DISGRUNTLED ‘RENTER’

Unlike the 44-year-old roofer and his wife from La Jolla, this 46-year-old lawyer from Newport Beach never thought for one moment that I might be “offended, denigrated or made to feel un-hip” by “Rent” when I saw it at the La Jolla Playhouse (“How ‘Rent’ Ate Up the Road,” by Patrick Pacheco, Sept. 21).

If I had any “fear” of seeing the play, it was that I would not be able to identify with the characters or the playwright’s message and that the music would not be to my liking. Unfortunately, my fear was realized on all three counts and I still consider myself “hip,” thank you!

In the genre of rock musicals, “Rent” cannot begin to rival “Hair.” Even “Tommy” was better. The truth is that I fell victim to the “savvy marketing strategy” of “Rent.”

LEWIS JANOWSKY

Newport Beach