The UH Hilo Performing Arts Center presents RENT, a rock opera with book, music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson. Based on Puccini’s opera La Boheme, the play depicts a year in the lives of a group of young artists struggling to survive in New York during the AIDS epidemic of the 1990s. Ticket info below.
RENT is told through the eyes of Mark, an aspiring filmmaker who shares an apartment with Roger, an HIV-positive musician struggling to write one great song before he dies. The story is set in motion when their former roommate, who married rich and now owns the decrepit building in which they live, declares that they owe him rent for the past year. While they struggle to get by day-to-day, the dreams, losses and love stories of these young Bohemians are woven together. Roger falls in love with Mimi, who struggles with addiction. Their friend Collins, who teaches computer-age philosophy, meets Angel, a lovable street-percussionist drag queen. And Mark’s ex-girlfriend, Maureen, has fallen in love with a young lawyer named Joanne. AIDS touches all of these characters in one way or another, regardless of profession, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or any other way that people are typically divided and labeled.






Choreographers Celeste Staton and Kea Kapahua have put together a talented ensemble of dancers including Kailany Rhyss, Blaise Kāʻeo Cachola, Zoi Nakamura, Sharyse Molina, Miranda Jeffcoat, Stella Jamier, Sara Hayashi, Kanon Hata, Irie Taguchi, and Dustin Kneidl.
If You Go…
Due to the subject matter, RENT may not be suitable for all audiences. The show opens on April 5, 2019, and runs at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays & Saturdays April 5, 6, 12, 13, with matinees at 2:00 p.m. on Sundays, April 7 and 14. Tickets are reserved seating and priced at $20 General, $15 Discount and $10 UH Hilo/HawCC students (with a valid student ID) and children, up to age 17, pre-sale and, $25 General, $20 Discount and $15 UH Hilo/HawCC students (with a valid student ID) and children, up to age 17 at the door. Tickets are available by calling the UH Hilo Box Office at 932-7490 or ordering online at artscenter.uhh.hawaii.edu.