The Last Five Years, a musical written and composed by Jason Robert Brown, will be performed April 6-22, 2023 on WICA's Main Stage. Starring Ada Faith-Feyma and Tristan Johnson, the musical is directed by Deana Duncan, with musical direction by Sheila Weidendorf.
The 2002 Off-Broadway musical, with music and lyrics by Tony Award-winner Jason Robert Brown, tells the bittersweet tale of a brief marriage between two young artists. The musical earned a Drama Desk Award in 2002 and a film adaptation was released in 2015.
The Last Five Years explores the five-year relationship between Jamie Wellerstein (Seattle actor Tristan Johnson), a rising novelist and Cathy Hiatt (Ada Faith-Feyma), a struggling actress. The show uses a form of storytelling in which Jamie's story is told in chronological order and Cathy's story is told in reverse chronological order. Set in New York City, the heartfelt musical is a tale of love and loss, time and place, identity and belonging.
"It tells the story of a young couple's relationship over five years," said Duncan. "But we meet him in year one and her in year five, and they travel through time, only meeting once at their wedding in the middle." Duncan, who previously directed a staged reading of it at WICA, said the musical is a cult favorite among musical theater geeks. "There is a magical component in the musical due to the time travel element," said Duncan. "It gives lovely depth to the story and makes it deeply romantic."
Musical director Sheila Weidendorf assembled a five-piece stage band for the musical. The quintet features Whidbey Island musicians Linda Vogt, violin; Aniela Marie Perry, cello 1; Janes Hinkley, cello 2; Troy Chapman, guitar; and Weidendorf on piano. "I know they will delight the audience and provide beautiful support to our cast," said Weidendorf. "We are all tremendously excited to bring this show to our community."
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