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"The Last Five Years"

Redfern Arts Center
Tuesday, · -
The Last Five Years

Performances on:

  • Tuesday, March 30 at 7:30pm
  • Wednesday, March 31 at 7:30pm
  • Thursday, April 1 at 7:30pm
  • Friday, April 2 at 7:30pm
  • Saturday, April 3 at 2:00pm
  • Saturday, April 3 at 7:30pm

The Last Five Years , a musical by Jason Robert Brown , will be presented by the Keene State College Department of Theatre and Dance. Directed by Kirstin Riegler , Keene State Associate Professor in Acting/ Musical Theatre, the musical explores the five-year relationship between Jamie Wellerstein, a rising novelist, and Cathy Hiatt, a struggling actress, using a form of storytelling in which each character’s story is told in reverse chronological order. The characters do not directly interact except for a wedding song in the middle of the play as their timelines intersect.

This production at Keene State is unique in its casting approach and exploration of gender and sexuality. The play will be double cast with some performances exploring a heterosexual relationship between the characters, and the other reimagining their relationship as as homosexual love story to expand the lens on love and sexuality. There will be three performances for each cast; cast A will perform Tuesday, Thursday, and on the Saturday matinee, while cast B will perform Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday evening.

Approaching The Last Five Years in this way continues the director’s research focus into how gender and sexuality can intertwine in musical theatre. Riegler shares that in each production, “Everything is consistent, even down to the dialogue and the costumes... The texts are the same, everything's the same even where they are on stage. I want audiences to come and see both.” Her hope is in seeing both performances with different casts, audiences will question whether they experience a different story based on their expectations around gender and sexual orientation.

The Last Five Years premiered at Chicago's Northlight Theatre in 2001, was produced Off-Broadway, and has had numerous productions both in the United States and internationally. The play draws on a number of musical genres, including pop, jazz, classical, Klezmer, Latin, Blues, Rock, and Folk. Musical Direction for the Keene State production is provided by Deanna Zilske , and Vocal Coaching is provided by Dr. Daniel Carberg , Associate Professor of Music and Coordinator of vocal activities at Keene State.

Cast A includes Keene State students Gabe Schatz ’23 (Bennington, VT) as Jaime and Caroline Hentz ’21 (Harvard, MA) as Cathy; Cast B includes Gray Hardaker ’24 (Montpelier, VT) as Jaime, and Allison Newey ’23 (Pelham, NH) as Cathy.

Ticketing: This performance will have an in person audience option as well as a Livestream option. Both options require pre-purchasing a ticket.

To purchase in person tickets as a Keene State community member, please do so HERE.

To gain access to the passcode to view the performance on the Livestream, please do so HERE.

Donations are requested, but not required. You may also make an additional donation if you would like to via the ticketing link. Thank you for your support!

Performance program HERE

COVID Performance Guidelines : Keene State wristband required for entry into building. Masks covering one’s nose and mouth required at all times while in the building. House will open 15 minutes prior to performance. Reserved seating only. Patrons will be seated alone. No sitting together will be allowed.

This event is part of the RAC Theatre Department calendar and is open to the public.
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Contact:
Redfern Box Office
boxoffice@keene.edu
603-358-2168
Categories: Arts, Theatre and Dance
Event Dates:

To request accommodations for a disability, please contact the coordinator at least two weeks prior to the event.

Contact Keene State College

1-800-KSC-1909
229 Main Street
Keene, New Hampshire 03435