Open Fields presents Rent; School Edition!

Jonathan Larson’s Tony Award winning musical, RENT, will be performed by the talented teenagers of Open Fields Community Theater. Under the direction of Keith Greenfield and trained by Adam Kantor, the show’s Broadway star, the cast is thrilled to present this touching and topical story to local audiences. In honoring a long standing tradition that started with Jonathan Larson who felt that it was so important to enable the young, artistic community about which RENT was written to afford to attend performances, all college students with ID, will be sold tickets in the first two rows of the theater for $10 on a first come, first served basis while supplies last for all shows. All other tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students. Performances will be held at The Casey Theatre at Regis College in Weston on November 22nd at 2:00, and November 27th and 28th at 2:00 and 7:30. Tickets are available at www.open-fields.org.

Much like the story they’re telling, the road to performing Jonathan Larson’s RENT has been filled with hardships and joy for the cast of local teenagers.
Open Fields Community Theater’s founder and director, Keith Greenfield, chose this sensitive show as a vehicle for the older kids of the company to show their maturity and sense of community. “Most of the kids in this show have performed together over the course of years. Not only have they become veterans of the stage, but they have become as close as siblings. This show can only be performed well if the actors have this kind of a bond. They have to trust each other, just like their characters do in the script,” says Greenfield.

Greenfield knew that the sensitive topics within the show might make the journey to performance a difficult one. But he didn’t foresee all of the obstacles that ultimately delayed production for months. “Originally, we had planned to perform last year, but we were unable to get the rights to the show because the RENT touring company was coming through Boston. After that delay, we were unable to find a place to perform. We were finally blessed by the help of Adam Kantor.”

Adam Kantor starred as “Mark Cohen” in Broadway’s final RENT cast. The actor was introduced to Greenfield by the family of a cast member. Kantor helped Open Fields secure the rights to perform the show, but his commitment to the group did not end there. Kantor traveled from New York City to Dover for a weekend of hands-on work with the teenage cast. “We couldn’t believe that ‘the real Mark’ was coming to work with us! This has always been my favorite show. I’ve seen it six times, and now I get to work with its’ star!!” said Page Hamilton, a Sherborn 12th grader playing Mrs. Cohen. Kantor helped the kids determine character motivation, helped them polish up lines, and offered them insight and background into the show’s message of love and friendship.
Kantor returned to Dover for yet another weekend with the cast, and this time, he expanded his theatrical contributions. He and a number of his young Broadway colleagues have founded “Broadway in South Africa,” a non-profit bringing arts education to underprivileged youth in this AIDS-ridden country. Not only did he and his fellow actors work with the RENT cast once again, but they held a series of workshops for kids of all ages as a fundraiser for the charity. “We are delighted that this collaboration will bring about so much good. Our young cast not only gets to work with the best in the business, but they get to see that with talent there is responsibility to share and give. The message lives in our mission at Open Fields, within Jonathan Larson’s script, and in Adam and his wonderful friends,” said Greenfield.

RENT: School Edition will be performed at The Casey Theatre at Regis College in Weston on November 22nd at 2:00, and November 27th and 28th at 2:00 and 7:30. In honoring a long standing tradition that started with Jonathan Larson who felt that it was so important to enable the young, artistic community about which RENT was written to afford to attend performances, all college students with ID, will be sold tickets in the first two rows of the theater for $10 on a first come, first served basis while supplies last for all shows. All other tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students, and are available at www.open-fields.org

Written by Carol Hamilton (Open Fields Community Theater)