Watch Anthony Rapp Discuss Rent & Without You in This Extended Broadway Show Interview

Anthony Rapp, who is known for originating the role of filmmaker Mark Cohen in Jonathan Larson's Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent, is back on the New York stage. He is starring in in Without You, a solo musical adapted from his memoir of the same name. In an interview for The Broadway Show, Rapp sat down with Tamsen Fadal to talk about telling his story in the production, which is playing at New World Stages through April 30. Here is an extended version of their conversation.

It's been a whirlwind few weeks for Rapp, who welcomed his first child with partner Ken Ithiphol on December 2, 2022. The baby's middle name is Larson, and both the Rent creator and Rapp's mother are fixtures in his solo show. "One of the things in anticipation of having Rai was knowing that my mom wouldn't get to meet him. Being in the show, I'm channeling her," he said. "It's been really comforting."

"I didn't think it would be an international phenomenon," Rapp said about Rent, which first bowed on Broadway 27 years ago. "But I did think from the first day of rehearsal that it was something really, really special. Wilson Jermaine Heredia, the original Angel, came to my first preview. As he was out there, I'm talking about the things that happened when we were in the room together. I did wonder, 'Is this too much for him? Is it gonna be hard?' He was very moved by it and felt like I told the truth about it. That was very gratifying to hear."

Watch the extended interview below and head here to check your local listings for The Broadway Show. Hosted by Emmy winner Tamsen Fadal, it is the only nationally syndicated weekly theater news program.