'Rent' star to perform solo act tonight at Buskirk-Chumley

He has released two albums, starred in three major Broadway productions, appeared in the movies "SLC Punk!" and "School of Rock" and played the role of Roger Davis in the hit movie "Rent." But tonight could prove his biggest challenge yet.\nAdam Pascal will perform an intimate solo concert for the Bloomington audience at 9 p.m. tonight at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. He has been doing a college and local venue tour, and this will be his only performance in Indiana. \nIn a telephone interview last week, Pascal explained why he has chose to do a college tour. \n"The college audience is very much my sort of demographic, in terms of the age of people who would be interested in coming to see me, and people who know me from 'Rent,' or anything else I might have done," he said. "It also seems like the right sort of venue situation for the type of music that I am doing right now."\nPascal will be performing with a pianist and he will be singing songs from "Rent," "Aida" -- a musical produced by Elton John and Tim Rice -- and from his two albums, "Civilian" and "Model Prisoner." \n"What I am doing right now, quite frankly, is the most challenging thing I have done. You are the most exposed in a situation like this," Pascal said. "When you perform in a film or a theater project, you have the luxury of hiding behind someone else's material."\nHe explained that if the material is awful, he does the best job that he can possibly do and takes comfort in the fact that he didn't write it.\n"You don't have that when you are performing your own music," he said. "There is nothing to hide behind. You are baring your soul within your music."\nPascal said he considers himself as much an actor as a singer, so it is fitting that he is best known for his role in "Rent." He was a member of the original Broadway cast in 1991. He played the role of Roger, the washed-out rock star who wants to write one more good song before he dies of AIDS. He falls in love with his neighbor Mimi, whom he finds out also has AIDS. \nThe movie, produced by Chris Columbus, was released in November. It spent six weeks in the box office top 60 and made almost $30 million. \nWhen asked about 'Rent's' success, Pascal said, "Aside from being great material, I think that the timing of that show was perfect. Everything that was going on in the country at the time was ripe for that type of material and that show." \nPascal said he never could have envisioned his current success 10 years ago. \n"I had no idea what was about to come or what sort of career I was about to embark on," he said.\nHe said that music has always remained a constant in his projects. He said he has not modeled his career on any one person but he said, "I look at someone like Will Smith who's been able to keep great success in both music and film and uses one to help the other. It is inspiring to see that it can be done. It motivates me."\nPascal denied rumors that he is starring in a new movie, "NFL Dad," but he did say that he is working on a new album with his piano player. He is moving to Los Angeles with his family to wait for the right project on Broadway to come. He also said that he had a hidden talent for cartoon voices and that he would like to be in an animated feature.\nTickets to his concert are $7 for students and $10 for general admission. Allison Diercks, the art director for Union Board -- the group sponsoring the event -- said that she chose to bring Pascal to Bloomington because she loves "Rent." \n"I wanted to bring someone who would attract a niche audience, but a faithful audience," Diercks said.\nShe explained that the Union Board worked really hard to keep the ticket prices low. \n"It was as close to a free concert as we could get with our budget," she said.\nPascal said that he is very excited about the concert. \n"I think that most of your inhibitions lie within yourself," he said. "I think that the best way to (lose them) is to get up there and be yourself"