Singapore, Singapore - The National Arts Council (NAC) has decided to slap an R(A) rating on itself just three days after it slapped an R(A) rating on RENT, the musical. Apparently, numerous reports have surfaced which suggests that the RENT Decision is causing extreme trauma and discomfort amongst the tens of thousands of young people who are under 18.

   "Never in the field of human censorship was so much sadness inflicted on so many by so few." an NAC spokesperson declared.

   "Our focus groups have witnessed first hand the impact of our RENT Decision on a certain demographic of our audience, namely the young people who might not be ready to be exposed to the gay and lesbian themes depicted in RENT."

   The spokesperson continued. "We had a report of a VJC student sobbing uncontrollably for the whole of Thursday morning, simply inconsolable. It was cruel, no doubt about it. The student's 17. If she were born just one year earlier, her lifelong wish to watch RENT would have come true. Another underage student was banging his head against the wall for the whole of ten minutes after he heard the grim news.

   We have thus decided to give ourselves the R(A) rating as we feel that our decision to give RENT an R(A) rating wasn't suitable for consumption for those under 18. As a responsible public body, the NAC will do nothing less. It is our sacred honor."

   Reactions to the R(A) rating on RENT ranged from anger to extreme anger. The NAC's statement to explain the rating was that it "is unable to provide public funds for a play which contains certain themes acknowledging alternative lifestyles as an accepted way of life."

   "No sensible person goes to see RENT to become gay. He goes to see rent to become a better person, and to live a better life. The fact that gays and lesbians are represented does not take away at all the message that RENT conveys. Forgiveness, hope, love." says 25 year old George Goh.

   17 year old student James Leong who's seen RENT on Broadway says, "It's true that gays and lesbians are represented in Rent. What isn't immediately apparent is the relevance between the slapping of the ban and the objectives of the NAC. By taking away the chance for our young to go watch RENT and then deciding for themselves, we're robbing them of a valuable and precious chance to grow up. I personally think the NAC should grow up."

      Another 18 year old student Peter Tan disagreed with James. "I think the R(A) rating is a good thing. As impressionable young adults, we don't have the emotional capabilities to deal with issues of an alternative nature. We need to be protected from all sides. The R(A) rating is just simply an amazing instrument to achieve that goal. Let's face it, we're all very immature young people, and more often than not, we're quite stupid, too."

   "Now what am I going to do?" cried underage Jolene Wong. "I've already bought the tickets, really looking to the show. I could care less about the controversial themes. The musical is about life, about living the day despite overwhelming odds, carpe diem! Focusing on the other things is quite irrelevant...I just bought the CD, the music is wonderful!"

   RENT revolves around the lives of a group of young struggling artistes in the East Village of New York. It debuted on Broadway in 1996, and has won numerous awards including the Tony for Best Musical. The Singapore run is presented by the Singapore Singapore Repertory Theatre from 10 Feb to 20 Feb 2001 at the Victoria Theatre. The veteran Filipino cast is complimented by 4 Singaporean actors.

   In a report which appeared in the Straits Times, Singaporean Brendon Marc Fernandez, 21, who plays landlord Benny, says, "Jonathan Larson [RENT's creator] did something wonderful. He didn't shy away from anything. All the taboos of society, he put it on stage. Rent is really about what's going on in life."

   Fernandez was almost banned from the very musical that he's going to appear if not for the fact that he passed the underage limit by a measly 3 years.

   SRT's artistic director Mr Kripalani told the ST that the SRT had put a"'for mature audiences' warning in all its publicity, but not an R(A) rating because"'I know 17- and 18-year-olds who've seen the show in New York and it moved them so much they decided to go into theatre full-time."

   Principal Sponsor Yahoo! Singapore’s Marketing Manager Lynette Pang says in her PR release that “RENT is a life affirming musical full of energy and warmth—key qualities Yahoo! Singapore embrace..." After the ban, she told the ST that she "respected the NAC's decision" but felt that RENT "espouses courage and"raises difficult issues like AIDS and homosexuality with no glamourisation or gloss".

   DBS Bank, the patron sponsor of the SRT, said that "RENT ought to be accessible to all audiences." David Tan, DBS' manager of corporate relations told the ST that the musical "ought to be the topic of discourse and debate in newspapers, drama classes, lectures, cafes and office corridors...While corporations have been pumping more and more money into the development of the arts, the R(A) rating and the NAC's decision not to fund the musical do not augur well for Singapore's aspirations to be a Renaissance City."

   Music lover Jennifer Wong agrees. "Oh for goodness' sake, I don't think we're in a position to talk about the Renaissance at all. For all intents and purposes, we're still very much in the Dark Ages..."

