CONTROVERSY FOR `RENT'.Byline: Paul Hodgins Orange County Register ``Rent'' stars Neil Patrick Harris Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an Emmy-nominated American actor. He is known for his television roles as the teenage doctor Doogie Howser, M.D. and the womanizing Barney Stinson in How I Met Your Mother. and Wilson Cruz willingly admit they're not exactly musical-theater veterans. ``This is my first musical,'' Harris said. ``Well, that's not exactly true. I did `Peter Pan' in a civic light opera production when I was 14. I was John Darling. I wore a top hat and got to fly, thank you very much.'' The precocious star of ``Doogie Howser, M.D.'' plays Mark, the story's filmmaker wanna-be and unofficial narrator NARRATOR. A pleader who draws narrs serviens narrator, a sergeant at law. Fleta, 1. 2, c. 37. Obsolete. , in the West Coast premiere production of the Broadway hit, now at the La Jolla Playhouse  La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre-in-residence on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. . (``Rent'' will open a four-month engagement
at the Ahmanson Theatre in downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. The sprawling, multi-centered megacity is such that its downtown core is often considered just another district like Hollywood or on Sept. 18.)
``Musical theater was part of my studies in college, but that's about it,'' said Wilson Cruz, who plays Angel, a flamboyant, cross-dressing homosexual. Like Harris, Cruz is best-known for his TV roles. He won acclaim as Ricky, the troubled, introspective in·tro·spect intr.v. in·tro·spect·ed, in·tro·spect·ing, in·tro·spects To engage in introspection. [Latin intr teen, in the critically lauded ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. series ``My So-Called Life My So-Called Life is an American television teen drama created by Winnie Holzman and produced by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz that aired on ABC from August 25, 1994, to January 26, 1995. .'' So what drew two hot young television stars to the musical-theater stage? ``I saw (`Rent') in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of and was intrigued,'' Harris recalled. ``I thought it lived up to the hype. I wasn't blown away by it, but certainly I could see its depth and breadth. ``But what I think is so remarkable about this show is that the more I listen to it and perform in it, the more interesting I think it is. It's a lot of information thrown at you pretty quickly, and if you're unfamiliar with it, it can take all your effort to keep up. There's a lot of subtle metaphorical stuff that (director) Michael (Greif) is doing that's deep. This show keeps getting more layers - it's like an onion.'' Cruz was attracted to ``Rent'' for entirely different reasons. ``I was so amazed by the fact that there were all these people of color Noun 1. people of color - a race with skin pigmentation different from the white race (especially Blacks) people of colour, colour, color race - people who are believed to belong to the same genetic stock; "some biologists doubt that there are important on stage, and it wasn't an issue. For once we see blacks and gays and lesbians as regular people with regular issues. These relationships were about love, not how to deal with being gay or a lesbian or a transsexual trans·sex·u·al n. A person who strongly identifies with the opposite gender and who chooses to live as a member of the opposite gender or to become one by surgery. adj. 1. Of or relating to such a person. 2. . It's just about how universal those experiences are. ``Many people say `Rent' is revolutionary in the sense that it uses pop culture and current styles to address current issues,'' he said. ``But `Hair' did the same thing. So I think `Rent' definitely follows along a more traditional path than you might think at first.'' The most controversial part of ``Rent's'' story line may be its unflinchingly honest portrayal of a less-than-attractive milieu - the rough 'n' tumble world of Manhattan's seedier streets and their offbeat denizens. ``I've felt our audiences here (in La Jolla) are in a bit of shock,'' Harris said. ``I don't know, but I suspect it's because they're not used to seeing loud homeless people and a (confrontational) attitude. This isn't a La Jolla kind of setting.'' ``The problem won't be selling this show in London or Chicago, but in Peoria and Holland, Mich.,'' Cruz said. ``We're (portraying) experiences that aren't anything like what you know in your home town, if you're from a place like that. ``In a way we feel that we're educating, informing and hopefully opening minds. I like to think that's my main job in playing Angel.'' Cruz knows his role is ``Rent's'' hardest sell. ``The rough part is getting people to fall in love with this person they wouldn't necessarily understand or accept in their real life. I'm asking something really risky - to be compassionate and empathetic em·pa·thet·ic adj. Empathic. em  pa·thet i·cal·ly adv. and, finally, really adoring of this person who is a man in
woman's clothing.''
The Facts What: ``Rent,'' Jonathan Larson's Pulitzer- and Tony-winning musical. Where: Through Sept. 13 at the La Jolla Playhouse. Sept. 18-Jan. 18, 1998 at the Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. Tickets: For the La Jolla, $20 to $65; limited availability; call (619) 550-1010. For the Ahmanson, $32.50 to $70; call (213) 628-2772. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Neil Patrick Harris (``Doogie Howser, M.D.''), left, and Christian Mena in a scene from ``Rent,'' coming to the Ahmanson Theatre on Sept. 18. |
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