'Last year we did Sweeney Todd and that was serious and very difficult musically. We felt the quality and calibre of young performers who we were attracting warranted being able to take on something as meaty as Rent. Knowledge empowers us, we should not shy away from exploring issues that are considered controversial for a youth cast.'

The scale of the production is impressive. Adapted and directed by McAlister, with musical director Scott Gibson, choreographer Jun Mabaquiao and production designer Marsha Roddy, the musical has a cast of about 50 actor/singers aged from their mid-teens to mid-20s.

The show also includes prerecorded material that has been filmed professionally.

'We have a very strong production team, and everybody who is on the production side is a professional, even though they're not being paid,' says McAlister.

Musically, the show maintains the standard set by last year's acclaimed production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd, and the rock opera-style score will be performed by the cast and four musicians, overseen by Gibson, who will be onstage in costume as homeless people.

'It's very thoroughly composed, with motifs being developed throughout rather than just individual songs. It's a very exciting score to work on,' Gibson says.

The show is in English, but with narration in Cantonese, which adds an interesting dimension to it for at least one cast member.

Eric Krueger, who performed in a US National Tour of Rent, is returning to the character of Mark for this production. 'The script is virtually the same, but a lot of the staging and the things that we are doing are different. There are things I used to say that I don't say any more and there are things being said in Cantonese that I'm trying to pretend I understand,' he says.

McAlister says the group develops different staging for each production as a matter of policy, rather than trying to recreate the Broadway or West End shows.

'I do look for reference at what other people have done, but I want to make it ours. A lot of it we have created collaboratively [with the cast]. It's not just what I say - it's what they feel is right. They are part of the creative process,' she says.

Because the foundation wants to attract a young audience - the show is advertised as being suitable for ages 12 or above, with parental guidance recommended for children aged six to 11 - a discreet approach has been taken to presenting same-sex relationships and other 'edgy' issues in the production.

'I hope that we're handling it in a very sensitive way. We're working with a filmmaker so, in addition to the live action that you see, there's quite a lot of intimacy that you don't see on stage, but on film. We're hoping that you get the feeling of the relationships, but that it's not quite as confrontational,' McAlister says.

She praises the boldness of her young cast in taking on their roles and, in particular, one of the younger actors, 15-year-old Cletus Chan, who plays an HIV-positive drag queen called Angel.

'For Cletus to be taking on a role like Angel is a very bold choice for him as an actor. It's quite a sensitive role, and we had to make sure that he felt comfortable doing it and that his parents felt comfortable with him doing it,' McAlister says.

Krueger, however, is quick to point out that although the show is concerned with sexuality, HIV/Aids and drug abuse, they are not what it is fundamentally about.

Rent is the magnum opus of author, lyricist and composer Larson, who drew inspiration from his own experience of living as an artist in New York and being broke much of the time. His was the bohemian way of life Rent chronicles and celebrates.

Tragically, he never saw the final version of the show performed in front of an audience. Larson died suddenly of an undiagnosed heart condition on the eve of his creation's 1996 off-Broadway premiere. He was just 35 years old and didn't know he had written the stage musical hit of the decade.

'Jonathan Larson had devoted his life to this show,' Krueger says. 'All the characters that you see were from his neighbourhood, his walk of life. It ran for 10 years on Broadway on this platform of celebrating life, celebrating love. Audiences can see past the controversial things that are being discussed. People should be able to walk out of the theatre saying 'Wow, that was a great show and I feel good about life.''

McAlister agrees: 'The broader themes behind this musical are pertinent to everyone - love, loyalty and the courage to fight for what we believe in. What could be more important than fostering the belief in our young adults that they have the power to control their future and that they need to be proactive in looking after themselves?'

Rent, Nov 25-27, 7.30pm; Nov 27, 2.30pm. Shouson Theatre, HK Arts Centre. Tickets: HK$250. Urbtix, tel: 2734 9009