderful experience. In the film, you can see all the specifics of all these character's lives. The camera directs your eye to what it wants you to see. It can be more direct with the interaction between people. You're drawn in [to something] you simply can't be on stage. [Columbus] focuses more on the lives of the people in the story with the music. There is no question to me that Jonathan would be proud of it. We made changes, but we always tried to keep him in mind. It's a different medium, and there are different ways to tell a story. Frankly, [the film] had an opportunity to clarify some stories that were cloudy or muddy.

JC: Are there big differences between the film and show or just subtleties?
AR: There are new scenes between characters to clarify relationships between Roger and Mark. There's new moment between Maureen and Joanne to clarify their relationship. We see Angel become ill [from AIDS], his descent, in a way you can't see it on stage. You have a close-up on him with lesions. Those kinds of things set up reality and bring you closer to it. I'm incredibly proud of it. What's exciting to me is that it really feels like a movie. It's its own entity. I got to talk to some people from an interview I did this morning, and some saw the play and some didn't. They were blown away from the movie. It wasn't just lip service.

JC: Moving on, would you classify yourself as an actor who sings, or a singer who acts?
AR: An actor who sings, and I love to sing, and I'm glad I sing. I have a band called AlbinoKid. I love singing, and I love acting, and "Rent" was just an incredible way to do both.

JC: You juggle between theater and film ("A Beautiful Mind" and "School Ties" to name two). Do you have a preference?
AR: I really prefer theater. It's a more rewarding work. If film experiences could be as rewarding and collaborative as "Rent," I'd be happy to do more films. I'm been very lucky so far. There's something that happens on stage that can't happen on film. It's also a community. It's all about community and connecting.

JC: You seem to favor darker works and/or off the beaten track stuff...
AR: Yeah. [Laughs] I like to explore things that are more unconventional. I love playing characters that are twisted or screwed up.

JC: Lastly, you've really come full circle with "Rent." What are your thoughts about it?
AR: It will always be part of my life, and be the most defining moment of my life and I have no problem with that.

Anthony Rapp has various projects in the works. He has several independent films in the can, and is attached to two musicals: "Feeling Electric" and "Pretty Dead Bulb." He'll also appear in a special tenth year anniversary concert of "Rent" in Manhattan in April 2006.
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