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Jonathan Larson Essay

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Jonathan Larson

January 21. The time is around 6:45 pm. Writer, composer Jonathan
Larson was sitting in the very last few rows listening as cast he had chosen for his "about to be" Broadway musical, "Rent" went through one of the final dress rehearsals in The New York Theater Workshop. He and the Director of "Rent"
Michael Grief began to sing one of the songs form the show when Larson began to feel a pain in his chest. The pain worsened. Larson (being the compulsive worrier and hypochondriac close friends and relatives knew him as) turned to an actor and said,"You better call 911. Think I'm having a heart attack."

Lagon was rushed to the Emergency Room of New York's Cabrini Medical
Center. …show more content…

Evening. Brian Carmody found his roommate in bed, short of breath and mumbling in a low voice. The only food he could seemingly stomach was Jell-O and some tapioca pudding.

January 23. Afternoon. Jonathan called his father in Albuquerque complaining of chest and lower back pains and a small degree temperature. His father felt it was nothing serious.

Evening. His condition worsens. The chest pains are again excruciating.
He decides to return to the hospital. Carmody again a member of the staff says the hospital could not attain the records form Larson's visit two days earlier.
Instead, he is taken by way of cab to St. Vincent's, a closer hospital. When he arrived, Larson rated his pain as being seven out of a possible 10. A nurse classified his case as "urgent".

After some examination, he was told this was no more than a virus (due to flu-like symptoms) and it would pass.

January 25. It has been a long, hard, nerve-racking day for Larson. He has just returned to his downtown Manhattan apartment on Greenwich Avenue from the final dress rehearsal before the preview of his On-Broadway musical "Rent".
Perhaps he was trying to relax with some nice, hot tea, or perhaps it was just to heat up some remedy he had picked up from a stage hand in passing through the cloud of hectic activity which consumed him that day. Larson collapsed there, in front of the stove that day, dead, and was later discovered by Mr. Carmody.
Dead. After six years

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