Gaten Matarazzo To Make West End Debut In 30th Anniversary Revival Of Rent

Gaten Matarazzo will make his West End debut as Mark Cohen in a new revival of Rent, set to open at London’s Duke of York’s Theatre in September.

The Stranger Things star will lead the 30th anniversary production of Jonathan Larson’s landmark rock musical, which returns to the West End in a new staging directed by Luke Sheppard. Further casting is still to be announced, including the roles of Roger Davis, Maureen Johnson, Joanne Jefferson, Tom Collins, Angel Dumott Schunard, Mimi Marquez and Benjamin “Benny” Coffin III.

Matarazzo is best known to screen audiences for playing Dustin Henderson in Netflix’s global hit Stranger Things. He has also built a strong theatre résumé, appearing on Broadway as Tobias in the recent revival of Sweeney Todd and as Jared Kleinman in Dear Evan Hansen.

Created by Jonathan Larson, Rent follows a group of young artists living in New York’s East Village as they navigate creativity, love, friendship, poverty and the impact of HIV/AIDS. The musical features songs including Seasons of Loveand La Vie Boheme.

Larson died unexpectedly from an aortic dissection in 1996, the night before the show’s first off-Broadway performance. Rent transferred to Broadway later that year, becoming a defining musical of the decade and running for 12 years. The show made its West End debut in 1998 and has since returned to London stages in several revivals.

The new production will be helmed by Sheppard, whose credits include & Juliet and the Olivier Award-winning Paddington. He previously staged Rent at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre in 2020, during the pandemic, with a socially distanced audience.

Producers Chris Harper and Sonia Friedman are behind the upcoming revival, which is being positioned as both a celebration of the musical’s legacy and a fresh reimagining for contemporary audiences.

The 30th anniversary West End revival of Rent begins performances at the Duke of York’s Theatre in September.

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