Jason Robert Brown’s two-hander has opened at London’s Garrick Theatre following a critically-acclaimed run at the Southwark Playhouse in 2020, directed by Jonathan O’Boyle.
We’ll begin by saying that The Last Five Years is a clever concept for a show. For those unfamiliar with the premise, it recounts the preceding five years from the different perspectives of two people in a relationship as they fall in, then out, of love. Jamie (Oli Higginson) begins at the start of their relationship, as the couple have just met; while Cathy (Molly Lynch) starts at the end as they’re breaking up, and tells her version of events in reverse chronological order. The two meet in the middle and the only time they directly address each other is on their wedding day. It’s certainly a smart and creative way of telling their story.
However, this does somewhat limit the dramatic tension – we become aware in the first few minutes how this is all going to end, so it’s difficult to become invested in their story arc. A further limitation is that – given this is a two-hander and our characters interact very little with each other – it mostly plays out as two monologues simply detailing how each person sees themselves. A pair of monologues which are lacking in drama – it sadly doesn’t make for a hugely gripping theatrical experience.
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