FOX has announced the full cast for the upcoming live musical event RENT, airing Sunday, Jan. 27, 2019 (7:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed).
Actress Kiersey Clemons (“Hearts Beat Loud”), Emmy nominee and Tony Award winner Brandon Victor Dixon (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert”), singer/songwriter Jordan Fisher (“Hamilton,” 2017 winner of “Dancing with the Stars”), actress and singer Vanessa Hudgens (“Second Act,” “Grease: Live”), newcomer and singer/songwriter Brennin Hunt (“Nashville”), R&B/Pop superstar Mario (EMPIRE), recording artist Tinashe (“Dancing with the Stars”) and performer Valentina (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”) are set to star in the highly anticipated live musical event. Additionally, Keala Settle will perform the iconic solo from “Seasons of Love” and join the ensemble in the live musical.
The groundbreaking, Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical is a re-imagining of Puccini’s “La Bohème,” and set in New York City’s gritty East Village. “Rent” tells the unforgettable story of seven artists struggling to follow their dreams during a time of great social and political turmoil. Winner of four Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize, writer/composer Jonathan Larson’s tour de force continues to offer an inspiring message of hope and friendship.
Below is a cast breakdown:
Kiersey Clemons as JOANNE JEFFERSON, Maureen’s girlfriend and an Ivy League-educated lawyer.
Brandon Victor Dixon as TOM COLLINS, the computer scientist who returns to New York after being expelled from MIT.
Jordan Fisher as MARK COHEN, an aspiring filmmaker, who serves as the show’s narrator, while filming the lives of his friends.
Vanessa Hudgens as MAUREEN JOHNSON, the outgoing performance artist who’s not afraid to take on the establishment.
Brennin Hunt as ROGER DAVIS, a struggling musician and Mark’s roommate and best friend.
Mario as BENJAMIN COFFIN III, Mark and Roger’s former roommate-turned-landlord, who is after their rent.
Tinashe as MIMI MARQUEZ, the dancer who struggles with addiction.
Valentina as ANGEL DUMONT SCHUNARD, a young drag queen and street percussionist who embraces life and lives it to its fullest.
The television adaptation will be broadcast from the historic Fox Studios in Los Angeles. Acclaimed film, television and theater producer Marc Platt (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert,” “Grease: Live,” “La La Land,” “Wicked”), along with the estate of writer/composer Jonathan Larson, will executive-produce the event. Tony Award-nominated director Michael Greif (“Dear Evan Hansen,” “Rent”), who directed the original New York Theatre Workshop and Broadway productions of “Rent,” is the director overseeing the stage direction; and Alex Rudzinski (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert,” “Grease: Live,” “Dancing with the Stars”) will serve as the live television director.
“Rent” originally was produced in New York by New York Theatre Workshop and on Broadway by Jeffrey Seller, Kevin McCollum, Allan S. Gordon and New York Theatre Workshop.
