The story may be sad, even heartbreaking at times, but with such a thoughtful team behind this production, it’s anything but depressing. Somehow, in the hands of such a great creative and production team, and undoubtedly helped by the wonderful setting 4th Wall Theatre provides, the story of a marriage told from start to end, and also end to start, is one of the best theatrical shows I’ve ever seen.
Jamie tells us his side of the story chronologically, starting with meeting Cathy and falling in love with her. As he belts out his first song, Shiksa Goddess, you can’t help but be happy for him, even though you already know how it ends.
You already know how it ends because Shiksa Goddess is the second song of the night, preceded by Cathy’s song, Still Hurting. In that song, she tells us “Jamie is over and Jamie is gone, Jamie’s decided it’s time to move on.”
While Jess gives the song an absolutely beautiful tone, the cleverness of Jason Robert Brown’s composition comes through as well - he uses an almost uneven rhythm in it which sets the scene perfectly - Cathy is hurting and her life, now Jamie has left, has lost its rhythm, she is lost, and the haunting lyrics of her son, combined with that unusual time signature of the music give the impression of someone truly adrift.
As the show continues, we follow Jamie as he travels forward, falling in love at the same time he is chasing his dreams and desperate for his beloved Cathy also chase hers at the same time he wants her at his side as he achieves his. It is sad to him moving through a relationship we know is doomed, but somehow it’s even sadder following Cathy backwards through life. A happy, freshly-in-love Cathy is more heartbreaking than the abandoned and adrift wife we saw at the start.
This is an incredibly challenging show for actors. For most of it they effectively give solo performances, monologues of song, only coming truly together on their wedding day and then, discordantly, in the final song(s) of the night, Goodbye Until Tomorrow / I Could Never Rescue You.
The staging is fantastic, and the space is used well. We begin with Cathy standing on the left of the stage and Jamie on the right and as their timelines cross over, they swap sides. Simple yet effective. The same is true of the rotating turntable stage in the centre. Here we see them on their wedding day and also as they dance as silhouettes at times. At first, watching their silhouettes dance on it, it resembles a old-style musical box, but when Cameron gives one of his best performances of the show - The Schmuel Song - it becomes a clock that once seen, you can’t forget for the rest of the show. From that point, each time the turntable moves, you are reminded of the passing of time in this show - be it forwards with Jamie, or backwards with Cathy you can’t forget - this story has a time span on it. Five years. No matter what Jamie or Cathy do, they can’t change time.
Cameron’s performance in The Schmuel Song is a real highlight. Not just for the song itself, but his physicality on stage in this is hypnotic. As he moves his hands around, I struggle to believe he isn’t holding the fabric swatch he is singing about, so clearly can I imagine it in his arms.
Jess has an equal skill in making the audience see things that simply aren’t there. As she sits on the edge of the pier, talking to Jamie, we see him, and the pier, even though the pier is just one of the many (well done) digital backdrops and Jamie himself is not there.
Another highlight is Jess’s performance of Climbing Uphill/ Audition Sequence. In this, her comic timing, and wonderfully expressive acting come into their own. It’s funny yet sad and is perfectly planned, from choreography to costuming, lighting to sound.
As always with 4th Wall Theatre, the lighting and sound are flawless throughout. Lighting in particular in this show is not only well done, but almost becomes another character on stage, so effectively is it used in making the audience fully experience the emotions we are seeing. A clever contrast of warm and cool lights near the end speaks a thousand words, adding a whole extra layer to the show.
This show is undoubtedly some of the best theatre you will see, in Taranaki or anywhere, in this year, or in 10 years. It’s simply wonderful, and thanks to the combination of Jason Robert Brown’s script and music, the two talented actors on stage and a creative and production team who are nuanced and thoughtful in every aspect of creating this show, it will stay with you for a long time after the final song.
I’m not sure how a sad love story can leave me feeling so hopeful, but on reflection maybe there are two reasons for that. Firstly, perhaps a sad love story is better than no love story at all - better to have loved and lost and all that, but secondly, and more importantly, perhaps because that feeling of hope is from the knowledge that we have such passionate, talented and intelligent people in our region willing and able to create theatre like this.
So, to end where we started. Go, get your tickets to what is one of the best pieces of theatre I’ve ever seen.
The Details:
What: The Last Five Years
Where: 4th Wall Theatre
When: July 13-29
Tickets: www.4thwalltheatre.co.nz
