Broadway Fans will surely recognize Adam Pascal, as will many movie-goers.
Pascal is probably best known for playing Roger in the original production of Rent on Broadway, which was in 1996, and then reprising the role in the film version of Rent, which came out in 2005. He also originated Radames in Aida by Elton John and Tim Rice and played the Emcee in Cabaret‘s 1998 revival. He also played William Shakespeare in Something Rotten!
More about Pascal:
Pascal’s most recent Broadway role was in Pretty Woman, playing the same part he has played multiple times on tour. He plays Edward Lewis (the Richard Gere character from the film).
Additional roles include:
- Chad in Disaster
- Billy Flynn in Chicago
- Huey Calhoun in Memphis
Pascal’s performance in Rent earned him a Tony nomination for Best Actor. He also won Drama League and Obie Awards for the role.
The role has stayed with him throughout his career. For example, he played Roger in the West End premiere of the play, too. When the movie came out in 2005, he reprised his role as Roger. The last time he played the part was in 2009 in “Rent the Broadway Tour.” More recently, he had a cameo in Tick Tick…BOOM!, the musical about Rent‘s late author, Jonathan Larson.
Here’s a clip of the original cast, including Pascal and Anthony Rapp:
Movie Roles
Pascal’s first film role was in SLC Punk! in 1998. He was Theo in School of Rock (2003)–remember the lead singer of No Vacancy, Jack Black’s band that kicked him out? That’s him.
Additionally:
- He was in one episode of Cold Case in 2006
- He also voiced a character in one episode of the children’s show Backyardigans
- He was in 2 episodes of Hawkeye in 2021
- He was in Wild About Harry, Goyband, Submissions Only, Tales of Halloween, and a few other movies
Directing Rent in Long Island
If you want to see Adam Driver’s production of Rent, you’ll need to get to get to Long Island for their From Stage to Screen series. The play will run for one weekend: July 28-30, 2023.
You can get updates about the production from the Facebook page for From Stage to Screen.
That’s where they announced Pascal as director. They shared the following details:
From Stage to Screen is very proud to announce –
For immediate release –
RENT auditions.
Directed by original Broadway cast member
(Roger) Adam Pascal.
We know. That’s amazing.
And we couldn’t be more excited.
Prepare 16-32 bars of you singing a song in the style of the show.
Or from the show.
Please submit by May 31 to fromstagetoscreen4@gmail.com
Callback week on June 1. Rehearsals start week of
June 5.
Rehearsals are 3 days a week. Including Sunday evenings
Show is July 28-30
on Long Island
This is going to be epic
–From Screen to Stage
Audition videos are now being accepted (as of May 26)
