Portal:Musical Theatre/Selected article/7

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The Last Five Years is a one act musical written by Jason Robert Brown. It premiered in Chicago in 2001 and was then produced off-Broadway in March of 2002 . Since then it has enjoyed numerous productions internationally.

The story explores a five-year relationship between Jamie Wellerstein, a rising novelist, and Cathy Hiatt, a struggling actress. The show uses a novel form of storytelling in which Cathy travels backwards in time (beginning the show at the end of the marriage), and Jamie travels forwards (starting with the couple's first date). The songs are presented as soliloquies, except for a wedding song in the middle, where the two characters share a duet. Sometimes the show is performed in such a way that Jamie and Cathy only interact during their wedding.