So mentally retarded, the title clearly says RENT, which is correct. But choosing RENT means that I am unfair to other dramas I love. CATS is an extravagant and gorgeous freehand brushwork in the world, NDP is an oil painting of 1482, and STARMANIA is an abstract painting of indifference and despair... In comparison, the RENT I love and the "New York Love Story" it narrates, It seems too...close to life. There is no distant legend, no fairy tale environment, no virtual time and space. It seems that these people and these things live by our side. Bohemia's alternative style has not washed away the true colors of life. But the seemingly "real and plain" RENT poses a real and cruel question to us, whether you are on a desert island or not: If you are driven to desperation by fate, even knowing that your life will end soon , How will you face life?
"When the world betrays you, you also betray the world", yes, this is a way, but unfortunately we can't help but deceive ourselves. After all, we can't survive without society! The other way is to be completely overthrown by a tragic fate, jumping upstairs, wiping the neck and shooting, and so on. Facing the question, Jonathan Larsen smiled faintly and answered the question with his music: living here, not elsewhere!
Speaking of the blow of fate, the heaviest thing is to get an HIV-positive diagnosis certificate, indirectly deprived of the right to life. In this moment of confusion and helplessness, everyone will sing such a confused and helpless voice:
Will I lose my dignity?
Will someone care?
Will I wake tomorrow
From this nightmare?
The members of Life Support stood up holding hands. The distant and beautiful harmonies are layered on top of each other, like a stream gradually converging into an ocean, the voice is soft but a sad and powerful questioning. Destiny, this is destiny! Such scenes are shocking and powerless. If so today, what about tomorrow? Can I wake up from the nightmare of last night? Can I escape the established fate? Can I forget the past and start life again?
The answer is yes. A glimmer of hope emerged from the mouth of a young member named Gordon. Despite the desperate situation, "I want to transcend myself and face the unknown world. Because reason told me that I should have died three years ago." At this moment, I am still alive. Isn't this a gift of fate? It is useless to complain blindly about destiny. We should not only think of future misfortunes, but ignore the vivid reality in front of us.
I don't know how to classify RENT, but from my personal point of view, it is not a tragedy. Although it does have a tragic ending (the most beloved Angel who died...it’s hard not to make tears), the attitude towards life is beyond any comedy. What is a Bohemian? The strength, arrogance and optimism in their bones kept them from bowing to the fate of nothingness. Love life, such a thing does not have to wait until tomorrow to do it, but now, here, now! Such a powerful, overwhelming belief in life, from the mouth of a terminally ill 19-year-old girl Mimi:
There is no future
There is no past
I live this moment as my last
There’s only us
There’s only this
Forget regret
Or life is yours to miss
No other road
No other way
No day but today
It is no exaggeration to say that if the selection of "the shortest and most reasonable quotes", it is none other than No day but today. If we must find some kind of "core spirit" in this drama (is Bohemia a kind of spirit? Some people don't think so), these four words are just the same. Is there a simpler creed than this? Living in the present, there is no other day, only today.
I love this kind of attitude towards life, as Angel said indifferently, "Times are shitty, but I'm pretty sure they can't get worse." And as the lovely supporting role Comrade Gordon said: "I'm a New Yorker! Fear's my life!” I appreciate the bleak fate in laughter, and when I ponder carefully, I find the merits of this kind of value: even if we see through the sorrow of life, the smallness and shortness of life, we still have to love optimistically , To live. Although Kafka said "There is unlimited hope, but it does not belong to us", hope is better than nothing. Judging from this, Jonathan Larsen has a broad-mindedness that is rare in Americans who are generally nervous. The old Americans love the happy ending, and Disney Animation is indeed a comedy (even "Notre Dame" has been changed into a comedy), saying that tragedy will affect the children's physical and mental health, and so on. Broadway dramas are different from British dramas and French dramas. They are naturally lighthearted and mostly comedies. It’s no wonder that Larsen never believed that the play could be so popular in his lifetime-a tragic musical about non-mainstream life, won the Pulitzer Prize and four Tony Awards. Apart from the charm of the music itself, there should be other reasons. Bar? Contempt for darkness, praise for life and love, and the omnipresent passion for life in the play-this is the soul of RENT.
This precious passion for life is especially strong after listening to La Vie Boheme. This is the culmination of the whole play. Bohemian young people found Benny and his father-in-law and other middle-class people as soon as they entered the restaurant. Strip the hypocrisy of the bourgeoisie, the complicated and tasteless food, the well-dressed decorations, the pretentious character, and abandon it all! Leave self-promotion, honesty, music, food, sex, movies, fashion shows, rock, politics, imagination, creation. Even in the face of poverty, disease, and despair in the future, we must shout out a strong slogan such as "Actual Reality—Act up—Fight AIDS". Even setting aside the wonderful performances of the movie version, La Vie Boheme's music is unforgettable and strong. You can feel the outburst of passion shouted out, and feel the struggle, love and tears of young artists. Poverty, disease, and misunderstood pain cannot be a reason not to love life. Love is at this moment, life is also at this moment.
The plot is unfolding, but neither Angel's passing nor Mimi's awakening is a story of great joy and sadness. A touch of sadness, a touch of joy. "I love, therefore I am" may be the belief of Bohemians, allowing them to face life calmly and persistently forever. The final Final combines the two melodies of Without You and No Day But Today. The broad-mindedness of the male voice and the tenderness of the female voice are like water, echoing and intertwined for a long time, explaining the true meaning of life with common strength and determination. Whenever I hear the end, my thoughts always wander to the beginning of the movie version of the whole show. Eight people stand under the bright spotlight, smiling, tapping the beat, and singing the famous Seasons of Love:
Five hundred twenty -five thousand six hundred minutes
Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred moments so dear
Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure-measure a year?
Life is too short, too many questions, and there are too many beautiful things in life. How to measure your life? The answer is so simple and powerful: measure with love.
Measure life with love.
I think this is what Jonathan Larsen told us with his short life of 36 years and the RENT he created for 7 years.
Light is at the feet of each of us; life is here, not elsewhere.
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