In the wake of the Government announcement delaying step four of the roadmap Leicester Curve has made ‘the difficult decision’ to postpone its Made at Curve production of Rent: The Concert.
Although the special concert version of Jonathan Larson’s rock musical Rent was not due to debut in Leicester until August, a statement released by Curve cited concerns that there may be further delays to lifting of restrictions on full capacity theatre performances.
Confirming the postponement of the production which will be directed by artistic director Nikolai Foster, the statement from Foster and Curve chief executive Chris Stafford read: “Following Monday’s Government announcement on the extension of the roadmap, we have made the difficult decision to postpone our Made at Curve concert production of Jonathan Larson’s Rent.
“Although it’s hoped we will be able to operate at full capacity by August, with such uncertainty we do not feel it’s in the best interests for the theatre to take the risk of committing finances and resources predicated on a date that may change. We realise this news will disappoint our audiences, but rest assured we will do everything we can to bring this incredible musical to Curve in the future…
“Like all theatres, we have a long road to recovery ahead of us, and now more than ever we need audiences to continue to support Curve and book tickets for future performances. We promise your visit to Curve will be as safe as possible and we have invested in a number of measures across the building to ensure everyone visiting and working in our theatre is safe.
“We would like to thank everyone who has supported our reopening, in particular our fabulous audiences, Leicester City Council, Arts Council England and the DCMS Culture Recovery Fund.
“Finally, our thoughts are with our incredible Rent company and everyone in our industry who has been affected by the latest news.”
The innovative concert production had due been due to be staged in the round in Curve’s specially adapted auditorium from 10 to 21 August, just over a month after Curve had planned to fully reopen on 1 July.
Announcing the production in April this year, Foster and Stafford said: “As we emerge from this pandemic, it feels timely to reflect on the resilience and courage which defined the lives of so many during the 1980s HIV/AIDS pandemic. Jonathan Larson’s astonishing Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent represents one of musical theatre’s greatest triumphs, defining an entire era through its blazing music and iconic characters. It is simply one of the greats and we are thrilled to present it in a staged concert at Curve, in our epic, in-the-round arena. Celebrating community, the exhilarating joy of music, the power of artists and the sheer life force of young people, we are looking forward to literally raising the roof this summer at Curve.”
Inspired by Puccini’s opera La Bohème, Larson’s critically-acclaimed work won four Tony Awards, six Drama Desk Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1996. The rock musical boasts a book, music and lyrics by Larson, with musical arrangements by Steve Skinner, original concept and additional lyrics by Billy Aronson, music supervision and additional arrangements by Tim Weil and Lynn Thomson as dramaturg. Rent was originally produced in New York by New York Theatre Workshop.
Curve welcomed audiences back from 20 May with a socially distanced season including the Made At Curve concert The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber. Also directed by Foster, the spectacular production featured a pre-recorded video contribution from Lloyd Webber along with performances of the musical theatre maestro’s best-loved songs. The concert featured Madalena Alberto (Evita, Dominion Theatre), Jessica Daley (An Officer and a Gentleman, Curve and UK tour, Over The Rainbow, BBC), Tim Howar (The Phantom of the Opera, Her Majesty’s Theatre), Shem Omari James (Songs For A New World, London Palladium), Ria Jones (Sunset Boulevard, Curve), Karen Mavundukure (The Color Purple, Curve) and Tim Rogers (Jesus Christ Superstar, UK and European tour).
Angela Thomas
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