Crystal Lucas-Perry, A.J. Shively, Sidney DuPont, More to Perform Rent in Concert

Rent in Concert, directed by Sammi Cannold and conducted by Sarah Hicks, will be presented January 18, 2025, at 7:30 PM at the Lied Center for Performing Arts in Lincoln, Nebraska.

The symphonic concert evening, celebrating Jonathan Larson’s groundbreaking, Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, will feature Lincoln's Symphony Orchestra.

The cast will be led by Tony Award A.J. Shively (Paradise Square) singing the role of Mark, Tony nominee Crystal Lucas-Perry (Ain’t No Mo’, 1776) singing Joanne, Tony nominee Sidney DuPont (Paradise Square) singing Collins, America's Got Talent finalist Jimmie Herrod singing Angel, Mary Kate Moore (Into the Woods) singing Maureen, Ruchir Khazanchi singing Benny, Will Hastreiter singing Roger, and Isa Gott singing Mimi.

The ensemble will be rounded out by Elise Anderson, Evan Jennings, Quinlyn Hunt, and Samara Follette, who recently represented Nebraska at the 2024 Jimmy Awards.

Director Cannold said in a statement, “The Rent in Concert team and I are thrilled and honored to be bringing our production to Lincoln. Working at the Lied and with the Lincoln Symphony is especially meaningful to me personally as half of my family lives in Nebraska, and I’m endlessly excited to share this production with them and Nebraska audiences. Moreover, we’re so fortunate to be joined by an incredible company of Tony nominees, Broadway veterans, and extraordinary emerging Nebraska talent. I hope you’ll join us at the Lied this January!"

Directed by Michael Greif, Rent opened at Broadway's Nederlander Theatre April 29, 1996, following previews that began April 16. The musical received 10 1996 Tony nominations, subsequently winning four, including Best Musical. Larson's work also won the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. After 16 previews and 5,123 regular performances, the production played its final show September 7, 2008.

Set in Manhattan in the 1990s and inspired by Puccini’s opera La Bohème, the hit musical follows a group of young East Village artists, performers, and philosophers as they struggle through the hardships of poverty, societal discord, and the AIDS epidemic in the search for life, love, and art.

With a book, music, and lyrics by Larson, symphonic orchestrations by Sean O’Loughlin, and casting by Peter Dunn, Rent in Concert is created and produced by AMP Worldwide and licensed by Music Theatre International.

The world premiere symphonic concert adaptation of the late Larson's rock opera premiered in July 2023 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, directed by Cannold.

Click here for ticket information.