#1
Posted: 3/18/05 at 4:01pm
Well, I went back and saw The Last Five Years at the El Portal Theater in North Hollywood last night and I have to say that my recommendation (posted earlier this month) is now offered with several major reservations. The strong points remain the show itself with its unique look at a relationship gone sour from opposing points of view and opposing time sequences. The music/lyrics are as powerful as ever. Such a gorgeous, though also often very funny, score! I still like Stef Tovar as Jamey. He is dynamic and funny and sexy and sings well (though nowhere near as well as Norbert Leo on the OCR, but then again who can?) Like Norbert, he's a bit old to play a 23-28 year old, but that's a minor criticism. The staging/set however is quite boring compared to a near-perfect production I saw in the San Diego area last December. It's a plain cabaret type set, and the show deserves better than that. The big problem remains Tricia Small, as Cathy. Yes, she is a good actress, but this is a SINGING role, and as the critic for Backstage West has so accurately written: "Perhaps it was an extremely off night for her, because there is no other explanation for how a producing-directing team would cast a performer incapable of hitting or sustaining almost any notes in her upper range. Small's voice cracked or unpleasantly warbled during every song. " This is exactly how I felt the first time I saw it, but I hoped it was opening night jitters. The interesting part of this is that I overheard the director talking with a friend when I saw it the first time and seems that Ms. Small loves the show and really wanted to do it, and because she (or I'm assuming she and friends) had the means to produce it, she got the rights and asked him and Mr. Tovar to be part of the production. Apparently (though it's just 2nd hand info, so don't quote me) no one "hired" her to do this. A moral can certainly be learned from this story. So to those of you who may have been persuaded by my earlier post to go see the show, if you don't mind shelling out $19 for a 1/2 price seat, it may be worth your while. As I said earlier, tickets can be had at www.goldstarevents.com. But if you want to wait for a stronger overall production, you might want to do so. It's your call.
Updated On: 3/18/05 at 04:01 PM
