Markki Stroem’s passion for the musical ‘Rent’ led him to bend the rules during his recent audition, much to the amusement of the show’s casting directors, Robbie Guevara and Santi Santamaria.
In a media roundtable for the upcoming 9 Works Theatrical musical on March 12, Santamaria revealed that there was one rule for the auditionees: do not sing any songs from ‘Rent.’
Guevara revealed that among those who auditioned, Stroem “was the only one who broke the rules.”
The Filipino-Norwegian singer, who auditioned and got the part for Benny, admitted he already planned on breaking the rule.
Giggling, he said, “I came in, and I was like, I’m going to sing ‘You’ll See.’”
The musical theatre actor added, “I know I broke the rule, but I just have to do it just in case I do not make it into the next round.”
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Life-long desire to play Benny, Collins
His reasoning stemmed from a life-long connection to “Rent,” and his desire to portray Benny.
“Actually, the main reason why I really want to do Benny was because when I watched ‘Rent’ the movie back in 2005 that is when I said, ‘I want to do theatre for the rest of my life.’ I fell in love with it, and the one that really resonated with me was ‘You’ll See’ by Benny.”
He further elaborated on his interpretation of Benny, a character often perceived as the antagonist.
“There was something about Benny that was very robotic. I mean that is what he basically stands for, and I want to give him like a little redemption arc. That is the reason why I want Benny because I want to give him the time to shine among his friends, and to actually have time for the audience to really fall in love with all of the characters in the show, and not just hate on that one ‘bad guy.'”
It was also Stroem’s dream to play Tom Collins, which he got. He alters the character together with Garrett Bolden.
“I’ve always wanted Benny, and I also always wanted to play Collins. Those are the two roles that I really want to sink my teeth in, because one is very outspoken and straightforward, while the other one is full of heart, full of love, and is partially what ‘Rent’ is about.”
‘Rent’ is a rock musical by Jonathan Larson. It is based on Puccini’s ‘La Bohème,’ and tells the story of a group of young artists trying to survive in Lower Manhattan amid the spread of HIV/AIDS.
9 Works Theatrical is already selling tickets starting at P2,000. The showing will be from April until June.
