‘No day but today.’ Classic musical ‘Rent’ to bring 20th anniversary tour to Penn State
The touring production of the classic and beloved musical “Rent” is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and will stop at Penn State on Tuesday.
After appearing in “Kinky Boots” last season at Eisenhower Auditorium, Harrisburg native Kelsee Sweigard will return to the Penn State stage to perform her “dream role” in “Rent.” She’ll portray Maureen, a role she said she’s been working toward since she acquired her first musical contract at the age of 19.
The mega-hit, Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning “Rent” has graced stages since its premiere in 1996 and there’s good reason for its popularity.
“(‘Rent’) tells a story of inclusion, love and acceptance. It touches on so many themes that every single human everywhere experiences and that we should talk about more, I think,” Sweigard said. “The musical was very groundbreaking when it first premiered. ... It gave a sense of community to lots of groups that didn’t have representation on a Broadway stage before. ... It’s one of those things you gravitate toward as an artist, because it tells a true story and it tells it well.”
Sweigard finds her character Maureen relatable as an artist, and finds inspiration through Maureen’s bravery in a challenging industry.
“(Maureen is) very out there; she’s very brave. Some people might think she’s a little whacky, but she’s entirely herself. She’s 100% herself the entire time she’s on stage. You hear about her a lot throughout the show from other characters. She has very specific relationships with just about every other character in the show. Everyone has an opinion on her. She’s a big personality,” she said.
Sweigard said she loved getting to know the character through the rehearsal process and as the tour started, admiring the character’s confidence and bravery.
“She knows that she has a purpose in every single room she enters. That’s something I’ve really tried to adopt a bit more, specifically as a young woman in an art field,” Sweigard said. “I think sometimes we get so apologetic and timid whenever we come into an audition or into a circumstance where we’re with other artists or people who could potentially give us a job or representation of some sort. As an artist, I think she’s so useful to teach us that we belong and we have a purpose and we’re all unique and beautiful in our own way.”
Sweigard encourages audiences to approach the show with an open mind, touting the work’s universal themes as relatable to everyone, regardless of background, upbringing or belief system. When they do so, she says, audiences are guaranteed to have a good time.
When audiences walk away, Sweigard and her fellow cast mates hope they leave Eisenhower Auditorium with a new take on life inspired by the show’s lyrics.
“ ‘No day but today,’ ” Sweigard said. “That is a lyric that’s sung multiple times throughout the show, but it really is so poignant, because we don’t know how long we have on this earth, we don’t know how long our loved one’s have on this earth. There’s another lyric — ‘give in to love or live in fear’ — so when looking at the dichotomy of love versus fear, spend your time while we’re here loving one another, finding love, giving love and go live. ‘No day but today’ — that’s what we hope audiences take away from the show.”
Catch “Rent” for one night only at Eisenhower Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Visit cpa.psu.edu for more information.
