Audiences first got to know Anthony Rapp back in 1987 when he appeared in the film Adventures in Babysitting. Since then he has amassed an impressive roster of supporting work, with roles in School Ties (with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Brendan Fraser), the stoner comedy hit Dazed And Confused, Six Degrees of Separation (with Will Smith), the special-effects driven Twister and the Oscar-winning drama A Beautiful Mind. His most recent turn on the big screen was in last year’s film adaptation of the musical Rent, where he recreated his role of filmmaker Mark Cohen.

Almost 10 years prior, Rapp watched the stage version of Rent shoot from off-Broadway to Broadway sensation, snagging a coveted Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award along the way. But what should have been a time of tremendous joy was marred by profound tragedy for the cast of Rent, and even more so for Rapp. Not only did Rent’s creator, Jonathan Larson, die suddenly due to an aortic aneurysm, but Rapp’s mother was losing her battle with cancer. The old show biz adage “the show must go on” was never more applicable.

Rapp recently penned his memoir Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and the Musical ‘Rent’, which chronicles his time in one of the most popular rock operas ever to grace the Great White Way, while balancing the sorrow of untimely passings. The book also explores his personal life away from the bright lights, where he spends his time with his partner, Rodney To, and their three cats.

Now, Rapp is ready to take his own show on the road, in the form of a book tour that will make a whistle stop in San Diego on Saturday, March 18, at 3:00 p.m. at Claire De Lune in North Park.

Rapp spoke with the Gay & Lesbian Times about the 525,600 minutes (times 10) that constitute the nascence of Rent’s success, how the film version differs from the stage version, the healing power of the written word and why he’s proud to be an out actor.

Gay & Lesbian Times: The stage version of Rent was a pop-culture phenomenon. Why do you think it resonated with audiences so much?

Anthony Rapp: In retrospect, it feels like it kind of filled a void that no one knew was there; that there was a little bit of a lack of shows that were both entertaining and relevant to people’s lives, or felt relevant to people’s lives in a way that Rent does, or has helped people. And it certainly introduced some young people to the notion that theater could be powerful, and not simply like a spectacle or something that you could just go to with a school group … that it could be something meaningful. And the media just was incredibly supportive to us, and that certainly helped get our message and the music of Jonathan Larson out to the world.

GLT: How did you handle being in a hugely successful show with the incredible losses you were experiencing at the time?

AR: It was really not easy. I feel like we were lucky to have the show, though, because the show became a source of catharsis, and a place for us to kind of pour all of what we were going through into our performances. So we were lucky in that sense. It’s something [Rapp’s mother succumbing to cancer] that was a very similar situation, in the sense that I could funnel all of it into my performance. All of the material was so relevant to what I was going through. I mean, there were times when it was a little too relevant. Like there were times where I would have to call my stage manager and say I have to take a night off, because I needed a little time away from the intensity. But overall it was very helpful; it helped get me through.

GLT: Obviously, there’s a big difference between doing a film version of Rent and performing it on stage. Were there any elements that you missed during filming? What was the process like?

AR: I didn’t really miss it, but we were lucky that we had such an incredible live performance experience, ’cause we could – it was kind of, it was in our bones. But if we had never had the live experience, I think it would have been very strange to do the material without having a real crowd reaction or things like that when we were doing the film. But then there were moments, like when we did “La Vie Boheme,” [that] the extras in the scene kind of became our audience to perform to [and] it was nice to have them around. And the crew was sort of an audience. In that sense, I did miss a little bit of the live performance feel.

GLT: How cathartic was it to write this memoir?

AR: It’s about the most cathartic thing I’ve ever done in my life. I mean, I finally finished a draft; it took a very long time. It was very difficult, very challenging. When I finally finished it, it was such a breath; like it lifted the hugest weight off of my soul. And then the response has been beyond anything I would have anticipated, so far.

AR: On a personal level, there’s something in just the fact that the book was sort of all up to me to finish; and I had an editor helping revise, but because the actual composition was, like, totally on my shoulders, I feel like that, in some ways, was the most personally satisfying. But that’s only as a result of all the other things that were so satisfying and fulfilling. Ultimately, I really prefer being in a collaborative medium performing my work – like doing a show was probably the most fulfilling. But there’s a particular kind of personal satisfaction and pride that I am taking in having the book done. And, again, the response, the way it’s being welcomed by people and embraced by people, and taken into their hearts, is really powerful.

GLT: Have you had any negative experiences from being an out actor?

AR: I don’t think so. It could have maybe interfered with some casting situations. I don’t know – it’s never been brought to my attention that that’s the case. I mean, I don’t know that it’s something that people would overtly say anyway. But I’ve worked fairly steadily over the years – I mean, I’ve certainly had my share of downtime, but I don’t think it’s a result of being out. I could be wrong. So, regardless, it’s nothing I would ever trade for a million years. And the rewards have been too great, in terms of the kinds of conversations I’ve had with people, the opportunities that have come because of it; the difference that people have said I’ve made. That’s beyond any possible role that I may not have possibly gotten.