It's been 13 years since the rent check was first due, and they're still not gonna pay.

The heart of "Rent," Jonathan Larson's now-legendary rock musical about East Village bohemians, has always been its two leads. There's Roger, the tortured romantic and would-be rock god; and Mark, the penniless filmmaker-cum-community builder.

No one knows these characters better than the men who originated the roles, Adam Pascal (Roger) and Anthony Rapp (Mark). After reprising their parts in Chris Columbus' 2005 film adaptation, the duo was asked to return for a short run in the Broadway production and now both are part of a touring production that opens a two-week run at the Colonial Theatre on Tuesday night.

The Herald spoke to Pascal, 39, and Rapp, 38, by phone about why they just couldn't stay away.

Herald: What made you decide to revisit "Rent" onstage?

Pascal: They offered Anthony and me an opportunity to just do a short summer run on Broadway. Enough time had passed that I felt comfortable going back and revisiting the role. It turned out to be a great experience and that led to this tour.

Rapp: The producers called us and asked us if we would consider coming back to the show for a limited engagement and we both called each other right away and said, `OK, would you want to? Because I would only do it if you want to.' After we did the movie in 2005, coming back to the stage was like coming full circle.

Do you approach your characters differently now after so many years?

Pascal: It's definitely gotten easier. When we first started the show, none of us had any idea how to maintain our voices over a sustained period of time, so we were all trashed all of the time. Now we're definitely more consistent. Also, the emotional beats are easier to find. We really understand the journey of these characters because it's so ingrained in our bones.

Rapp: There are probably things that come through differently now that I'm older and hopefully wiser. I'm just trying to tell the story and be open to the moment.

When it debuted on Broadway in 1996, "Rent" was such a contemporary show, especially in the way the story dealt with the AIDS epidemic. Do you think the message has changed with the times?

Pascal: I think it's saying the same thing it always said - it's just being absorbed differently. To a certain extent, the fact that the characters are dealing with AIDS is incidental. It's not what they're dealing with, it's how they're dealing with it. It's about these people's lives and how they love and support each other in the face of adversity.

Rapp: Right now what people are remarking on is this notion of crisis and struggle in the show. These days it isn't just an idea, or something that's happening to those people "over there." It could happen to any one of us at any time. People are much more aware of that these days and they're therefore able to connect even more to the characters in the show.

This is the first time you've performed in "Rent" on the road. How have tour audiences been responding?

Pascal: There are just so many thousands of "Rent" fans across the country. And what's surprising is the similarity between all the audiences. It's what I would imagine a touring rock band feels like. We feel loved and embraced everywhere we go.

Rapp: They've been raucous and heartfelt and loud. There's just this tremendous energy.

How has being in the show affected your lives?

Pascal: It started my career in musical theater and it also launched a love for musicals. "Rent" has affected my life in every conceivable way, positively and negatively. And I wouldn't change anything about it.

Rapp: We came together because we had something to say that we believed in our whole hearts, and we did our best work together. To know that something like that is possible in the real world has informed everything I've done since. I was a part of the Obama campaign, and a lot of us there were thinking the same kind of thing - if everyone comes together for the best reasons, sometimes the world will match up to your ideals. And then when it does, the ripple effects of that will be felt for years, for forever.

- jenna.scherer@gmail.com

"Rent," at the Colonial Theatre, July 14-26. Tickets: $40-$70; 800-982-2787.

Originally published by By JENNA SCHERER.

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