Quotable Quotes

"Under 18s not allowed to watch this musical"
- National Arts Council, Singapore

"An inspiration."
-The Durian

"Reinventing Broadway."
"A raw and riveting milestone in musical theater."
-Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

"Exhilarating, landmark rock opera."
"Shimmers with hope for the future of the American musical."
-Ben Brantley, New York Times

"Sends you home believing you've experienced something like a catharsis."
"The millennium approaches, and RENT augurs well for 1996."
-Margo Jefferson, New York Times

"The breakthrough musical for the '90s."
"RENT completes a marvelously fortuitous trilogy that started with Hair and went on to A Chorus Line."
-Jack Kroll, Newsweek

"The most exuberant and original American musical to come along this decade."
-Richard Zoglin, Time

"Larson's talent has taken the audience to places where the musical never ventures these days. Go see this musical and remember his name."
-John Lahr, The New Yorker

"This decade's biggest stage sensation."
-Us Magazine

"RENT is the best show in years, if not decades."
"Points the American musical toward the future."
"The most powerful theater songs the contemporary theater has produced."
"RENT makes the musical theater joyously important again."
-Jeremy Gerard, Variety

"The best new musical since the 1950's."
-Donald Lyons, Wall Street Journal

"Full of heart, passion and wit."
-Clive Barnes, New York Post 2/14/96

"The first original breakthrough rock musical since Hair."
-Linda Winer, Newsday

"A musical theater watershed."
-Edward Karam, London Times

"A full-fledged theatrical event that, for once, actually lives up to the hype."
-Michael Kuchwara, Associated Press

"An explosion of new talent."
-Jacques le Sourd, Gannett

"RENT is irresistible."
-Dick Schaap, ABC World News Now.

"RENT soars."
-Pat Collins, WWOR-TV

"Bristling with energy and assurance, RENT roars across the stage like an urban brush fire."
-Chip Crews, Washington Post

"A scorchingly hot 90s take on Puccini's La Boheme."
"A blueprint for theater's future: a groundbreaking synthesis of rock's emotive immediacy and drama's heartrending ability to tell a story that breaks your heart, even as it makes you feel more alive."
-Christine Dolen, Miami Herald

"Brilliantly staged, powerfully performed."
-Richard Christiansen, Chicago Tribune

"The most thrilling musical to hit Broadway in 20 years."
-Terry Byrne, Boston Herald

"The unqualified leading contender for Musical of the 90s." -Robert Hurwitt, San Francisco Examiner

"RENT may well be the best new musical New York will see this season."
-Lawson Taitte, Dallas Morning News

"Larson's music is full of power, and it lingers long after the curtain call, from the belting Take Me Or Leave Me to the glorious ensemble anthem Seasons of Love."
-Elizabeth Maupin, Orlando Sentinel

"An in toxicating swirl of vibrant, theatrical rock."
-Misha Berson, Seattle Times

"RENT is riveting."
-Joan Behrmann, Detroit News

"RENT is sensational! With a huge heart and a couple of ideas about young people finding connection in a disconnected time, this musical explodes with life."
-Los Angeles Times

"RENT justifies every bit of attention that has been lavished on this phenomenal musical."
-The Chicago Tribune

"RENT crackles with energy in a Canadian production that quells all fears that RENT could not survive outside of Manhattan. An immensely energetic show that charms."
-Globe & Mail (Toronto)

"Jonathan Larson's score dazzles, the performers' relentless energy excites and the musical's positive spirit continues to move audiences to their feet."
-Washington Times

"RENT is truly remarkable - a great achievement, a work of art. Living testimony to the power that has kept theatre alive for centuries."
-Journal Newspapers (Washington)

"A rollicking, uplifting, energy-pulsing musical. RENT deserves every accolade it has received and more."
-The Washingtonian

"It's a terrific and terrifically moving show, working with a joyously versatile pop vocabulary, a soulful humanist impulse and a sense of humor."
-The San Diego Union Tribune

"A first-rate national company edition of the hit Broadway production. A gentle hopeful, engagingly irreverent, emotionally intimate work featuring an impressive and expressive young cast."
-The Chicago Reader

"Genuinely clever, witty, poignant and searing. The most exciting and engaging musical in decades."
-Toronto Star

"It's everything you've heard and more. Powerful, compassionate, thrilling."
-Toronto Sun

"Something original and exciting is underway. RENT is a triumph. The cast delivers a performance that will be remembered for years."
-Macleans (Toronto)

"Go for its nearly 30 glorious songs – the most tuneful and moving Broadway score in decades."
-Dallas Morning News

"RENT is that rare musical whose content and style are of the present rather than the past. Add the vitality of this rendition to the power of much of the writing, and RENT undeniably earns its description as a groundbreaking event."
-Houston Chronicle

11 Feb, 2001