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Mimi, Roger, Collins, Angel, and April (Roger's Girlfriend who committed suicide)To the general public, the terms HIV and AIDS are interchangeable despite the difference between them. AIDS is - very basically put - the final stage of HIV.While we know that all of the above characters are HIV+, the only characters we know who have full blown AIDS during the course of the film for sure are Angel and Collins.It's fair to assume that by the end of the film Mimi also has full blown AIDS but it's not concrete as it's never explored.It is unknown whether or not Roger and April have/had full blown AIDS, and it may be fair to assume that April didn't because she killed herself after finding out about her HIV+ status and probably wouldn't have had the time to progress to full blown AIDS before her death.In the stage production of RENT, Collins and Angel refer to themselves as having AIDS, but it may be because of the interchangeable nature of the terms (as mentioned above) so it's not concrete enough to say that Collins does in fact have AIDS. The same goes for April's note to Roger ("We've got AIDS") that is also mentioned in the stage production.
Angel dies, most likely of AIDS-related complications. In the musical, he simply dies and we see his funeral. In the movie, he's shown with Kaposi's sarcoma, a form of cancer very common in AIDS+ people.
Maureen is bisexual/lesbian, Joanne is a lesbian, Collins is gay, and Angel is a gay transvestite.
Anthony Rapp (Mark) is bisexual. In his autobiography, "Without You", he states he likes both men and women, though he prefers men. He goes by the term 'queer.'However, in a recent interview, he has stated that he is openly gay.
All of the 8 main characters were a part of the OBC except for Tracie Thoms and Rosario Dawson. Fredi Walker originally played Joanne and Daphne Rubin-Vega originally played Mimi on Broadway. The reason Daphne Rubin-Vega didn't take up her role was because she was pregnant, and much older than the nineteen-year-old Mimi. Fredi Walker didn't because she was (by her own admission) too old to play Joanne. It should be noted, that in interviews, by her own admission Daphne Rubin-Vega has said in the past that she was offered the role of Mimi and then dropped by the studio with no explanation as to why.
Nobody really knows. However, in both the show and the film, Angel's first appearance is out of drag - not usual for someone who is actually transgendered. Several people involved with the musical production, however - including Wilson Heredia, the original Broadway Angel and also Angel in the film - have referred to Angel quite simply as a "drag queen."
This is a common question. In the movie it is not specified how she died other than the paper that said she has AIDS. Now in the play, Mark specifically states during the number 'Tune Up #3' that "[Roger's] girlfriend April left a note saying 'we've got AIDS' before slitting her wrists in the bathroom.'
This is a common question. Before the time-frame of the film, Mimi and Benny have a relationship. In the musical, it was three months prior to RENT, and in the movie it is two years prior to RENT. This causes speculation as to whether their relationship prior to the movie can be classed as an affair, however on stage it is almost definite that Benny was cheating on his wife with Mimi three months prior to the beginning of the show.Whether or not Mimi and Benny had an affair during the course of the film, however, is open to debate. There is a deleted scene where Benny tells Roger he only wanted to be there for Mimi as a friend. In the finale scene, Mimi also says "Benny wasn't any-", which suggests that they didn't have an affair. However, nothing is conclusive enough to say for sure.
Mark's camera is a 16mm Bolex. Although he is shown talking to his camera at several points, it does not actually record sound.
This may seem odd but there has been speculation that Benny might have killed himself at the end of the movie. No, Benny didn't die.
Sarah Silverman plays Alexi Darling, the woman who offers Mark a job at Buzzline shortly following the New Year's scene.
(Answer taken from lunalee27's post on the boards) Considering a millenium is 1,000 years, 11 years is pretty close to the end. Also, ends don't have to mean the exact end point. If today's April 26th, it's the end of the month even though there are still 4 more days until April 30th.(added by MySweetZoi) Also, there is no specific year given in the show. Mark simply says "December 24, 9 PM, Eastern Standard Time." However, based on other references in the show - Pee Wee Herman and Thelma and Louise, for example - it's likely that the actual original timeline is somewhere in the early to mid-90's - the last decade out of one hundred decades in a millennium.
He says something like, "This egg needs some salt." This is a Spanish idiom. He was talking about Mark, and was saying Mark needed a girlfriend. (To put it nicely.)
This has been asked a lot lately. "La Vie Boheme" means "The Bohemian Life". "Viva la vie boheme" means "Long live the bohemian life.""La Vie Boheme" means 'Bohemian Life'. To explain it better it a 'Bohemian' is a free-spirited person or group. 1) A loose description of a Bohemian is a group of Gypsies, Vagabonds or Wanderers. 2) The dictionary describes them as a people (as a writer or an artist) living an unconventional life usually in a colony with others.The show is roughly based on the opera La Bohème, by Giacomo Puccini.
The characters are spelled as follows:Mark Cohen,Mimi Marquez,Roger Davis,Angel Dumott Schunard,Tom Collins,Maureen Johnson,Joanne Jefferson,andBenjamin Coffin III (Benny).
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