The show tells the story of a group of impoverished young artists trying to get by in New York amid the AIDS epidemic, and rehearsals start at the end of the month.

Jack Daintith, who appeared in both Legally Blonde and The Little Mermaid last year, said it would feature a number of familiar faces from past OTC productions.

“It’s going to be a good cast, there’s a lot of experience and a lot of people who have done a show with the theatre company,” he said.

A number of cast members have even appeared in other renditions of the musical – David Smythe and Joel Beldham appeared in That Other Theatre Company’s production a number of years ago and Nick Tarpey performed for another company outside Orange.

Mr Tarpey will play Mark Cohen, the main lead and the show’s narrator.

“He’s an aspiring filmmaker, director and a very poor artist,” he said. 

Mr Beldham will play Angel Dumott Schunard, a drag queen who insists on being referred to as “she” while in drag.

“It’s terrifying, I’ve never done anything like this before – I’m really nervous about dancing in heels,” he said. 

For Mr Smythe, it will be his second appearance as Tom Collins.

“He actually has a job – he runs into a bit of misfortune, but he learns to love,” he said.

Mr Daintith will play Benjamin "Benny" Coffin III.

“He’s pretty stuck up – basically he’s after the characters to pay off their rent,” he said. 

Director Sam Fuda said he volunteered to direct the production because of its focus on friendship.

“Friendship and love are always there, it’s just you either accept it or you don’t,” he said.

The production will only be staged at Orange Civic Theatre from Thursday, May 23 until Sunday, May 26, not the usual two-week run, to encourage bigger audiences. 

Tickets are available through Ticketek online or at the box office.

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