Tonight FOX continues its annual tradition of bringing Broadway to broadcast, with a brand new, live performance of the Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical RENT. The play is a re-imagining of the Puccini opera La bohème, set in more modern times, following the lives of a group of struggling artists living in New York’s East Village during the peak of the HIV/AIDS crisis. The original Broadway production opened in 1996, and ran for 12 years, making it one of the longest-running Broadway shows. This is probably the most mature production that FOX has taken on so far, so it will be interesting to see how much they will need to change for network television—though they did manage to do Rocky Horror a couple years ago without much alteration.

The special will be directed by Alex Rudzinski (Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert, Grease: Live, Dancing with the Stars), and the star-studded cast includes actress Kiersey Clemons (The Flash, Angie Tribeca), Emmy nominee and Tony Award winner Brandon Victor Dixon (Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert, Power), singer/songwriter Jordan Fisher (Dancing with the Stars, The Secret Life of the American Teenager), actress and singer Vanessa Hudgens (High School Musical, Powerless), newcomer and singer/songwriter Brennin Hunt, R&B/Pop superstar Mario (Empire), recording artist Tinashe, and performer Valentina (RuPaul’s Drag Race). Plus there will be a “Seasons of Love” solo by Keala Settle (The Greatest Showman).

I usually enjoy these live musical productions, and this one has some memorable songs in it, so I’m looking forward to checking out tonight’s live production.

Tonight I’ll also be recording Big Brother, Supergirl, Worst Cooks in America, Crashing, Counterpart, Black Monday, and SMILF.

For additional suggestions on what to check out tonight, including NCIS: Los Angeles, check out the If We Controlled Your Remote… 1/27/19 post at TVisMyPacifier.com.