The Last five Years Review

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Rating (out of 5)
3
Show info
Company
Pandora's Productions
Performers
Tabitha Tingey (Cathy), Ben Cork(Jamie)
Running time
85mins

In what is an intimate venue, two actor-singers sing this one-act musical by Jason Robert Brown tenderly and in an exquisite manner. It’s a two-hander, although the songs are virtually all solos, with the exception of the marriage where the stories come together.

For Cathy, a struggling actress, this tale starts at the end of her marriage and works back to their meeting. Jamie on the other hand is now a successful novelist at the beginning of the relationship and moves through the stages of hope through to being tempted into infidelity and then succumbing.

This is a novel approach by the writer and the contrast in their individual stories is thought-provoking. While the singers are also good actors, Tabitha Tingey perhaps has the best opportunities to put a great deal of feeling into both words and expressions. Most of the music is of a similar style and the show is a procession of solos akin to a book written from two different perspectives.

The composer could have created a more interesting piece of theatre with variations in levels and styles or the injection of other characters. Some of the highlights are songs such as ‘I can do better than that’ and the contrasting songs of goodbye stand out along with Cathy’s opening number ‘Still Hurting’.

If you like being a voyeur on other people’s troubled relationship and appreciate good singing, I am sure that you will find scenes that you can empathise with and get a lot out of this production.

Show times
Till 28, 2.35 pm

Ticket Prices
£5