Berkshire on Stage

Mac-Haydn Theatre’s latest “Special Event” is a two-day run of Jason Robert Brown’s THE LAST FIVE YEARS, sandwiched in just before the final weekend of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR.  Experimenting with events like concerts,  “Show Stoppers” and now a fully-staged musical, Producing Artistic Director John Saunders, who directs this production of Brown’s two-hander, elicits powerful performances of a script that can at times be hard to follow.

First produced by Chicago’s Northlight Theatre in 2001, THE LAST FIVE YEARS opened off-Broadway at the Minetta Lane Theatre in 2002, starring Sherie Rene Scott and Norbert Leo Butz.  Revived at the Second Stage theatre in 2013 with Brown directing, the musical was made into a film in 2014, directed by Richard LaGravenese, with Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan.    Following performances in London’s West End (and in other countries), its latest incarnation was a short run (April—June, 2025) on Broadway with Nick Jonas and Adrienne Warren.

THE LAST FIVE YEARS tells the story of two young people in love—Jamie Wellerstein (Jonah Hale) and Cathy Hiatt (Amelia Barr), whose five-year relationship ended in a bitter divorce.  In his introduction to the published version of the play in 2011, Brown explains his motivation for writing the musical and its unusual structure.  Inspired by his own “sad and bitter divorce,” Brown said that writing this show (the book, the lyrics, and the music) was like “exorcising the demons of my marriage.”  (His ex-wife sued him for violating the non-disparagement and non-disclosure agreements of their divorce decree by representing their relationship too closely, to which he counter-sued claiming that she interfered with his creative work and process.) 

According to Brown, after four difficult years of writing the music and lyrics for PARADE, a musical about the life and 1915 lynching of Leo Frank, directed by Harold Prince (unsuccessful in its premiere the musical won the Tony for Best Revival on Broadway in 2023), his next project was going to be a small scale piece with two characters that could be performed in any space.   Rather than dialogue, he preferred each song to be a solo, so that the singers would basically not interact.  The question was how to avoid a depressing second act as their marriage disintegrated. Brown concluded that the woman would start the show at the end of their relationship, while the man would start at the beginning.  (There have been musicals, like MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, that have gone backwards in time, but this structure—with the actors going in opposite directions—seems unique.)   There was to be only one interaction between the characters, at the midpoint of the show, which would be their wedding.

Although this sounds like a fascinating idea, in performance it could get very confusing:  we’re constantly trying to figure out, as we listen to each song (there are spoken monologues as well), where the characters stand in the course of their forward/backward relationship.  Has he arrived at the point where the marriage is turning sour?  Has she gone back to the point at which she’s falling in love with him?

However, setting that aside, the two singer/actors, the direction and the music are exceptional.  Staged on the blue JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR set, with its solid cylindrical bases, star-shaped centerpiece, Statue of Liberty upstage design, and stars above that surround us with the flick of a switch, the ninety-minute intermissionless performance makes use of every nook and cranny on the stage and its surroundings.  At times, a singer sits on the edge of the stage staring straight into the eyes of audience members who are maybe a foot away.  This can be tough for Jonah Hale, who is well-loved by his audience, having appeared in over twenty-five Mac-Haydn productions.   But when he sings to them about his infidelity to his wife, complaining about how tough it is for married men to avoid temptation from other women, the females in the audience are not sympathetic!

Hale has a wide vocal range that moves from a low bass to a high falsetto.  Young, energetic, a singer who dances and a good actor, we root for him to succeed as a writer on his way to a successful career.  Brown’s introspective songs work well with Hale’s ability to express the gamut of emotions that make up Jamie, from someone passionately in love to one who gives up on trying to save a relationship.   He is clearly comfortable finding the justification for each transition.

Amelia Barr, a newcomer to the Mac and real-life partner to Hale, imbues Cathy with all the insecurities of a would-be actress suffering the indignities of the business:  the audition process, summer-stock, and attempts to find an agent.    Beautiful, sexy (her costumes, changing to reflect her surroundings in each scene, are stunning), she has a strong belting voice (that can sometimes feel harsh but may be due to her microphone).  Barr’s Cathy longs to be married to the man she loves but doesn’t want to give up her career, hard as it is to believe in herself the way Jamie believes in her.  There’s a bit of A STAR IS BORN about the way Cathy resents Jamie’s meteoric rise as a writer, overshadowing her slow progress as an actress.  Jamie tells her: “I will not lose because you can’t win.” 

We may wish that Jamie and Cathy had more moments together, more opportunities for each to react to what the other is singing, instead of being in different time zones and places even if they are both onstage.  But that’s obviously not what Brown intended.

The music, cataloguing the changing nature of Jamie and Cathy’s love, is written in an amalgam of different styles that can be deeply affecting.  As Brown says in his introduction, these characters made mistakes because “they believed that loving each other was going to fix any problem that came along.  It didn’t, it doesn’t.  That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have tried.”  The musicians, who are always a highlight of the Mac’s productions, play only stringed instruments along with a keyboard, conveying the highs and lows of this sadly decaying relationship.  Brown’s lyrics, every one of which could be heard in this production, are stories in themselves, revealing not only the events but the inner thoughts of each character.

Hopefully, Saunders will continue to experiment and expand the Mac’s offerings with new ideas, new productions and wide-ranging events that keep its large and loyal audiences returning to their beloved theatre.  

THE LAST FIVE YEARS ran from July 30—August 1^st at the Mac-Haydn Theatre, 1925 NY-203, Chatham, New York.  For tickets call 518-392-9292 or online at www.machaydntheatre.org

The Mac-Haydn Theatre presents THE LAST FIVE YEARS by Jason Robert Brown.  Director:  John Saunders.

Cast:  Amelia Barr (Cathy Hiatt); Jonah Hale (Jamie Wellerstein).  Lighting Design: Eoghan Hartley; Sound Design: George LaChance; Scenic Design: Emma Cummings; Props Design: Paul Colarusso; Music Director: Evelyn Tomaro; Technical Director: Cody Kane; Production Supervisor: Eoghan Hartley.

The performance runs 90 minutes with no intermission.