Seattle / Rent

Last Wednesday, Kristina, my step-sister Katie, and myself drove to Seattle to see the musical Rent. This was my first trip back to Seattle after leaving quickly in the form of an exodus over seven years, and it's interesting to not only think about what seven years has done to me, but to think about what life was like before I left.

We left Vancouver very early because Seattle is notorious for traffic, but oddly enough there was no traffic and we arrived in Seattle 2 and a half hours early. This gave us a great opportunity to enjoy downtown Seattle. We walked down to Pike Street Market and for the first time in my life I saw in person the fish market where they throw the fish. Talk about cool! I don't know what the thrill is, but for some reason seeing giant fish fly through the air is oddly fascinating. After that, we enjoyed the many shops in Pike Street Market, and the millions of Starbucks in downtown (one on every city block)!

Now, traveling to the Paramount Theater to see Rent was interesting, because while living in Seattle I saw several rock bands there, Megadeth and Joe Satriani, so the memories of the Paramount continue on because of this trip. Moving on to Rent, this was our first time seeing the musical, as we we had only seen and heard Rent through the movie and the movie's soundtrack. We were totally blown away by how much more there was in the musical that didn't make the movie, and it further amazed us that one man, Jonathan Larson, was able to write all of the music and lyrics. AMAZING!

I thoroughly enjoyed Rent. The visual imagery, the music, the passion of every one on stage, and the musical's ability to inspire people to live for today is addicting, and it left me wanting more. After having some time to reflect upon the experience, here are several of my thoughts.

The passion of the singers, the musicians and the story is inspiring and addicting. It makes me long to be that passionate about the songs that are in my heart, about the art that I see in my mind, and the life that I am daily living. I can't help but think the question, how would our churches be transformed if we were this passionate about the music, the drama, the arts, the Bible, relationships, living life as if it were our last day?

There was a scene in the musical that wasn't in the movie and it is right before Angel dies. The scene is very visual and suggestive of the sexual lifestyle that the characters were a part of. It shows the main characters beneath a sheet trying to break through, while around them the ensemble cast are grinding one another and Angel slowly rises up from the confusion as it continues. Not expecting this scene, I was a little embarrassed at first because it is highly suggestive, but the more I think about the scene, the more I realize how insightful it is because I think it actually shows the pain that the characters fill inside and how they want to break free from the torment and pain that they are living in. It then goes on to suggest that death (Angel rising) is the only way to truly escape the pain and be released. This scene really sticks in my head, and not because of the sex, but the portrayal of the pain that people truly live with.

What I appreciate most about Rent is that it is a story about people, relationships, and living life each day. Yes, it does have various immoral elements which unfortunately pushes people away from wanting to see this musical, but there is an amazing beauty in this musical that shines a compassionate light on the pain that people are living with and the ways that their lives change as they face the struggles in life instead of running away.

Truth be told, I was blind-sided by this story and this music. I didn't expect any of it to be that good. I expected it to be a celebration of all the things that a Christian is against, but instead I feel the words of Christ come alive within me when I think about how I should respond. With love and compassion.