Show Synopsis:
Cathy, a struggling actress, and Jamie, an author, tell the story of their five-year relationship in this song cycle. Cathy's story goes in reverse while Jamie's goes in order, and they only meet in the middle at their wedding. After dating and marrying, Jamie finds that he can't keep himself from cheating on Cathy, and they divorce.
Character:
Cathy Hiatt, an actress who transforms backwards from feeling helpless and disbelieving about her relationship with Jamie to fresh-faced and optimistic about her career and love life; not exceedingly self-confident but a hard worker.
Song Context:
Cathy is overjoyed with how well things are going with Jamie in the beginning of their relationship and she begins to think that she is not destined for the life of settling for less and disappointment that she thought she was.
Fun Facts:
1) The role of Cathy is based on Jason Robert Brown's relationship and former marriage with Theresa O'Neill. O'Neill threatened to sue Brown if it was too biographical, so he rewrote a song into "Shiksa Goddess" to lessen the similarity.
2) Betsy Wolfe, who played Cathy in the 2013 Off-Broadway revival of The Last Five Years, previously performed on Broadway with Sherie Rene Scott in Scott's semi-autobiographical muscial Everyday Rapture. Scott played the role of Cathy in the original Chicago production and sang the role on the original cast recording.
3) The cost of making a cast recording was rising rapidly, so the original cast recording of The Last Five Years was made by the small record company Scott and her husband had founded, Sh-K-Boom Records.
"My best friend had a little situation
At the end of our senior year,
And like a shot, she and Mitchell got married that summer.
Carolann getting bigger every minute
Thinking, ""What am I doing here?""
While Mitchell's out every night
Being a heavy-metal drummer.
They got a little cute house on a little cute street
With a crucifix on the door.
Mitchell got a job at the record store in the mall
Just the typical facts of a typical life in a town on the Eastern shore
I thought about what I wanted -
It wasn't like that at all.
Made Carolann a cute baby sweater
Thinking ""I can do better than that.?
In a year or so, I moved to the city
Thinking ""What have I got to lose?""
Got a room, got a cat, and got twenty pounds thinner.
Met a guy in a class I was taking who you might say
Looked like Tom Cruise.
He wouldn't leave me alone 'less I went with him to dinner
And I guess he was cute
And I guess he was sweet
And I guess he was good in bed.
I gave up my life for a better part of a year
And so I'm starting to think that this maybe might work
And the second it entered my head
He needed to take some time off,
Focus on his ?career.""
He blew me off with a heartfelt letter.
I thought ""I can do better than that.?
You don't have to get a haircut,
You don't have to change your shoes,
You don't have to like Duran Duran,
Just love me.
You don't have to put the seat down,
You don't have to watch the news,
You dont' have to learn to tango,
You don't have to eat prosciutto,
You don't have to change a thing,
Just stay with me.
I want you and you and nothing but you,
Miles and piles of you.
Finally I'll have something worthwhile
To think about each morning.
You and you and nothing but you.
No substitution will do,
Nothing but fresh, undiluted and pure
Top of the line and totally mine!
I don't need any lifetime commitments,
I don't need to get hitched tonight.
I don't want to throw up your walls and defenses.
I don't mean to put on any pressure
But I know what a thing is right
And I spend every day reconfiguring my senses.
When we get to my house, take a look at that town
Take a look at how far I've gone
I will never go back,
Never look back anymore
And it feels like my life led right to your side
And will keep me there from now on.
Think about what you wanted,
Think about what could be,
Think about how I love you,
Say you'll move in with me.
Think of what's great about me and you,
Think of the bullshit we've both been through,
Think of what's past because we can do better!
We can do better!
We can do better than that!
We can do better than that!"