05/12/2026
It was such a weird feeling being home so early on a Monday night. The final pieces of the set and props were placed into storage, officially bringing RENT to a close for me. At least this production of it.
The truth is, RENT will always live within me, but after this experience, it will forever sit at the forefront of my heart.
When I first started this passion project nearly a year ago, I’ll admit there were moments where I questioned whether I had taken on more than I could handle. There were voices in my head reminding me of the doubts people had when I first started this group, and I wondered if I could truly pull this off. But I also knew it was now or never for this show, so I kept going.
As auditions began to fill, I questioned again whether we’d be able to piece together a cast capable of telling this story and delivering these vocals to the standard I hoped for, especially knowing the legions of “Rent-heads” who would come to see it. But with the help of my incredible production team, we assembled a company made up of both familiar faces and performers I had never worked with before, and together they created something truly special.
Week after week, I watched this cast grow closer. The bond that formed within this group was unlike anything I’ve witnessed before. The road was difficult and definitely bumpy at times, but together we stayed the course and made it to our destination: a completely sold-out run.
Thank you Ash, Mark, Carolyn, Rose, and Paul for believing in this vision and going above and beyond anything I could have expected.
And to my RENT cast: thank you for trusting me and taking this journey with me. There were times when it may have looked like I wasn’t reacting much, but the truth is I was often just sitting there in awe of the growth happening in front of me.
Every stressful moment became worth it the second those lights came up each night to immediate standing ovations.
I truly hope our paths cross again someday. Please know that each of you now holds a special place in my soul.
Thank you for sharing your talents, your hearts, and yourselves with this production.
Until we meet again.
Ed
(I removed the pic I had for I was tired of being trolled by the anti-AI movement even though I was not using it to promote a show or using it in a show but was using just to show my post show state with my dog, sorry if I offended anyone but c'mon, it was a personal post)
