A 20th Anniversary reunion event for Northlight Theatre’s world premiere of The Last Five Years — featuring performances and conversation with playwright Jason Robert Brown, director Daisy Prince, and original cast members Norbert Leo Butz and Lauren Kennedy — begins online this Sunday, May 23, 2021 at 6:30pm CST for free on The Northlight YouTube channel.
On May 23, 2001, a brand-new musical opened at Northlight Theatre, changing the face of musical theater and the lives and careers of its creators and stars. Twenty years later, the original team will talk about the landmark production, featuring never-before-told stories and two new performances of the musical’s hit songs.
“In 1999 while putting up our production of Dinah Was, I asked our then music director Jason Robert Brown if he had a small, vest-pocket musical he’d like to work on outside of New York. What he suggested would become The Last Five Years. It is an honor to have presented Jason’s early work, and it was, in many ways, the template for all of our new work that followed,” comments Artistic Director BJ Jones, who will also be in conversation with the creators and cast.
Founded in 1974, Northlight — just north of Chicago in Skokie, IL, has mounted over 220 productions, including more than 40 world premieres. Northlight has earned 208 Joseph Jefferson Award nominations and 36 Awards, as well as ten Edgerton Foundation for New Play Awards. As one of the area’s premier theatre companies, Northlight is a regional magnet for critical and professional acclaim, as well as talent of the highest quality.