Behind The Scenes Of Rent

The Pulitzer Prize winning show Rent is in town. See what it's like behind the scenes the day of a production.

Tuesday, March 11th 2008, 5:11 pm

By: News On 6


It's been a busy season for the Tulsa Performing Arts Center.

"We've had a very good year. It did include Annie last week. We had sold out houses all week for that, which is always fun and creates a lot of energy around the building," said John Scott, Director of the Performing Arts Center.

With the Pulitzer Prize winning show Rent in town, NewsOn6.com wanted to see what it's like behind the scenes the day of a production.

"The actual two and a half hours of the show is the most peaceful part of the whole day," said Ryan Gibbs, production stage manager.

The Company has been hard at work since 8 a.m. in order to put the show on at 7:30 Tuesday tonight. They said they'll probably take a dinner break at 5:00 then do it all again on Wednesday.
It's interesting to note the only thing the company depends on from the PAC is basically electricity.

"Rent is one show that's a little different in that the stage is filled with set pieces and props and scenery and it also includes the band that plays on stage where most of the time the band is in the pit," said John Scott, Director of the PAC.

That freed up space where the band would usually set up, allows more room for the audience. In fact, seats in the first two rows will be sold for $20 on a first come first serve basis the night of each performance.

The crew lives on the road nine months of the year. You would think it would take a toll after a while. But, the crew says it's like one big family road trip.

"It's like a family. Imagine if you took the forty people you work with and lived on two buses with them nine months. It gets like a family. You bicker like a family and you love like a family," said Ryan Gibbs, production stage manager.

Keep in mind the show is not necessarily family oriented. It's meant for a mature audience. It deals with AIDS and drug use and overcoming these difficult issues.

"I think people are used to what the story is about and are accepting of it for the most part and I hope we'll have a full house tonight and tomorrow night," said Scott.
Sounds like fun.

By Margaret Stokes, NewsOn6.com anchor/reporter and Kyle Dierking, Video Journalist. Find more of their stories in our Web Exclusives section.

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